ROC Protection
ROC Protection is a company started by a few students at Clonkeen College in County Dublin, Ireland. These students have developed a brand new product that has never been seen before in the hurling/camogie world and that is a protective base layer.
The base layer is made from a tight fitting, sweat wicking material with protective pads sewn into the fabric in various areas. The purpose of the product is to reduce the impact of oncoming sliotars and hurls ultimately reducing the injury rate. The base layer provides protective padding on the shoulders, collar bones (not pictured above), sternum, rib cage, and abdomen.
The base layer comes in all sizes for players of all ages and comes in black, white, yellow, or camo.
The base layer comes in all sizes for players of all ages and comes in black, white, yellow, or camo.
First Look
Overall the base layer has a nice aesthetic and seems like it's made from durable materials. I noticed a small logo in the middle of the shoulder pad and it turns out this padding is made by Brooks.
Our team requires our goalie to wear a lacrosse chest pad in order to protect their heart so upon first look I really like the sternum pad. I also like the collar bone pads as those bones break more easily than most. I also thought the rib pads were a good addition.
On another note, the shoulder pads seem excessive and abdomen pad redundant. I have never seen anyone receive a shoulder injury from a sliotar or hurl and my first thought is that these pads would just get in the way of a player's swing. My first instinct is that the abdomen pad would not provide any sort of protection as that area is soft and will recoil under any impact. I would think to put a hard plastic in that region.
On another note, the shoulder pads seem excessive and abdomen pad redundant. I have never seen anyone receive a shoulder injury from a sliotar or hurl and my first thought is that these pads would just get in the way of a player's swing. My first instinct is that the abdomen pad would not provide any sort of protection as that area is soft and will recoil under any impact. I would think to put a hard plastic in that region.
Research
I scoured their website, Facebook page, and watched all of their videos to see if ROC provided any studies done on the effectiveness of their product or any other safety research and found nothing. All I found were quotes from when ROC went on the Late Late show on RTE. Below are three quotes from the show:
- we’ve created "padding on various areas such as the collar bone, chest, rib cage, and abdominal area as we feel these are big threats should you be hit by a sliotar.” (0:29).
- “2 out of 3 hurlers over the course of a season will be forced off the field due to an injury. We believe something like the ROC protective base layer will greatly reduce the risk.” (0:45)
- A sliotar at very high speeds will, “crack a rib or rupture your spleen… Not anymore with our product.” (said kind of jokingly) (1:17)
They provided an injury rate but failed to mention where exactly players are injured. How are they so certain that the padding placement on their product will reduce the overall injury rate? How do they know their product will prevent an over 100 kilometer/hour (62 mph) sliotar from cracking a rib or rupturing a spleen?
Meeting with a Lacrosse Sales Rep
Since there was not any research on this product, my coach and I set up a meeting with a sales and product distribution representative at Harrow Sports in Denver. We brought the base layer in with us to get his opinion on the product since he has seen many sports products succeed and fail.
After we handed him the base layer, he gave us a confusing look. At first he thought it was an under layer that American Football players sometimes wear under their pads (on left), then mentioned that the padding is very similar to what baseball players wear to protect their legs and hips when sliding into bases (on right). He said the ROC base layer would protect against glancing blows and bumps and bruises, but nothing else.
Then we told him that the purpose of this product was to prevent injuries from oncoming sliotars and hurls and be worn by all players, especially goalies. He laughed and said, "I wouldn't feel safe wearing only this as a goalie." He thought that the collar bone pads would help prevent those bones from breaking, but the chest pad wouldn't do anything. It's protecting the sternum and nothing else. The heart should be protected above all else, especially for goalies.
Pictured below are Unequal Technologies heart protectors for baseball, lacrosse, or any other sport. One study found that their HART protector is "95 percent effective in preventing the onset of Commotio cordis (cardiac concussion). Commotio cordis is the #1 killer in youth baseball and #2 leading cause of sudden cardiac arrest. It's caused by a hit to the heart from a ball, stick or hand in contact sports like baseball, lacrosse, soccer, martial arts, hockey and cricket" (HART Press Release).
A different study found that when comparing other commercially available chest protectors (not including the HART protector) there is "no significant difference in risk whether or not a protector is worn" (Chest Protectors article). This means the ROC base layer will not prevent injury to a player's heart.
Pictured below are Unequal Technologies heart protectors for baseball, lacrosse, or any other sport. One study found that their HART protector is "95 percent effective in preventing the onset of Commotio cordis (cardiac concussion). Commotio cordis is the #1 killer in youth baseball and #2 leading cause of sudden cardiac arrest. It's caused by a hit to the heart from a ball, stick or hand in contact sports like baseball, lacrosse, soccer, martial arts, hockey and cricket" (HART Press Release).
A different study found that when comparing other commercially available chest protectors (not including the HART protector) there is "no significant difference in risk whether or not a protector is worn" (Chest Protectors article). This means the ROC base layer will not prevent injury to a player's heart.
He thought the rib cage pad was only to protect the kidneys as it fails to cover anything besides the ribs on the side. Ribs wrap around to the front of the body and these pads don't cover those. He also thought the abdomen pad was doing nothing and the shoulder pads would only protect players bumping into each other.
With regards to the material of the base layer he said, "This material we use on shorts. It's too heavy for shirts and it wouldn't breath. We used a material like this on a top and got terrible reviews."
Lastly we asked if he could rate the ROC base layer on a scale from 1 to 5 and he said, "I'd give it a 1 star."
With regards to the material of the base layer he said, "This material we use on shorts. It's too heavy for shirts and it wouldn't breath. We used a material like this on a top and got terrible reviews."
Lastly we asked if he could rate the ROC base layer on a scale from 1 to 5 and he said, "I'd give it a 1 star."
Recommendation / Verdict
A protective base layer for hurlers and camogie players I think is a great idea to reduce the risk of injuries, especially for goalies, but I don't think ROC protection is the way to go. ROC has not presented us with any safety tests done on their product or any information as to what foam they used or its effectiveness. All other safety products used in competitive sports have gone through testing to demonstrate their effectiveness and the ROC protective base layer has not. Therefore, I do not trust that this product actually protects players from sliotar or hurley impacts during a match.
Since I do not trust the effectiveness of the base layer, I will not buy this product or recommend it to anyone at this time. I would only consider buying the protective base layer once ROC can produce results from tests showing that their product does in fact do what ROC claims it does. Until that time comes, I wholeheartedly do not recommend this product.
Since I do not trust the effectiveness of the base layer, I will not buy this product or recommend it to anyone at this time. I would only consider buying the protective base layer once ROC can produce results from tests showing that their product does in fact do what ROC claims it does. Until that time comes, I wholeheartedly do not recommend this product.
I received this product for free from ROC Protection to write an honest, unbiased review of the base layer.
Author
Shawn Sprinkle
Founder of CU Gaelic Club
Co-Founder of Colorado Gaelic Club
Treasurer of the NCGAA