Christmas gifts for sports fans – from retro tops to cricket cologne
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Version 0 of 1. CLOBBER It’s difficult to go wrong with a classic, something Savile-Rogue (savile-rogue.com) reflects in its beautiful scarves. Made from high-quality 100% cashmere and in a simple retro two-colour design, they cannot fail to be cherished. All football clubs down to and including League Two are represented as well as most of the Conference, most of Europe and now also the top-end of Rugby union and league. Football fans looking for original ideas in T-shirts need look no further than the wonderful selection at Formandglory.com. Designed by a selection of artists, all looking to present a new take on the game, Art of Sport’s clever minimalism and Wong Wong’s alternative representations of national sides are quite striking. It also does beautiful prints, with Planning Unit’s aerial representation of grounds and Dinkit’s typographically presented clubs standing out. Looking for a way to banish ugly apparel, Vulpine (vulpine.cc), which sponsors Laura Trott’s team in 2015, has come up with a real beauty. Setting itself the task of designing real cycling gear that can be worn socially, amid a range of very attractive bike-wear, its take on mod classic the Harrington fits the bill perfectly. It’s cut beautifully, and although sturdy, breathable and waterproof it is as stylish in the pub as in the saddle. The Rugby World Cup gets in early with all the competing nations’ official shirts and a wonderful selection of kids gear at rwcshop.com, while F1 fans looking for something different should look no further than the irreverent motor racing selection from the wonderfully funny website sniffpetrol.com – “I’m not slowing down for Nico” – indeed. GEAR Perfect for kids wanting to move on from England’s dismal World Cup with a Christmas kickabout, the Adidas Brazuca World Cup final replica balls are currently on offer at the bargain price of a tenner at sportingpro.co.uk. For the summer game Lord’s is celebrating this year’s bicentenary with a variety of specially branded cricket gear. The 200-years-themed classic ball makes for a nice souvenir, while the colourful glitter-themed windball will be less threatening and appeal to younger children. Serious grown-up fans might like to celebrate the anniversary with a pair of Lord’s cricket bat cufflinks (all: shop.lords.org). For those of a more energetic bent the Halo II Pullover Sweatband (haloheadbanduk.com) is a rather simple but clever idea. Designed for vigorous exercise, it is a moisture-absorbing headband that features a plastic strip built into the inside that channels sweat away from the eyes. It’s neat and well-executed. Addressing a similar issue are the Skullcandy Method Sport Headphones (skullcandy.com). Earbud headphones with a built-in mic, they use a “Sticky Gels” technology on the buds. Strictly speaking it’s just a way of making the buds adhere better to the ear to avoid endlessly having to poke them back in while exercising. It, too, is a neat idea that works well. All this will have to be lugged about – and while the kids won’t appreciate, it anyone who remembers the beloved Head tennis bags of the 1980s will be delighted to know they are being reissued. The classic St Moritz and Monte Carlo styles, ubiquitous two decades ago, are available once again at: stores.ebay.co.uk/head-Sports, and are now made of an equivalent but modern fabric and in new colours. GADGETS There are myriad wristbound fitness trainers on the market ranging across a considerable price range. The Polar M400 (polar.com) comes in at the higher end at £134.50 but it is competitively priced in comparison to other, similar units. Aimed at those who are taking their running seriously, it includes full GPS, heart‑rate monitoring and 24-hour activity tracking including step count and sleep mode and syncs with smartphones and tablets to plan activity. The M400 also measures times, distances, calories etc and includes some nice smart coaching features, including an estimator – that predicts run time based on current pace and a personal best notification system. It is also waterproof but for sounds while swimming Sony’s waterproof Walkman WS610 MP3 player is the business (sony.co.uk). As with most of the company’s devices this has been well-thought through. It’s fully waterproof down to 2m, and is a one‑piece unit that clips across the back of the head with the earbud units holding memory storage as well. There’s good sound quality, bluetooth connectivity and remote control to boot. Perfect for heavy weather or full immersion. For the more extreme forms of outdoor activity the Lifestraw Go water bottle (firebox.com)will filter out 99.9 % of water-borne bacteria, dirt and particles to offer a safe chance to rehydrate from almost any source. More relaxing, but equally as handy, is Now TV, a portable box that offers Sky TV on a daily, weekly or monthly basis. It is expensive compared to a full Sky account but doesn’t need a dish – it connects through the internet – there is no contract and is perfect for one-off events (nowtv.com). Another piece of kit then that, along with the second screen, iPad and laptop experience of home viewing, can be tidied up with the Powercube (littlewoods.com). Essentially an extension lead, it’s an ergonomically pleasing little device that offers multiple power sockets and USB outlets in a box about the size of a Rubiks Cube, making digging around under the desk a thing of the past. UNUSUAL AND UNIQUE TheLostLanes.com showcases all sorts of interesting work from independent British designers and presents a real gem in the form of the work of Katie’s Bike. The eponymous Katie fashions jewellery from recycled bike chains, beautifully restored and repurposed to present lovely, very singular objects. Her bike chain cufflinks, available in a variety of colours, are quite striking and presented ingeniously on a piece of reused innertube. Also repurposed to great effect is the lovely selection at Wicket Ideas (wicketideas.co.uk) where sporting equipment is hand recrafted in all sorts of weird and wonderful ways. A pleasingly hands-on concern where the objects are made locally in Hampshire, the cricket ball door stop and bold retro rugby ball wine cooler are eye‑catching and novel. Kit reused at the higher end of the market is on offer at Memento Exclusives, who take parts from cars that have raced in F1 and “upcycle” them into household objects. A Lotus wheel rim table will set you back £279, but more affordable are the Renault Bearing key chain at £22 and the more expensive, but rather beautiful, Renault gear ratio clock (£129), where the gear wheel holds the hands. Sadly, it is let down by a plastic clock mechanism at the rear that is not enclosed. All items come with a certificate of authenticity (mementoexclusives.com). Vulpine also branched out from clothing in the form of some rather fetching art prints and photographs of famous cycling locations. Rebecca J Kaye’s Stoker/Pilot Tandem Commuter is a vibrant double print across two separate pictures and Paul Calver’s shot of the Torcal de Antequera climb in Andalucia is a pleasingly dramatic view of the task ahead (vulpine.cc). Fears of not smelling sufficiently of cricket have been put to rest with the release of the Twenty20 Cover Drive cologne for men. What may seem as a final days of Rome act of madness deserves a decent shout however as the man-perfume was put together by Twenty20 Community Cricket, with all the profits going towards work in deaf cricket in the UK. Created by a fragrance expert who has worked with Nasa, it is supposed to “evoke memories of sunlit cricket fields with hints of grass, wood and leather and a long lasting, dry, musky finish”. Which it may well do, but some of us can’t tell having worn nothing but Brut since 1976. Nonetheless, it’s a lovely stocking-filler curio for a good cause: the group have increased the number of players involved in Deaf cricket by more than 50% in the past 12 months. DVD AND BLU-RAY A straightforward option for Manchester United fans comes in the form of the extended version of The Class of ’92 that will please completists; it features an extra 28 minutes of footage including an interview with Sir Alex Ferguson (all DVDs and blu-rays available on amazon.co.uk). Football outside the Premier League is best represented by the wonderful Next Goal Wins, a documentary telling the touching story of the Dutch coach Thomas Rongen’s attempt to make something of the American Samoa side who had lost 31-0 to Australia in 2001. As with the best sport films it is a picture that will appeal far beyond just football fans. Gamers will appreciate An Alternative Reality: The Football Manager Documentary, a feature-length doc on the addictive and long-lasting video game that will bring a smile to the face of anyone who has suddenly noticed it is 5am while trying to persuade a mercurial striker to come to Plymouth Argyle. Equally fascinating, Ginga: The soul of Brazilian Football is an intriguing doc that follows seven young players to explore what makes the Brazilian game so special. Golf fans are well-represented by the superb Seve: The Movie, a biopic mixing drama and real-life footage, it is as fine a telling of his story as one might have hoped for, on a par with Senna. Combine it with a celebratory run through of the competition he made his own in the Ryder Cup 2014 Official Film. Two films on Lance Armstrong came out this year and Stop at Nothing: The Lance Armstrong Story pips The Armstrong Lie as the better of the pair but the best two-wheel movie is the brilliant and truly sad story of Marco Pantani, Pantani: The Accidental Death of a Cyclist. Lewis Hamilton’s deserved second world championship title win can be relived in the 2014 FIA Formula One World Championship Review, while Rush, which was released back in January, is a superb dramatisation of the James Hunt-Niki Lauda story culminating in their title fight in 1976. F1: Life on the Limit in contrast is an interesting rendition of the sport’s story but one that focuses too strongly on the sport’s various terrible accidents and deaths. For boxing fans I Am Ali, recently released in cinemas, is a better than average picture telling the great man’s story, very much enhanced by unique audio footage he recorded with his family. The Super League Season Review & Grand Final 2014 is a must for rugby league fans and All This Mayhem tells a remarkable, fascinating, honest and engrossing true story from the world of skateboarding. |