This is a throwback to the very first British & Irish Lions tour.
In 1959, Canterbury and the Lions came together for a tour to the Southern Hemisphere. This afternoon, both parties announced they will do it all over again.
Canterbury will design jerseys, training gear and a whole plethora of snazzy kit for the 2017 Lions tour to New Zealand.
To mark the kit deal, Canterbury have released a retro-style jersey that is an homage to that 1959 tour. Former World Player of the Year Keith Wood fills it out well:
There were no fancy announcements back in the 50s. Canterbury simply stepped in and supplied jerseys to the tourists when their kit was “spoiled” in a previous game (we suspect they were put on a hot wash).
Back then, the Lions travelled to Australia and New Zealand, where they were feted with lavish welcoming parties and bizarre parades.
They lost only six of a whopping 35 games. Unfortunately, three of those defeats were to the All Blacks as they lost that series 3-1.
The consolation came in the form of a 2-0 series win over the Aussies.
