Ask Jan Bilton when his beloved Sunderland AFC looked their very best on the pitch and he'll give you the answer straight. It was thirty years ago, and his tribute goes as follows...
"Nobody makes a football shirt like Hummel.
"My love affair started in the summer of 1986 when the Laudrup brothers stepped onto the turf in Mexico resplendent in what can only be described as a masterpiece of a jersey: a Sistine Chapel in polyester and cotton. Then there was the Spurs shirt of the same year which Glenn Hoddle made look effortlessly cool; untucked, chevroned, beautiful.
"About that time the mighty Sunderland were enjoying a brief flirtation with a quite striking Patrick kit which was to bear the famous stripes during The Lads’ return from the Third Division wilderness. The only highlight of the disappointing mid-table finish the following season was the debut of, in my humble opinion, the finest kit to be worn by a Sunderland side in the modern era.
"There was no attempt to reinvent the classic red and white stripes, which was attempted in 1982 and again more recently. As equal red as it was white, a tight round-neck collar and those chevrons transformed a simple design into something quite stunning.
"As a designer, there’s not too much you can do with a striped shirt, but Hummel aren’t just any designers. Of course, equally iconic for the Mackem masses was the shirt sponsor, Vaux; a local (and now extinct) brewery built on the site of a Roman fortress which is now barren ground overshadowed by the Stadium of Light on the opposite bank of the Wear. It’s interesting to note that the ‘retro’ replica shirt bears the name of the sponsor, but there’s not a chevron in sight.
"The following year, with a season in Division Two under their belts, Sunderland finished an impressive sixth, thus qualifying for the play-offs. A place in the final was to be decided over two legs against the auld enemy, Newcastle United. The Mags finished third that season, a full six points ahead, but as we know now that means absolutely nothing in the play-off lottery.
"In the first fixture, with the scores tied, a challenge by Mark Stimson on the on-rushing Gabbiadini resulted in a penalty which Paul Hardyman stepped up to take. Saved by the evergreen John Burridge, Hardyman followed up connecting impressively but violently with the ‘keeper’s head, leading the referee to point him in the direction of the dressing room. The Lads recorded a famous win in the return fixture at St James Park, but that story belongs to another shirt, as does the final against Swindon Town which despite a loss, saw Sunderland promoted following some financial shenanigans at the West Country club.
"Italia ‘90 gave us unforgettable moments from messrs Gascoigne and Lineker, both of whom were on show for Spurs at Roker Park for the first game of the new season. A standing ovation greeted one, a hail of Mars bars the other. A friend of mine, stood right behind me at the time, maintains to this day that he played no part in that chocolatey charge, but Gazza didn’t seem to care, returning fire with a well aimed sweetie resulting in a little more red amongst the chevrons of my comrade’s shirt. Hummel updated the shirt the following season, but it couldn’t match the original. You can’t improve on perfection."
My grateful thanks go to Jan Bilton, and if you'd like to follow his lead by writing about your own club's best ever kit, please get in touch...
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