Its' about the Bok, not the frock: Champs give away jersey thumbs-up

It's more about the Bok and less the frock, Kurt-Lee Arendse insisted as the Springboks continued to give the thumbs-up to the alternate jersey they will be wearing in their Rugby World Cup opener against Scotland on Sunday.

The Boks have been forced into their official away jersey, as is the case with some other teams, as part of World Rugby's drive to make the game more accessible. In this case it is for people suffering colour vision deficiency (CVD), or colour blindness as it is more commonly known.

“As long as there is a Springbok emblem on it, I am happy to wear it,” said winger Arendse who has scored 11 tries in his 10 Tests for the Boks.

Though the jersey has mostly attracted negative reviews centre Jesse Kriel believes the jersey has many fans. He expressed excitement to be playing in it, as it offers something different.

Centre partner Damian de Allende also gave the jersey the thumbs-up, though he would have preferred more green than blue in the design. He had yet to wear the jersey and reserved judgment about how it might complement his contours.

Though predominantly white, the jersey's design has zigzagging lines in a colour the manufacturer calls hyper-jade. To those not as colour conscious it might be confused with turquoise. Some fans drew the comparison with a box of Craven A Menthol cigarettes when they saw it on the broad-shouldered Boks.

The new design is such a departure from the traditional Bok jersey neutrals would struggle to identify the defending champions if not pointed to the fact.

The jersey, first used by the Boks in their away win over Argentina last month, may not have overwhelming support but assistant coach Mzwandile Stick pointed to the facts.

“Our record in that jersey is a 100% win rate,” reminded Stick. “There is positive energy about it and we are looking forward to the game.

“It's our away jersey. We have made peace with it a long time ago.”