Written by Mike Carter, Hull KR Shirts.
Hull KR have revealed their players and coaches ranges for the 2024 season. The range is based around the marble alternate kit, in a similar fashion to that of the Queensland range that followed suit with the Queensland playing kit released in late 2022. Once again, the players will wear a different style to the coaches at the club, with the players taking on a heavy Navy approach, with the coaches wearing Ocean Blue.
Let’s get this review started…
We’ll start with the players’ range, which is composed of a tee, shorts, vest, media polo, sweatshirt, tracksters, quarter zip, full zip and overhead hoodies & anthem, quarter zip and full zip jackets. As you can tell, even just from the list, the range goes quite deep, offering various choices to supporters.
The players’ range is predominantly navy, with ocean blue chest detailing throughout. The detail is based on the marble effect that inspired the 2024 marble alternate kit. The detailing on the training wear is much more in your face than the subtle approach taken with the playing kit for the 2024 season.
Fresh off signing a new three year deal with Hull KR, Designs branding continues to appear on the players’ training wear for 2024. Their logo is applied to the front of the players’ tee, vest, polo, overhead hoody and sweatshirt as well as appearing on the sleeve of some other lines. I’m maybe being a little bit picky here, as the logo design and colour work well, but in my opinion, it is on the large side and does take away from the club branding, which is already relaxed and minimal.
This leads me nicely onto the Robin Icon. This is the first time we’ve seen the Robin Icon feature on the training range over the club crest after it debuted on the players’ match day range in 2023. We’ve yet to see the match day range, so we can’t compare to that at the moment, but it will be interesting to see what route the club has taken this time.
The lack of crest doesn’t bother me too much, though I think it will annoy some folk. I think my biggest issue here is that the Robin Icon is on the small side, especially when placed next to a sponsor as large as it is. A slight disclaimer – I’m yet to see this in person, so it may look better in the flesh. Having the Icon is place makes the items easier to wear in non-sporting environments without looking like a piece of sports club wear. Equally, I get that people like to shout about Hull KR when they’re out of town or on holiday. Hopefully, we get a good balance of this, allowing for supporters to decide which off-field wear this wish to purchase.
The Robin Icon and Oxen logos have been dye sublimated into the garments, as opposed to being embroidered. Generally, I’m okay with this on a training tee or vest, but I believe the crest/icon should ALWAYS be embroidered on over garments such as hoodies and anthem jackets, especially when the price point for these types of units is as high as it is (around the £50 mark). This could just be me being old-fashioned, but I really hope this isn’t the end of an era for this feature at Hull KR. As a supporter of Hull City, who have effectively stepped away from embroidery on most products, I am disappointed.
What about the coaches’ range?
We can expect to see Willie Peters, Danny Ward, Brett Delaney, David Hodgson and Shaun Kenny-Dowall wearing Ocean Blue in 2024. I love the idea of having a bright colour as part of your playing kit or training wear, and that is certainly what we have here.
For the first time supporters will be able to ‘match’ the coaches with this 2024 range, as 360 Chartered Accounts branding appears on retail lines for the first time. 360 Chartered Accountants have been sponsoring the coaching team at Hull KR for a number of years now, so for them to appear on retails lines will be great for their brand awareness. The coaching team have previously had heat applied patches added to their uniform, but there should be no need for this in 2024. The range is once again extensive, allowing for plenty of choice for those who are interested in purchasing something from the range.
Similarly, with the players’ range, the sponsor on the front do appear to be on the big side. I think this could be down to the design elements of the ranges being restricted to the chest. The divide between design and the plain middle to bottom segment acts as a very strong separator. It could also be just how it appears on the sizes used for the promotional shots, with bigger sizes looking better.
Now, even though I don’t love it, I understand the reasons for it appearing this way, and I’m sure that both Designs and 360 Chartered Accountants are very happy that their branding features so prominently. Their support to the club is huge, so I won’t go on about it, nor will I criticise it too much! I think we’ve been spoilt so much with impeccable sponsor integration that when it isn’t perfect, I notice it more. It’s about being thankful and appreciative, which I really am.
I assume they’ll be a basic tee at some point, but this hasn’t been listed on the online store yet, strangely. This would probably be the item that I could be tempted most by as I love the Ocean Blue colour, but the design just hasn’t grabbed me in the same way that some have previously. It’s not bad. It’s far far from it. It just isn’t for me.
This is probably the first time that I’ve not really loved, or instantly liked a range that Hull KR has released since I started up Hull KR Shirts back in 2018, so in terms of ratios I’ll take it, and I’m sure the club would, too! I’ve never really liked items with a chest based design, and this range is absolutely full of them, especially on outer wear garments. Maybe if the marble effect carried over to the sleeve or was in full on the front, then I might have liked it more. However equally it could have looked worse in real life, which is the conundrum when you’re involved in designing sportwear.
I think this is the main reason why the range hasn’t instantly grabbed me, but I am just one man with an opinion like anyone else. To back that up, the demographic for this type of retail item is huge. Not everyone will like everything, and that’s okay. I’m sure it’ll sell well, and we’ll see many supporters wearing both of these ranges on the terraces during 2024.
I’m hoping that in time, it’ll grow on me, especially after pre-season gets underway in late November. Lets face it, garments always look better on the players and coaches on the field than they do in promotion shots or on coat hangers. I’ll say this now, even though I’m not sold on it. I’m sure you’ll see me wearing something from it at some stage in the future.
The 2024 training range can be viewed and purchased by clicking here. The training ranges can also be purchased from the Hull KR store at Sewell Group Craven Park.
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