Rugby’s new season may start later than the Premier League in England but the Irish provinces are giving the multi-millionaires a run for their money when it comes to the staging of pre-season rituals.
Kit launches are a major stopping point as fans are encouraged to buy new when they are at their most optimistic.
The new Ulster Rugby kit for the 2014/15 season was officially unveiled last night at Kingspan Stadium and similar photo opportunities and sales pitches will be coming from Leinster and Munster in the coming days and weeks. Connacht announced earlier in the month that they would have Lifestyle Sports as their new title sponsor and that new jersey is also coming down the tracks.
Lisburn
The Ulster kit is designed by Kukri from their Irish base in Lisburn. Munster are with Adidas while Leinster wear Canterbury, as will Ireland from November and Connacht are with BLK.
Such a diversity of manufacturers will lead to greater competition in terms of design, colour and sales while the heightened profile of both the new Champions’ Cup and the Guinness Pro12 will push the engagement of the provinces with their fans to new heights over the course of the next nine months.
The new Ulster home jersey is made from Taloc fabric, which is lightweight but durable. The jersey incorporates Ulster Rugby’s traditional colours of White, Red and Black on the body and sleeves.
4D Tech
The away kit is purple purple incorporating Ulster red across the chest and collar. According to the press statement accompanying the launch the jerseys are ‘made from brand-new 4D Tech fabric with 4-way stretch, and a new, super-strong collar called ‘The Bridge’. We’ll just have to take their word on that.
The new away jersey will be worn for the first time when the Province play Exeter Chiefs in a pre-season friendly match at Kingspan Stadium on 22nd August.
The new kit also revealed the addition of the BT Sport logo to the player’s jersey for the first time, as the club’s official communications partner aligns its sponsorship of Ulster Rugby with BT Sport’s growing focus on European Rugby.
