Getting shirty: how classic strips and winning teams go hand in hand | Scott Murray

Bill Shankly knew it, Brian Clough knew it, Don Revie knew it – the correlation between well-designed kit and well-functioning team is obvious

Easy to say it now, of course, but the destination of the 2014-15 Scottish Championship title should have been obvious from the get-go. Heart of Midlothian travelled to Rangers back in August for the first match of the season, and there it was, for all to see, in plain sight. Not that it was anything to do with the quality of football on show, exactly, though Hearts did outplay their hosts that day, sashaying around Ibrox with a dip in their collective hip and a glide in their stride.

They deservedly won 2-1, but here’s the rub: the Jam Tarts looked the part. The team were draped in the most beautiful kit worn by any club in many a year: plain maroon, unobtrusive badge, no sponsor, polo collar, a flattering straight hang. A gentle nod to the late 70s and early 80s, it’s a case study in bringing popular retro styles subtly up to date, a brazen switcheroo from Umbro diamond to Adidas stripe the only glaring concession to modernity.

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