Just Another Rugby Blog

With the release of Wasps' 2021/22 home kit last week, I decided to put together a short article ranking all the home shirts since the move to Coventry in 2014. For the sake of technicality, I have included the 2014/15 shirt despite the fact that Wasps' move occurred in December 2014, e.g. several months into the 2014/15 campaign. From the get go, I will put out the following disclaimer: this is a ranked list based on my personal opinion and therefore I would ask that if you disagree, which you are more than entitled to do, please be respectful. 8. 2019/20 Home Jersey Under Armour's fifth offering of a Wasps home jersey wasn't necessarily poor but in many ways it lacked uniqueness and smacked of being just a little bit...well, boring. The black and gold stripe design on the shoulders and upper arm had been used before (in 2016/17) albeit then  they had been down both sides of the shirt rather than across the shoulders. The solid black front of the jersey had been used

When I began following Rugby Union back in 2012 one of the most endearing factors about the sport, alongside the crunching tackles and sensational last-minute tries, was the atmosphere of utmost respect towards officials. I remember vividly the scenes of muscly props and six-foot-something second rowers standing subserviently beside officials half their size, listening intently and complying without question. In the beginning, the scene was very alien to a person from a footballing background, chiefly as this was something you simply would not have seen. You still don't. Quickly though, I learnt that this was completely ingrained into the DNA of every rugby player and in fact was demanded of them by their coaches  and  supporters. The latter, I think, was most surprising to me. Whereas in Football officials were commonly the target of hateful abuse or racist remarks by supporters, there was little or none of this prevalent in Rugby Union. Rugby wore this core value of respect as a

 Yesterday saw the conclusion of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Rugby 7s tournament which featured both a men's and women's competition. When I sat down to watch the first session of the men's rugby 7s in the early hours of Tuesday morning I was looking forward to what I believed would be an entertaining six days of carnival style rugby. Whilst I believed that I would enjoy it, I never imagined for one moment that the tournament would have the level of impact on me that it did, nor did I envisage the connection that I would feel with the players of all participating nations. From the minute that coverage began there was so much to captivate audiences new and old, from the breath-taking aerial scenes of early morning Tokyo to the wonderful structure that is the Tokyo Stadium - adorned with the flags of nations participating in the tournament. That morning we got the first introduction to the soon-to-be famous robotic car upon which was constructed rugby posts. The car was used to ca