Collingwood claims clothing first for Australian rules
05/09/2012
On announcing the deal, the Australian Football League (AFL) club said the shirts would be designed specifically for Australian rules with input from its players. It said there has never before been a team uniform specifically designed for elite AFL football, by AFL players.
In an effort to continually find a competitive advantage, Collingwood embarked on a journey four years ago to find a manufacturer who could take the best materials and designs from playing uniforms around the world and incorporate them into a purpose built AFL range. Over a course of several years, the players tested different materials to establish ideal comfort and function.
Each player will have his jumper individually tailored, taking into account his specific body shape. This tailoring will continually take place throughout the year, as body shapes change due to training and playing loads. Different designs and materials will be used in the course of a single season, the club said.
Defenders, for example, can wear form-fitting jumpers with little stretch in them that gives opponents less to grab hold of. Forwards, on the other hand, will have the option of playing in a jumper with greater elasticity, that will make plain any holding by opponents and win the attacking team a free kick.
In future the players will be issued with tailor-made warm, cold and wet weather jumpers. A new high altitude range of apparel has been selected and will be worn by the players and staff in December, when the team heads to Utah for this year’s high altitude camp in Park City.
Collingwood Football Club chief executive, Gary Pert, said that in a football world where every possible competitive advantage has to be sought the new partnership with Star Athletic is a coup. “Collingwood is very excited about this new era in Australian sports apparel,” he said.
Founder and group executive director of TPF, Star Athletic’s parent company, Rob Hilton, said the venture with Collingwood was exciting for a number of reasons. “This is a first in Australian sport,” he said, “and that’s something we’re proud to be sharing with Collingwood. We were both looking for new ways forward, to move into new territory and I think, together, we’ve done that. Australian football is a unique sport that now has its own purpose built apparel.”
Star Athletic will replace adidas as Collingwood’s jumper and apparel partner, but adidas will remain with the club as the official on-field footwear partner.
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