Sport Times' 100 Most Memorable Scottish Kits: Numbers 26-20 featuring Braehead Clan, Celtic and Rangers

What one did you want to wear as a kid or a fan, and what one made you close your eyes? Was there a shirt you wished your team wore, or another you just wanted to see disappear?

And what about those other items in sport, the colour schemes, race suits, helmets and clothing that meant so much to so many?

Read more: Sport Times' 100 Most Memorable Scottish Kits: Numbers 33-27 featuring Celtic, Rangers and the Queen's Jubilee

Every reader and aficionado will have their own ideas on this one, just like they will know the outfits that made them cringe.

Over coming days, we will be counting down to what is the Most Memorable Scottish Kit of all time, and what makes the most famous – and infamous – designs over the years.

If you’d like to vote or have a say on what colours make it on to the top 100, either contact us through Twitter, @hssport, or through the Herald Sport Facebook page - and let the debate commence.

Pictures: Herald Archive, SNS group, Getty Images
Graphics: David Moor (Historical Football Kits)

26. Kilmarnock 1973 - 1977

HIT: While other clubs looked to Europe for a switch in design, most notably with the Ajax kit being plagiarised to within an inch of its guaranteed machine washes, Kilmarnock’s influence for this long-time favourite came more from West Germany, and in particular, some of the kits displayed by Borussia Moenchengladbach.

The Bundeliga side used a similar style to contain their green and black club colours.

Kilmarnock’s blue and white stripes, used throughout the 60s and up until 1972, had been dropped for an all-blue combo, which to be honest, never really looked very Kilmarnock-like.

This new number however, went in a completely opposite direction, mainly all-white, apart from the front of the jersey, where heavier blue stripes sat either side of a thinner, inner stripe. And it proved to be a winner, both in terms of design and amongst the Rugby Park support.

Like all good things, using this style just once would have been a waste.

However, while adopting the design in their 2015/16 home kit, Killie compromised this classic by adding blue shorts – and it never looked as good. 

25. Braehead Clan 2015

HIT: In a sporting context (i.e. the definition of ‘sport’ involving a ball, goals and a recognised points scoring format) there are not many games that you would participate in wearing your national dress, that is, a kilt.

Highland Games heavy event athletes are well practised in the art of hurling hammers and tossing cabers while wearing their clan tartan, and, I can also recall a tug of war team being resplendent in kilts, all be it while wearing cycling shorts (probably a good idea given their body angle while pulling on a rope).

That apart, despite threats from snooker and dart players to turn up wearing one, kilts are not really what you would describe as sporting attire.Which is why the Braehead Clan ice hockey team deserve a special mention and a place in this series having appeared in kilts against Fife Flyers back in 2015. I say appeared in kilts; it was more about giving the appearance of kilts, even down to the sporrans as well.

Still, ten out of ten for initiative and getting it absolutely spot on in terms of their PR message, marketing, and above all else, engaging with the home support.

24. Partick Thistle 1971 - 1975

HIT: Between 1935 and 1984, Thistle opted for either hoops or stripes on their shirts. They did however, have a four-year hiatus when they went for a straight yellow jersey and red shorts. And it turned out to be their most successful period in modern times, almost entirely down to one unexpected cup win.

Partick Thistle were in the 1971 League Cup final, quite literally, to give Celtic someone to play. There would be no shocks, no surprises, just another trophy for Jock Stein’s men.

By half-time however, the Jags led 4-0, and while Celtic pulled back a consolation goal in the second-half, the end result turned each and every one of the Thistle side that beat Celtic in to club legends. However, Thistle fans are a fickle bunch. 

While the importance of that Hampden date lives on in the memory and in folklore, there is an air of disappointment amongst some supporters that with the world watching on, Thistle didn’t win the trophy wearing something more akin to a traditional kit. It would have to be said that among all the varied Partick shirts, others rate higher than this for looks.

23. Celtic (Away) 1994 -1995

MISS: It isn’t easy to improve upon perfection. However, making the same mistake, time and time again is quite easy. In a nutshell, that pretty much sums up the problem Celtic have had over the years, and had in abundance during the early 90s with away kits.

More than one experiment backfired during this spell, and this effort from 1994 is a classic example for entirely the wrong reasons.
Actually, if you imagine Pat Bonner suitably attired in this one, it would have looked better as a goalie kit.

Instead, Celtic adopted this as their change strip. It must be said that the alternative, a black number with green trim and a hideous striped bib on the chest, was definitely the evil of two lessers.

The gauge of how good, bad or indifferent a design or strip might have been, is whether you remember the kit, or, the results achieved while wearing it. 

Showing this one to a couple of diehard Celtic fans, none of them could recall any kind of result their team might have achieved wearing it. Their response to being reintroduced to this one, was almost identical - ‘oh, aye, that.’ It couldn’t get worse. Actually ...

22. Rangers (European Away) 1994

MISS: Amazing, that all these years on, this Rangers kit still annoys those who were around at the time and, basically, fell for the sales pitch.
The headline in the Evening Times on the day of launch was ‘Lilac Whine’ but that was entirely to do with Gers fans being upset at the colour more than the introduction of a third kit.

Remember, this was at a time when supporters would buy just about anything new and branded Rangers. And they certainly bought the idea that the Scottish champions might indeed need an alternative strip should they have any kind of colour clash on their European journey. 

Except Rangers didn’t go anywhere. Despite the arrival of Brian Laudrup and Basile Boli, AEK Athens put pay to Champions League ambitions. And there was no Europa League safety net back then.

Rangers did play against continental opposition in this kit, a pre-season friendly against Sampdoria at Ibrox. And when it came to wearing it overseas, the closest Rangers came to crossing water was a trip across the Clyde to play Motherwell.

21. Scotland 2015 Rugby World Cup

HIT: The whole tartan thing has been tried again and again in Scottish sport. 

As witnessed previously in the 100 Memorable Sporting kit listing, some tartan outfits were just a bit loud. In fact, loud was an understatement; they were turned all the way up to 11. 

For the 2015 Rugby World Cup however, Scotland went for a dash of tartan – and it worked well.

At times, you wondered if you had really seen some plaid, because rather than going for big swatches or an embedded pattern, the Scots went for panels up the sides of their jerseys.

So, when their arms were down, there was nothing to see. When their arms were raised, the Scots looked extremely patriotic. 

Shame then that they didn’t get to lift the trophy. Instead, they lost out to the Aussies. Or was it one South African?

Compared to what had gone before, both home and away, this Macron creation looked the part, both in blue and white. 

It showed what could be done with a bit of imagination, rather than just handing the crayons and a set of stencils over to the infants at your local primary school.

20. Scotland 1985 - 1988

HIT: This kit would have been rated higher had it not been for one distinguishing feature. See if you can guess what it is? Answer in the time it takes you to read this.

This strip wasn’t immediately recognised as being a classic. However, as we’ve said more than once in the last nine days, if you want a winning strip, stick a winning team in it.

This one got off to the best possible start when Scotland beat England, thanks to a Richard Gough header, to lift the Rous Cup at Hampden.

From there, the Scots kicked on to the World Cup finals in Mexico, via an ill-fated night in Cardiff, and a trip to the other end of the world to play a play-off second leg against Australia. Having achieved our goal, Scotland could have worn just about anything out in Mexico; we were there, and, having been only guaranteed a short stay after being drawn in the ‘Group of Death,’ we were going to enjoy the moment.

What was less enjoyable, and a recurring gripe from members of the Tartan Army, was that ‘distinguishing feature.’ Did you spot it? This was a top 10 contender but for that suspender belt.