It’s that time of year again – the weather outside is frightful, the fire is probably delightful provided that it’s in a controlled environment and not causing your house to go up in flames, and yes, it’s bloody ruddy Christmas Jumper Day on Friday. Last year, we brought you the best and the worst of the rugby world’s officially licensed Christmas Jumpers for you to peruse, and we’re back again for 2017, so strap in, and let’s see what we’ve got in our sacks for you this year, ahem…
Gloucester Rugby
Glaws had themselves an impressive first entry in our Rugby Shirt Watch Christmas jumper guide last season, but honestly, they’ve upped their game considerably for the 2017 edition.
Christmas jumpers can be a bit generic sometimes it must be said, but this one is none-more-Glaws, with Santa and his reindeer taking a shortcut over the top of The Shed. Not quite sure why someone’s left a 30-foot long rugby ball in the middle of the pitch, however…
VERDICT: Ho-ho-yes
England Rugby
Last year, England pretty much won the whole rugby Christmas jumper shooting match with their fantastic scrum-motif’d effort, but this year’s design is a great deal more generic and bland.
Asides from the words ‘England Rugby’ on there, this could literally be a Christmas jumper for anything, and that’s a bit shit.
VERDICT: Ho-ho no
Saracens
Saracens are newcomers to the Christmas jumper game for 2017, but they’ve not exactly brought their A-game with their debut effort.
It’s another rather bland effort, though at least the primary colour of the jumper is Sarries black, and Santa himself is sporting the club crest on his smock. It’s not very ‘rugby’ though is it?
VERDICT: Ho-ho hum
Leicester Tigers
We have a sneaking suspicion that Leicester might have got their Christmas jumper from the same place that the RFU did – it’s a very similar theme with a nigh-on identical pattern, albeit with some festive Christmas puds in there.
At least the colours work – the Tigers standard green, white and red is pretty bloody festive anyway, so it actually works rather well. That said, it’s pretty bland and not really rugby-related.
VERDICT: Ho-ho well…
Scarlets
Okay, yes, this isn’t a Christmas jumper per se, but have you seen the absolute tosh we’ve have to work with so far this year? By the standards of the other 20-odd British and Irish clubs who haven’t even bothered this year, the Scarlets have at least made the effort.
Again, though, it’s a bit rubbish isn’t it? The pretend elf with the Scarlets t-shirt on is fine we suppose, but there’s no rugby connection, and again, it’s a bloody TSHIRT. WHO WEARS JUST TSHIRTS IN DECEMBER FFS?
VERDICT: Ho god no
So there you have it, 2017’s frankly pitiful collection of officially licensed this year – that’s literally every one we can find… and one of them isn’t even a jumper! Next year, you’d buck up your ideas rugby teams.
Rugby Shirt Watch 