Liam Durkin and Zac Standish
WITH the toing and froing of the Port Adelaide Prison Bar jumper in the spotlight recently, the Four Quarters team thought it was timely to look at some of the more stylish jumpers gracing the fields across Gippsland.
To narrow it down, we have decided to choose one jumper from each of the three leagues in the Latrobe Valley Express readership (Gippsland, Mid Gippsland and North Gippsland), as well as one interleague jumper, and have decreed that only ‘non-traditional’ jumpers will be considered for selection.
While football jumpers may seem simplistic enough, those behind the scenes will know there is a lot more that goes into the finished product, as considerations also need to be made for things such as the material, manufacturer, placement of sponsors and number fonts.
Like a Damien Martyn cover drive, here is a look at some of the more ‘easy on the eye’ jumpers across Gippsland.
1. Bairnsdale Redlegs (Gippsland League)
Colours: Dark blue and red.
Style: Dark blue with red sash.
THE Redlegs jumper adheres to the ‘less is more’ principle, and the combination of a red sash on a navy blue jumper really emphasis the ‘red’ in Redlegs.
The red sash on the Bairnsdale jumper is wider than a normal sash seen on similar designs, and is also a straight diagonal from shoulder to hip, rather than the curved design seen elsewhere. In addition, the sash goes all the way around the jumper, as opposed to other sash-styles that only occupy the front half.
Bairnsdale’s clash jumper is simply the reverse, although for an aesthetically pleasing design it is hard to go past the Redlegs home guernsey.
Those closer to the Valley will point to the Traralgon jumper as adhering to the non-traditional stipulation. As their name suggests, the Maroons wear a maroon jumper with a white sash, although this has not always been the case as previously Traralgon wore a maroon jumper with four white diagonal stripes and the word ‘Maroons’ underneath the last stripe.
Traralgon wore this jumper during its days as a VFL club in the late 1990s.
Moe supporters will also say their jumper of maroon with a royal blue V deserves a mention.
While the Lions design isn’t shared by many clubs it is not entirely unique, as virtually the same jumper is worn a little further west down the Princes Highway by Pakenham.
Pakenham too wear a maroon jumper with blue V, but the difference lies in a PFC monogram that sits underneath the V.
2. Stony Creek Lions (Mid Gippsland)
Colours: Maroon and white.
Style: Three quarter maroon with white top and white Lion on front. Maroon neck and shoulders and SCFC monogram on left shoulder.
A JUMPER that has a bit of everything – a monogram, a huge logo and two colours that go well together.
The Lion logo on the Stony Creek jumper is the most striking element and leaves spectators in no doubt as to what team is on the field.
Stony Creek narrowly edged out the Tarwin Sharks in the Mid Gippy jumper stakes. The Sharks jumper is a blue and white concoction that shares similarities with Stony Creek in that the club mascot is on the front.
In terms of other Mid Gippsland jumpers, a couple of clubs have had changes recently. Newborough took out the Bulldogs logo a few years ago, while conversely, Morwell East added the Hawk down the left hand side.
Toora also changed their Magpie jumper this season to avoid a clash with Yinnar. Toora now wears a predominately grey guernsey with a black, white and teal V.
3. Churchill Cougars (North Gippsland)
Colours: Blue and yellow.
Style: Blue with reverse yellow V, yellow neck and sleeves and white Southern Cross logo.
The reverse V of the Churchill jumper differs completely too countless other clubs that sport V designs in country football.
As well as this, the Southern Cross logo that sits in the bottom half of the jumper also adds to the Cougars guernsey.
If anyone can tell Four Quarters why the Southern Cross has been included on the Churchill jumper, we would love to know.
Interestingly, where most town football and cricket clubs share the same colours and logo, the colours of blue and gold of the football club are nowhere near the same as that of the Churchill Cricket Club, who carry maroon and are known as the Cobras.
Most of the jumpers in the North Gippsland Football-Netball League are stock-standard, although Yallourn Yallourn North will buck that trend with their new jumper set to be brought in next season.
4. Gippsland League (interleague)
Colours: Red, white and blue.
Style: Red, white and blue vertical stripes.
IN what may cause a few raised eyebrows, the Gippsland League interleague jumper has been included as a matter of local pride.
The colours of red, white and blue are synonymous with the region, and have come to be the colours most associated with the Latrobe Valley.
In 1958 the Victorian Country Football League initiated their Centenary Championships to mark the 100th anniversary of Australian Rules Football.
Players of the then Latrobe Valley Football League (what later became the Gippsland League) winning team which defeated South Gippsland at Morwell were awarded a tie in red, white and blue with the league’s monogram.At the most recent interleague Gippsland League players wore a commemorative jumper that included a woolen collar to celebrate 40 years since the LVFL took all before them to win the 1979 state championship.
It was the first time the LVFL had secured the states number one ranking.
In more recent years the Gippsland League’s ranking has hovered around the top-10 mark, while players who have partaken in interleague have often exchanged jumpers with opponents at the end of the match.
Does anyone know the origin of jumper swapping after grand finals and when did it stop?
Let our newsroom know at sport@lvexpress.com.au
