Opinion: Brighton's new kit looks like a hybrid of Pompey and Ipswich Town's shirts

The kit they wore that day had been the first team shirt for predominantly most of the Albion’s 71-year history.

In early 1980, then club chairman Mike Bamber, held a press conference to announce the club’s first shirt sponsorship deal. Brokered by both the late Tony Millard and the late Ron Pavey i was with Gatwick-based airline British Caledonian.

Liverpool had been the first club two years earlier to sign a lucrative shirt sponsorship deal with Japanese TV manufacturers Hitachi, and the Albion had done extremely well to secure such a well known sponsor.

Part of the deal included a switch in kit suppliers and Bukta were replaced by Adidas, and the stripes being ditched in favour of an all blue shirt with white collar and cuffs.

The announcement came in the Albion’s first season in the top flight, and, with the financial implications for the club was greeted with a degree of euphoria, with the loss of the legendary stripes almost swept under the carpet.

I was lucky enough during my radio career to travel the length of breadth of the country to away games so I got the full story of the kit change straight from the horse’s mouth. With no disrespect to Bukta, switching to Adidas was a bit like shopping at Tesco’s one week and Harrods the next, but with Adidas came ‘expert’ marketing advice. Apparently the British Caledonian logo would look better in press coverage photos on a plain blue shirt rather than the stripes, and at that time, the plain blue shirt was cheaper per unit to replicate than the stripes.

Effectively Adidas dictated the kit change for reasons of profit, nothing else, and as older readers will recall when it came to turning a shilling the late Mike Bamber was top of the league!

Barry Lloyd was instrumental in bringing the stripes back in 1987 after a truly forgettable season that had seen the Albion relegated back to the third tier.

Since then with various designs, the stripes have thankfully remained until this week and the announcement of next seasons first team shirt.

Full marks to the marketing people, telling us all we’ve returned to pay homage the 1983 Cup final team with a new plain blue shirt with a very thin white pinstripe.

But I’m not swallowing it. Clearly at 55, I’m not the demographic they are targeting, but sorry – I don’t like it, it’s looks like a hybrid between Pompey and Ipswich, and I don’t think I’m the only one, ironically though Harty junior at 25, very much in their demographic, loves it and has already ordered one.

My love for the Albion will get me through it, because marketing is big business in football – and I’m sure this time next year, the stripes will return as clubs do seem have a new kit every season.

* I asked for a creative midfielder in last week’s column, and low and behold Adam Lallana has signed. Next up please, can Ben White buy a house locally to prove beyond doubt that he is part of Graham Potter’s first team plans next season...?

* Finally, when my Burnley prediction came to fruition on Sunday a mate texted me to ask where would the Albion have ended up of all my weekly predictions had been correct? Whilst away this week, I studiously looked back and the answer is they would have qualified for the Europa League having finished 6th, clearly it pays to be an optimist