Just Arrived: Joma Power

With the current equipment climate basically declaring that every boot company delve into control, heritage, and power, Joma has decided to expand their horizons and make a foray into the Power boot category. With a price-tag that is accessible for many at 60 dollars, this boot has the potential to become the power boot of choice for those of us that exist on a tight budget.

The first thing that strikes you with this boot is how amazingly bright it is. The fluorescent lime will certainly be visible for some distance out on the pitch and it is definitely a risky color choice by the Spanish boot-makers. However, I enjoy the color combination and I am excited about the fact that the color alone will cause several fellow players to inquire about my new boots.

When you first get the boots in your hands, the stiffness is a bit scary. There is very little flex from the midfoot to the toe-box, and it typically means that the break-in period will be painful and a little longer than you would like. This could be contributed to the synthetic that Joma have used or the copious amount of stitching that occurs on the boot in order to accommodate the “Power strips” that run across the front of the boot.

These strips, although similar in look to the current Puma Powercat 1.12, actually feel more like the pads on the Mizuno Wave Ignitus II. However, where the pads on the Ignitus have a rubber feel, these are very plastic feeling. They are not raised a great deal above the boot and the thought behind them must be that they have significant rebound properties.

The instep is covered by something very similar to what can be seen on the Nike Bomba Finale. However, the instep design and material is much thinner on this boot despite appearing upon first visual inspection to look thick enough to impair your feel of the ball. I doubt that it will affect my passing greatly, but it is yet another piece of tech on a boot that intrigues my mind and I cannot wait to give these a proper run-out.

The stud pattern is a healthy mix of conical and bladed studs almost identical to what you would find on the Nike Tiempo. If the synthetic turns out to be a durable one, his could be a cheap alternative to players that enjoy firm-ground stud configurations when playing on turf (although, we here at SR recommend using turf specific boots on the artificial surface…but we know some players feel differently).

Hopefully the Joma Power excels instead of disappointing, but keep an eye out for the First Impressions post and the eventual review in order to find out how these boots perform. Leave any specific questions about the Power in the comment section. Also, does this boot have the greatest name of all time or the worst? I think the originality is quite impressive…