Under Armour Headline Goalie Head Review
The Under Armour Headline is the brand’s first ever lacrosse goalie head and in this post I’ll give my full review of the Headline.
Released in 2014, overall the Headline is a solid 1st entry into the goalie head market and its a recommended goalie head for both advanced and beginner lacrosse goalies.
If you like the shape and performance of the STX Eclipse but are looking for something a little more rigid and durable at the exact same price point, the Under Armour Headline might be the perfect goalie head for you.
Lots of goalies love the Headline for box lacrosse but its also a solid and very underrated head for the field goalies as well!
Let’s jump right into the full Headline review.
Under Amour Headline Goalie Head Review
When you view the Under Armour Headline next to the STX Eclipse it’s pretty easy to see which head Under Armour chose to model.
The face shape, open sidewalls, and side profile of the two heads mirror one another. That’s probably a good thing for Under Armour because the STX Eclipse is one of my favorite goalie heads.
Given that the UA Headline is based on the STX Eclipse it features many of the same benefits you’ll find with the Eclipse. Namely good handling, solid rebound control, and ability to string up a nice pocket for outlet passes.
Given its similar side profile (angled slightly back), the Headline is good at scooping ground balls although its a little thicker in the top plastic. The thin top plastic of the STX Eclipse gives it a slight edge when it comes to scooping up GB’s.
The main difference between the two heads is towards the bottom where the Headline is just a few millimeters wider and noticeably thicker.
The thickness of the Headline is comparable to the STX Shield or the Warrior Nemesis 2. This thickness is going to do a couple of things when it comes to performance.
First, the thicker heads are not as flexible. A sturdy goalie head like the UA Headline benefits goalies in that if a high velocity shot contacts the upper quadrants of the head it won’t bend or rotate but will hold its shape and ensure the save is made.
The STX Eclipse is more flexible and can bend if a high MPH shot hits the right spot of the head. But the flexibility helps in ground balls, clamping, and for digging into the turf on bounce shots.
The thickness of the Headline also gives it just a little more weight than the STX Eclipse. The Headline weighs in at 11.9 ounces and the STX Eclipse at 11.3 ounces. As I’ve said before, it may not sound like much but there is a difference there. Overall the Headline is still on the lighter side – the Warrior Nemi 2 weight 12.4 ounces for comparison.
To reduce the weight a little while still providing that stiffness the Under Armour Headline features vented sidewalls. These vented sidewalls help produce a great strength to weight ratio in this goalie head.
The thickness also provides more durability. I broke two Eclipse’s throughout my college career. I haven’t field tested the Under Amour Headline with the same level of thoroughness as playing everyday but I can already tell the thicker plastic is going to hold up longer than the Eclipse.
As you can see in the picture, the throat of the UA Headline is a lot beefier compared to the Eclipse. According the Under Amour product description this beefier throat reduces rebounds but I’m not sure how, to be honest with you. To me, it’s more about a goalie’s soft hands and proper form to reduce rebounds.
Here’s a side by side shot of the UA Headline vs. the Warrior Nemesis 2:
As you can see the UA Headline has more surface area than the Warrior Nemi 2.
The UA Headline comes in white or black colors.
We already see this goalie head in use at the NLL and it’s my opinion that as Under Armour starts to get more involved in lacrosse (i.e. sponsoring NCAA and MLL teams) the goalies will gladly make the switch to the Under Armour Headline from their current goalie head.
Under Armour Headline Review: Stringing
The Headline comes with the same number of top holes as the STX Eclipse. This gives you the option to string up any type of mesh (12D, 14D, 20D) into the Headline for a great pocket.
While I’m not a great stringer there are plenty on Instagram who love whipping up really nice UA Headlines, such as Redbeard_Lax:
The comparison pic above and the one below comes from one of Redbeard’s beauties. You should also check out his review of the UA Headline.
The sidewall holes on the Headline are a little complicated. They’re larger and more spaced then the Eclipse.
Would have been nice to have a few more sidewall holes for more stringing and pocket options in the UA Headline. But that said, it’s still easy enough to string a good pocket into the Headline.
To get a well channeled pocket on his Under Armour Headline stringing guru Cameron Crowley aka GoalieStrings on IG had to use a quad sidewall which is an advanced stringing technique that a beginner stick ninja (or myself) probably wouldn’t know.
Under Armour Headline Review: Price
The UA Headline is priced competitively. The unstrung version will cost you $75.
That’s the same price as the unstrung STX Eclipse.
The unstrung Nemi 2 will set you back $100 so the Headline is $25 cheaper.
You can buy the Headline here on LacrosseMonkey.com.
Since the UA Headline isn’t as common as the STX Eclipse you probably won’t have much luck finding used versions on Craigslist, Ebay, or Sidelineswap.com but its definitely worth giving that a try if you can’t afford the new version.
Conclusion
If you like the shape and feel of the STX Eclipse but are looking for something a little more stiff and durable, then give the Under Armour Headline a try.
I would call the Headline a sturdier, stiffer version of the STX Eclipse. For exactly the same price.
We may have to add the Under Armour Headline into the mix for the great goalie head debate.
Pickup your unstrung Headline on LacrosseMonkey.com.
Until next time! Coach Damon
Anything I missed in this Under Armour Headline goalie head review? Leave me a comment down below.
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Just an FYI, I believe Cameron Crowley is out of the stringing game, because I sent a head to him and bought a pocket, but we never got the head back or the money despite many emails.
Thanks for that update. I guess sometimes the greats retire in their prime!
What do you think of the Eraser II. You have it posted in the eclipse review as the same weight, but at the same time it’s supposed to stiffer and larger so I’m not sure if it would work. It reminds me of a mix of Nemi and the shield
Personally have not used the Brine 2 head although I see some MLL goalies choose that head leading me to believe its a solid choice. Trying to find someone who’s used that head to write up a review for my site.
Burgess,
Cam is still stringing heads.
I have purchased three from him in the past 3 years for my son (have another pending now 🙂 The turn around time is getting longer every time. My guess is he is very busy with college and stringing jobs. I think we waited about 4 months this time, but one day last month it showed up. To tell you the truth, it was worth the wait. Cam does an awesome job every time and the pocket (eclipse/otter pocket/12d ECM) was game ready right out of the box.
I do agree that he could make an attempt to communication with his customers. I also tried numerous times to contact him with no response. Zero.. We were also thinking that he was not stringing anymore and we where out a head/money and were frustrated. So, you’ll just have to wait.. and wait… then one day it will show up and surprise you. You’ll put it on and it will throw and save like a dream and you’ll forget about the wait… Good Luck!
Thanks for adding that info Dan. Since he’s stringing for a lot of MLL goalies I imagine he’s inundated with requests and customer service emails but good to know the final product does not suffer.
Would you recommend the Eclipse or the Headline. Disregarding price and everything else, which one would you consider to be the better head?
For me personally, I prefer the Eclipse. I know others who like the Headline. I think its about your personal situation. I don’t feel like the velocity of shots I saw was enough to warrant getting the stiffer Headline. If you’re a younger goalie I think the Eclipse is definitely the way to go. But like any piece of goalie equipment there’s personal preference there.
Stx eclipse 2.0
Fer sure.
My son uses the headline for both field and box lax and loves it. At 10 he hits mid field passes with ease, and with deadly accuracy. My thoughts is it’s due to the rigidity of the sidewall and a great pocket.
Thanks for adding that Rob. I’m seeing more and more goalies make the switch from the STX Eclipse to the UA Headline probably for those reasons you mentioned.
Loved the article hit every point I enjoy about the Headline for box and is an under rated head for the field game. I know its one of the first images to pop up when googling the headline but in the future would you mind citing me in any images of my work like you did for Cameron? The comparison images you pulled are from an article I wrote for LacrossePlayGround back in 2016. I am also well aware this article is old, but would greatly appreciate the courtesy. Love what you’re doing for the position and really enjoying your podcast. Keep it going. Thanks!
Hey Travis – Thanks my man. I updated this post to cite your work. My bad I did this post quite a long time ago and should have included. Always believe in giving credit where credit is due. Love your string jobs! Keep it up.
coach, Will you do a review for the new nemesis 3 from warrior?
I don’t own a Nemi 3 yet. But hopefully soon.
My dad bought this head for me in 2016 when I was playing in 4th grade, 6 years later, still holds up great, only now it has a ton of flex to it and has begun to lose its original shape. Have always loved the head but it’s probably about time to part ways with it and buy a newer, more modern head.