Nike TeamSport Printing
By Jonne Keränen, Oulu, Finland
PRINTING
On replica and authentic shirts Nike uses name and number sets usually made out of some kind of polyflex material. The material is quite thin if you compare it to for example Sporting ID’s Sensicilia material that is used in the English premier league. Still the material is quite strong and I have seen only very little cracks here and there on my authentic Nike shirts’ name and number sets. Nike produces different styles for each time that makes the shirts look more unique. The Nike Laser Premium Game jersey has the official Nike teamwear numbers on it. Compared to the printing on the Nike authentic player version shirts the printing on the Laser Premium Game jersey seems to be thinner. The style of the numbers looks a bit cheap. The style sort of looks like something you might get from Ebay on unofficial products. The thinness of the numbers might have a significant effect on the durability of the printing.
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Nike Laser Premium Game teamwear jersey printing.
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Holland away shirt printing.
QUALITY/DURABILITY
With the Nike Laser Premium Game jersey you basically get the same quality that you would gain from any Nike Dri-Fit shirt. The overall quality of the shirt is satisfactory. Normal Dri-Fit material tends to bobble very easily and you might see a couple of pulls after a few washes. Specially the mesh panel at the back damages easily if it gets caught into something (for example on fingernails when putting it on). As mentioned before, the material on the Nike authentic player version shirts is a bit thicker and better in quality making the shirts more durable. I have used and washed my authentic shirts numerous times and they show basically no wear at all. Even the printed logos last very well although embroidered logos might be better in the long run.
SHORTS
The shorts in this review are basic Nike teamwear shorts with built-in stretch briefs that are compared to 12-13 Holland away replica shorts. Authentic player version shorts aren’t available for retail. The teamwear shorts don’t offer many special features, they are very plain. Both shorts are made out of same type Dri-Fit material but the Holland shorts are equipped with mesh panels at inseam and back waist for enhanced breathability. Both shorts are very light but the Holland shorts have a more streamlined fit. Like the teamwear jersey also the shorts are quite baggy. The Holland shorts have printed logos while the Swoosh on the teamwear shorts is embroidered. In general the teamwear shorts feel a bit inferior compared to the Holland shorts. Like the jersey they are very plain and don’t offer much extra features.
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The difference in fit can be seen in this picture.
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Shorts printing & Swoosh.
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Holland away shorts back waist mesh panel.
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Holland away shorts inseam mesh panel.
SUMMARY
The Nike Laser Premium Game jersey is more expensive than regular Nike teamwear shirts because it’s being branded as a top of the line authentic product. But can we really call it an authentic style Nike shirt? In my opinion, if you pay more for a shirt you need to get some added benefits from it. The authentic Nike player version shirts clearly differ from regular replicas and provide added features, such as tight athletic fit, stronger and better feeling material, improved breathability with laser-cut holes under arms and t-bars to make the shirt stronger. The only real added feature that the Laser Premium Game jersey offers is the laser-cut holes on the sides. In my opinion that is not enough. You don’t get the added benefits that you should by paying more money. Basically what you get is just a normal Nike teamwear shirt with holes under arms.