Brumbies coach Stephen Larkham says feedback from fans and players led to the club returning to their more traditional Brumbies strip for 2017.
Larkham had an involvement in the design process and said there was a sense that supporters and many within the franchise wanted to move back to the look that has been long associated with the team, away from the blue jersey adopted in 2016.
“We had a bit of feedback from the fans about keeping the traditional jersey and soem of the players as well appreciated the traditional jersey,” he said.
“We’ve gone back to a very similar style, what I like about it is the incorporation of the royal blue and the gold I think it looks really sharp.
“I don’t think it’s necessarily going to help the players play any better but it’ll certainly remind people of where we’ve come from and what we’ve achieved in the past.”
Last season the ACT franchise opted for a plain home jersey, to better accommodate their named sponsor, but in a video on Friday, unveiled their new uniform, more in the vein of the blue and white of years past.
Brumbies prop Ben Alexander said he was one player happy to revert to the blue,gold and white look.
“I’m a bit of a traditionalist, not one for camouflage and pink jerseys,” he laughed.
“I do like the old Brumbies jersey. I was always a Brumbies fan and the stuff that ‘Bern’ (Larkham) and that played in I’d still play in that if it was up to me.
“You’ve always got to look forward but don’t forget where the Brumbies have come from and it looks good.”
The Brumbies announced their 2017 jersey via video on social media, citing history and their connection to the community as their reasons for the switch.
On that video, Larkham said it as vital to maintaining a connection with the Canberra locals.
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“The jersey really symbolises what we stand for, where we’ve come from, who we’re representing, a lot of the colours we had in the original jersey signify this community, signifies how close this community is, how connected it is to the team and how much we want to be a part of this community,” he said.
“It also signifies the hard work that’s gone into this jersey, going back to our roots, understanding how hard it was to win those championships and putting everything into this jersey’s what we’re all about.
The jersey is a hark back to the strips that the Brumbies donned when they took out the Super Rugby title in 2001 and 2004, one of the more recognisable designs of the team.
The Brumbies kick off their preseason campaign this weekend, taking on the Australian Barbarians at Viking Park on Saturday, before a second trial against the Waratahs in Mudgee on February 4 and the Brisbane Tens on January 11-12