Strip Show 10-5

Last updated : 13 October 2011 By Alex Horburgh

10. 1954 - Died in the wool
Scotland's second World Cup finals in 1954 produced a memorable kit for all the wrong reasons. Thinking that the Swiss summer would be similar to Scotland in June and July the SFA loaded up a dark blue kit which included a heavy cotton shirt and woollen socks. Tommy Docherty played for the Scots that day and commented in later years " we were all sweating as if we had been on a 10 mile run before the anthems had finished in the game against Uruguay. The woollen socks and heavy boots were torture on a really hot day but even back then Uruguay wore a lighter kit which made them more mobile."

The SFA only sent 13 players to the finals, even though FIFA allowed 22 man squads. Despite this self-imposed hardship in terms of players, the SFA dignitaries travelled in numbers, accompanied with their wives. Scotland lost 1–0 against Austria in their first game in the finals. This prompted the team manager Andy Beattie to resign hours before the game against Uruguay. Uruguay were reigning champions and had never before lost a game at the World Cup finals. The gulf in class was exposed in horrific fashion as Uruguay won 7–0. However, it has been well documented since that Scotland's kit, more suited for Hampden in winter didn't help their cause.

9. 1990's - Salmon Pink
Scotland strip Salmon pinkUmbro's design team fashioned this memorable away kit, which featured a salmon pink shirt with dark blue chest band, on the colours of Lord Rosebery. Before Dark Blue became the national colour for our football side Scotland would play in the Lord's racing colours of salmon pink and yellow.

There was never a chance of the players losing each other under the floodlights in this particular kit and it had its finest hour and a half when we beat Germany away 1-0 in a friendly on April 28th 1999. Don Hutchison scored the winner in the 65th minute.

8. 1900 - Scotland 4 England 1
Scotland strip primrose and pinkScotland have not always played in the distinctive dark blue shirts we associate with the team. On at least nine occasions between 1881 and 1951 they played in the primrose and pink racing colours of racehorse owner Archibald Philip Primrose, Lord Rosebery.

Rosebery developed a keen in interest in association football and was an early patron of the sport in Scotland. In 1882 he donated a trophy, the Rosebery Charity Cup, to be competed for by clubs under the jurisdiction of the East of Scotland FA. The competition lasted over 60 years and raised thousands of pounds for charities in the Edinburgh area.

The 5th Earl Rosebery was a patron of the game and Hon. President of the SFA and of Hearts FC. His colours were first worn in 1881, and then in 1900, 1901, 1905, 1906, 1907, 1908 and 1909. They were revived in 1949, and last used in 1951 against France.

The most famous outing for Scotland's 'hoops' was in 1900 when they beat England 4-1. ''I have never seen my colours displayed so well lads'' said the Lord to the Scots after their victory which included a Scotland goal from RS McColl of Queens Park who later founded the chain of convenience stores we know so well today.

7. 1976-1981 - Umbro trim
The mid-70's was really the first time football strips were designed with an eye to the male fashion market. Leicester sportswear firm Admiral led the way with famous club shirts sported by Leeds, Coventry and West Ham to name but a few but they also got the contract to design the England kit from 1975, their first effort being a Union Jack style effort which included red and blue 'piping' on the sleeves of the white shirt with red and white stripes down the side of the royal blue shorts which replaced the more familiar dark blue shorts England wore in that era. Manchester's Umbro Sportswear caught on to this new trend but Scotland's new kit for 1976 was more understated with white Umbro 'Diamond' trim on the shirts, shorts and socks. A popular kit it went with us to Argentina 1978 for the World Cup finals and in 1980 we were still sporting this design, albeit with an open collar replacing the 70's style v neck. It had one of its last outings at Wembley 1981 when we beat England 1-0 in the Home Internationals with a John Robertson penalty.

6. Adidas 2010 - Dark Blue
After sporting designs by Brits Umbro and Italian kit makers Diadora and Fila for the last 30 years of the 20th century Scotland landed maybe the biggest name of them all for the Euro Qualifiers for Poland and Ukraine. Adidas had been synonymous with Germany, Holland and Argentina over the years but now the famous German design house founded by former football boot maker Adi Dassler (his brother later founded Puma Sportswear) signed with the SFA to produce a classic round collar shirt with the famous three stripes on the sleeves. Scotland are now onto their second Adidas kit which again harks back to the 60's and 70's.

5. Adidas yellow
It was interesting to see as many yellow Scotland 'away' shirts in the crowd in Alicante as traditional dark blue shirts. After Salmon pink in the 90's, England white in the mid-70's and one away kit in the 80's which looked like an explosion in a paint factory this was one of the more popular Scotland away kits. Yellow with dark blue Adidas trim and a classic round collar.