It is a problem that not only affects the goalkeeper but also his defence when defending short corners. It creeps on on you and hits you right between the eyes. Or to be factual right up the nasal passage and it is incredibly difficult to get rid of that smell. Rancid is how i have heard it described more than once this season. The goalkeeper has lots of items of protection - body armour, elbow pads, padded shorts, kickers, gloves, smock, leg pads and helmet, with many of these in contact with skin and actively soaking up the body sweat. This is then stored in a damp bag probably in the garage which is cold and damp, so it is no wonder the kit can smell so bad. So how can you clean your goalkeeper kit and helmet and retain the friendship of your defence? To begin with you should ensure you wash your kit every 4 weeks, as a minimum and keep the kit aired after use. Your helmet should be wiped dry after every use and also stored in and airy place. If you kit is particularly bad, it is wise to commandeer the bathroom for a day or 2. Half fill the bath with warm water and add all of the kit that is to be clean. To this add 50ml of vinegar as this will help break down the odours within the kit. Leave to soak for a couple of hours and then drain the bath. Repeat this process again but this time leave out the vinegar and use a liquid washing detergent and manually scrub each item. Leave these to soak for 2 hours and the rinse off thoroughly. The kit will now need to be dried. We have 2 poles that we place on the bath edge length ways and slide the kit onto the poles, this allows the kit to drip dry and the bath will catch the drips. After 24 hours the kit should be dry enough to move into a dry airy place. For your helmet, give it a thorough scrub during the second stage of the kit wash and then we use a dry shampoo, liberally applied to the inside of the helmet. This not only removes the odour but also makes the helmet smell fresh. Try to get into the habit of removing your kit from the bag after games and training, even if it is a dry day. Dry the inside of the helmet after use with a towel or cloth. Apply dry shampoo weekly to the inside of the helmet to keep it smelling fresh. With the gloves, it can be difficult to get into the finger holes to fully clean so follow the above bath procedure for best results. Most goalkeepers complain after games they cannot get rid of the odour, this is probably due to have the hands in the goalie glove and the smell is now on your hands. To reduce this we suggest wearing cricket wicket keeping batting inners, as they are full fingered and can be washed in the washing machine along with the smock. If you have any tips of how you keep your goalkeeping kit fresh do let us know.

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