Pair of 'Contour d3o' goalkeeping gloves, incorporating a soft and flexible d3o foam punching zone, by Sells Goalkeeper Products Limited, Wakefield, Yorkshire, England, and by d3o Lab, Hove, England, and with packaging, unsigned, China, 2006. This is a polymer with shear-thickening properties, which stiffens when the goalkeeper punches the ball, providing protection and a solid platform for the punch. The reaction is instantaneous, lasting 10 milliseconds. In that time, the molecules lock together to absorb the impact energy. When the impact is over, the material returns to its flexible state.