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Canterbury issues apology for recent Ireland jersey gaffe

(Photo by George Wood/Getty Images)

Sportswear company Canterbury have held their hand up and apologised after their recent Ireland rugby jersey launch caused offence with supporters of the women’s team. 

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While resources and ideas were thrown behind the launch of the men’s jersey on August 20, with players from Andy Farrell’s Test team such as Bundee Aki modelling the new shirt, Canterbury took a shortcut when it came to promoting the women’s version. 

Rather than organise for players from Adam Griggs’ squad to be involved in the launch, Canterbury used models to show off the new jerseys, a decision that proved unpopular in a climate where women’s sport in Ireland has been growing awareness in the last year with a nationwide 20×20 campaign.

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England forward Courtney Lawes guests on All Access, the RugbyPass interview series hosted by Jim Hamilton

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England forward Courtney Lawes guests on All Access, the RugbyPass interview series hosted by Jim Hamilton

The criticism Canterbury shipped online was widespread and it has now resulted in a grovelling apology seven days later. 

Posting a message on Twitter, Canterbury wrote: “As a brand, we believe in putting our hands up if we get something wrong. To announce that our new Ireland women’s Pro jersey was available for pre-order, we superimposed the jersey’s image onto a model to share this exciting development with our dedicated female players and fans. 

“It was always, and remains, our intention to photograph the female players in the new jersey and we remain committed to supporting the talented women in our rugby community on and off the field. 

“While the image was primarily designed for our website, which also features male models, it has understandably caused some frustration. We accept that this was an error and apologise for any upset caused. 

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“At Canterbury, we believe that rugby is for everyone and we are united by our mutual love of the game. We look forward to sharing our ‘A New Horizon’ campaign to support the launch of our Ireland women’s Pro jersey in October with the same commitment and dedication that we have for all our teams. 

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J
JW 34 minutes ago
Did the best of Ireland leave with Johnny Sexton and Stuart Lancaster?

Certainly got lucky, their strike rate in recruits is simply to high to be another else. How many failures can you count off the top of you head?


Theyre no longer playing that attack structure, so kinda irrelevant I feel. Sexton's metronomic tempo was perfect for that sort of football though. I really shouldn't say anything disparaging about his ability and influence on a northern style as he's probably a much closer footballer to the great Dan Carter than the modern NZ tens are. Still feel the game is better off in the NH now that players like Smith and Ntamack are able to lead the way with their performances.


I suggest not falling into that trap of replacing someone. They don't need a Sexton at 10, that guy and influence can come from anywhere in the team. Wallace Sititi for example has done so much to flip the debate on the NZ midfielders needing to have Nonu/Smith level distribution. They're trying to transition their game into a fast contest, ala their two victories against SA, but also losing out on that against SA and England (possible NZ too). Nienaber being seen as more beneficial to that outcome than Lancaster. I too think they're wrong though, it was a gift Faz got provided with but I haven't seen the Irish psyche want to recognize that. Some might say it's disrespectful to credit all of Irelands success on the back of a fortuitous style of play they discovered (were gifted, w/e) but I'll tell anyone that that's all New Zealands success is based off, and if a more natural organically grown pressuring style it's still something that is ingrained on everyones instincts just the same and can easily be lost of not appreciated.

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