AFL team Sydney Swans , home to Carlton at the SCG , took to the ground in red and white hooped jumpers , with 150 emblazoned on them . Is this an historic strip ? or was it an attempt to commemorate an occasion . ?It was a red and white jumper , jersey , guernsey , but bore little resemblance to either their home or clash strip . This hoop style of stripes has long been the traditional style jersey of the Geelong Football Club .

Traditional Carlton Jumper

Despite this repackaging of the Swans , humble footy jumper , Carlton were the winners on the night . The Blues , buried an atrocious record of success , at the SCG , when they seized victory in the wet and muddy conditions .  Carlton played in their traditional, age old design , navy blue and white , jumper jersey , guernsey . Could it be e a case of stick with what works !

Swans SCG Jumper

Both AFL teams , Adelaide Crows and Brisbane Lions have changed their mascot .

The Crows have adopted a new style crow . It is a stylised version of a crow and doesn't resemble the actual bird as much as the old mascot .

Brisbane Lions famously have departed from the old Fitzroy FC Lion mascot. They now use a Lion facsimile with a face printed on the Lion that looks out .

It bears little resemblance to the original Fitzroy Football Club Lion . This has angered and saddened many fans of the now defunct AFL Fitzroy FC.

Fans are generally not consulted about the mascot change .

Most accept the change and acknowledge that it is modern progress and still follow their beloved club.

Lots of fans like the old mascots .

It reminds them of clubs with a grand playing past and helps them relive memories of another era .

A slick , modern re-working of an old mascot cannot always claim the hearts and minds of fans .

Old style Crows Mascot

Old style Lions Mascot

older style

All are used to play Australian Rules  Football in.

The early design was wool with a button up front , peak collar and often sleeveless  .

They were called jumpers because thats what they were a jumper in team colours to play sport in , in this case afl football.

Embellishments such as numbers , team logo , league playing in eg; VFL were sewn onto jumper .

Later the jumpers became a wool acrylic mix often now with long sleeves and all of the above embellishments .

Sponsors logo's came along to boost clubs often ailing funds and wool had by now been totally replaced by acrylic.

Today it is hightech dri fit polyester that breathes . Manufactured fabric has replaced any natural fibres and the peak collar is gone along with any buttons . The long sleeve style is still available but with a few notable exceptions like Saints Stephen Milne and previous decade carlton player Steve Silvagni players wear the sleeveless style. These have ribbed armholes and v neckbands .

They are  brightly coloured with futuristic mascots , have sewn on makers logo tag to authenticate item and are plastered with sponsors logo's front and back . A big difference is these are all printed on and not sewn on as in yesteryear .Even the back number is imprinted with  an afl logo across bottom of the numbers. A modern work of art to differentiate it from the opposition and to attract as much sponsorship as is allowable these items are signed by players and auctioned by the clubs for vast sums of money  . Bearing litte resemblance to the older style jumper the old timers are still popular with historians ,collectors , traditionalists ,die hard fans and people who just want to have their own slice of the good old days .

The high tech polyester treatment has also extended to football shorts and socks again printed with team ,afl and sponsors logos . Todays football kit bears little resemblance to the old monoliths of the past .

modern guernsey

Mums everywhere are grateful that no longer do they a mass of muddy wet wool to wash on a saturday afternooon after the saturday morning game .