Cod Almighty | Diary

Kit chat

5 June 2019

In among the rumours of Andy Cook returning to Town, Young's have renewed their sponsorship for the 16th season. I'm not sure what the club receives in terms of cash but it is an important local bond and current season ticket initiatives for Young's employees are welcome.

Of course, this news is designed to coincode with the new strip, released in the middle of this month to the hilarious cries of "It’s black and white stripes!" True, of course, but spare a thought for any diehard Barcelona fans who have seen their stripes turned into a chequerboard for next season.

For a football kit geek like Thunderdiary (I used to draw kits as a kid, painstakingly felt-tipped) the close season does bring with it the new strip and while the morals of churning out three new outfits every year can be questioned, the finance it brings in to the club and the excitement I get about seeing it make it worthwhile.

There has been some disappointment on social media that Errea is again manufacturing the strips. For me, they have done a very good job over the past eleven seasons. Let’s face it, black and white stripes are fairly simple, but Errea has managed to come up with something unique each year.

That’s another reason to applaud their efforts – their bespoke nature. After four years of teamwear Nike kits with the badge and sponsor stuck on to shirts you could buy online for £15 and any team could wear – from the fourth division to the Sunday leagues – it is always refreshing to know that nobody else can have our kit.

The first kit produced by Errea, for the Buckley III/Newell year, was the only time in Town’s history that the badge was in the middle of the home shirt. That top had black shoulders and socks and is probably my least favourite of the Errea kits, along with the ‘Hearn’ effort of 2011-12, which had thick black stripes bordered by red thinner stripes, and not enough white.

Since 2014-15 Town have played with a more solid back, alternating black and white for the past four years. I would prefer a stripy back but am not averse to having a white box and a red number like those magical 80s kits.

From what I can tell, this year’s effort fades the stripes out again, like our 'return to the Football League' kit, which is among my favourite Errea designs. Actually, here’s my top 3.

3rd: 2014-15

The white sleeves on this kit – the first since 1991 – gave this a simple yet sleek look. There was a paucity of red on the top, but this was balanced out by the trim of the shorts and the retro socks.

2nd: 2016-17

Unveiled in time for those unbridled scenes of Wembley joy, our first Football League kit for six years had the classic ‘three stripe’ look, with a black central one diverting into the aforementioned gradient. Nice amount of white and red on the shorts and the best socks Errea has produced.

1st: 2018-19

Last season’s kit was an instant classic, with its nod to the 1990 Ribero masterpiece. Beautifully balanced, the kit looked great on the pitch, the back getting a good ratio between white and stripes. Although the red on the shorts was a touch heavy, this will be remembered fondly in the future.

So all will be revealed soon. My personal preference would be for a couple of red parallel stripes either side of the collar, a la Hobott 84. Now that was a kit...