New Alternative Munster Jersey Revealed

It fills me with pride to be able to say my first jersey was a Munster one. The fact it was the alternative one made it all the more special. Only those in the know about Munster would spot it, I thought to myself. Abroad I was to realise its multifaceted benefits. The Bank of Ireland sponsorship ensured most would realise it was an Irish jersey at least, the Munster emblem would guarantee recognition from fellow Irish travellers, and the fact it was the alternative jersey would only be noticed by the Munster faithful abroad, or so I thought...

It's for this reason amongst others the Munster alternative jersey has always held a special lure for me. This was added to by Munster achieving Heineken Cup glory against Toulouse in their alternative jersey (their donning of this was determined by a coin toss)... So you can see why I awaited the launch of the new alternative jersey with baited breath, especially with the furore surrounding the new home jersey adding fuel to rumours of a possible yellow alternative jersey...


On Wednesday 12th August I hovered and clicked over "next" until I came to a picture of Donncha O'Callaghan wearing a navy jersey with a big difference. Checking the caption below, he was indeed sporting the new alternative jersey... Firstly I was a little bit relieved, having steeled myself for a yellow ensemble, the return to navy was a welcome one. But what of the other quarter of the jersey? Put simply, I love it! Bold, audacious, yet distinctly rugby in style, it really comes across as a striking piece of teamwear! Perhaps inspired by the classic rugby jersey patterns of Cambridge and Harlequins, adidas have not made a similar effort elsewhere (being the official kit providers of Argentina and New Zealand amongst others).


So elated was I with this fine piece of fabric, even the sight of young prodigy Keith Earls being dressed up to promote Daffodil Day could not bring me down! But don't take my word for it, let's have a look at Donncha O'Callaghan's reaction. Last season it was clear for all to see he was unhappy with adidas' effort, here we see him voicing this exasperation.


At the launch of Munster's new home jersey, he resembled a child being forced to wear a cardigan at his First Communion - an unhappy child to say the least. But the new alternative jersey makes him look like a man on a mission.