The rugby community is usually considered a conservative bunch. Let's face it, it's only been 25 years since the union code turned professional and then it took another decade to shake off its stuffy Cotton Traders-style jumpers your father is quite fond of.
So for me to actually be doing a kit ranking for the 2019 Rugby World Cup should be a cause for celebration.
Nowadays, the 'match pro' rugby shirts are at the centre of sophisitcation – skin tight, slippery, and room for a GPS tracker in the back and they tend to fit well on your fancy-dan outside centre as much as the 19 stone tight-head prop. And luckily, they're beginning to be aesthetically pleasing.
Above, I rank the 20 home and 18 away shirts (nothing from Mizuno on Tonga and Namibia just yet) on show in Japan from worst to best.
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