Fair game? Looking back at 50 of Australian sport’s worst and most divisive jerseys since 2000

From Manly’s Pride jerseys in 2022 through to Hawthorn’s Power Rangers outfit in 2015, sporting tops have long divided public opinion. We take a look at 50 of the worst and most divisive since 2000.

Do you agree with our list? Picture: AAP Image/Dave Hunt

The Gold Coast Suns have undergone the first major change in their history with a new logo and jersey combination.

Their new strips in particular have divided opinion as the yellow is dropped from their home jersey.

It got us thinking, what are some of the other Australian sporting jerseys that have proven controversial over the years?

With that in mind, we look at 50 of the worst or most divisive jerseys since the year 2000.

Melbourne’s silver strip in 2008 was a shocker. Picture: Jackson Flindell

MELBOURNE DEMONS

2008 AWAY

The Demons won just three games in the 2008 season and it’s hard not to believe their ugly grey clash strips had something to do with it.

The mining strip has been a staple of Newcastle for years. Picture: Peter Lorimer

NEWCASTLE KNIGHTS

MINING

The Knights have been wearing their mining strips for over a decade with their win rate coming into question. Newcastle in orange will never seem normal.

Yes, that’s the Rabbitohs. Photo: NRL Photo/ Nathan Hopkins

SOUTH SYDNEY RABBITOHS

2021 ANZAC

For their ANZAC Round clash on the Gold Coast the Rabbitohs honoured the navy with an all-blue strip. It left many wondering who was who in the high-scoring fixture.

The divisive Manly ‘Pride’ jersey. Photo: Cameron Spencer/Getty Images

MANLY SEA EAGLES

2022 PRIDE

Easily the most controversial jersey on this list. The design was simply rainbow colours replacing the white hoops, but it led to players sitting out the fixture and the Sea Eagles’ season spiralling.

When you come straight from your shift on the council to your A-League game. Picture: AAP Image/Joe Castro

MELBOURNE VICTORY

2011/12 AWAY

Another club with a great colour scheme to work with, they somehow went with ‘Council Worker’ yellow for their clash strip in the 2011/12 season.

Central Coast’s fascination with palm trees needs to be studied. Photo by Ashley Feder/Getty Images

CENTRAL COAST MARINERS

2015/16 HOME

We know their home ground has the iconic palm trees overlooking a wonderful backdrop, but that’s not enough reason to put the damn tree on their jerseys.

Power Rangers - assemble! Picture: Wayne Ludbey

HAWTHORN HAWKS

2015 AWAY

These guernseys immediately drew comparisons to the Power Rangers, and it’s easy to see why with a questionable gold scheme at the top.

If you squint hard enough you can see a crow. Picture: AAP Image/Theron Kirkman

ADELAIDE CROWS

2013 AWAY

They genuinely look like someone has thrown tins of blue, yellow and red paint onto a blank white canvas.

Carlton’s controversial sky blue guernsey. Picture: AAP Image/Tony McDonough

CARLTON BLUES

2011 CLASH

A highly controversial strip, so much so the club had to issue a statement on their website explaining the rationale behind the sky blue jerseys.

Essendon fans weren’t a fan of this one. Picture: AAP Image/Ben Macmahon

ESSENDON BOMBERS
2012 CLASH

Similar to the above, their grey strip with a red sash caused much of a stir, particularly among traditionalists.

The big Bulldog proved a lucky charm in a premiership year. Photo: Will Russell/AFL Media/Getty Images

WESTERN BULLDOGS

2016 CLASH

Dogs are cute. That’s not an excuse to plaster a massive bulldog graphic over the side of a football guernsey.

The Pride Progress flag on the Taipans jersey proved a topic of contention. Photo: Kelly Defina/Getty Images

CAIRNS TAIPANS

PRIDE

Rainbow colours around the Champion logo proved divisive up north with some players opting to not wear the jersey, leading to the team not wearing it during a Pride Round fixture.

The 2012 ANZAC jerseys of Manly. Picture: Braden Fastier

MANLY SEA EAGLES

2012 ANZAC

You couldn’t have been blamed for thinking the Sea Eagles turned into the Manly Moo Cows when they wore these horrendous strips in 2012.

Melbourne Storm or Brisbane Broncos? Your guess is as good as ours. Photo: Bradley Kanaris/Getty Images

BRISBANE BRONCOS

2018 ALTERNATE

The Broncos channelled their inner Melbourne Storm with a jersey that looked much more like the southerners.

One of the most infamous jerseys in Brisbane’s history. Picture: FOTOPRESS/Dean Purcell

BRISBANE BRONCOS

2002 AWAY

A jersey so infamous that it was replicated years after, the turquoise jerseys of the Broncos were among the worst at the turn of the century.

Australia has long history of wearing.........grey. Picture: AAP Image/Dave Hunt

AUSTRALIA CRICKET

2006

An Australian national team wearing grey. Enough said.

The JackJumpers Indigenous jersey was pulled after a complaint from the Tasmanian Aboriginal Council. Picture: JACKJUMPERS

TASMANIA JACKJUMPERS

2023/24 INDIGENOUS

There was nothing wrong with the design from a visual standpoint, however the jersey was scrapped after it was accused of “plagiarising a technique from another Aboriginal culture.”

The Canterbury Bulldogs were meant to wear these jerseys in their clash with Parramatta. Can't figure out why they didn't. Picture: Contributed

CANTERBURY BULLDOGS

2015 ALTERNATE

The claim was their alternate jersey represented their ‘Ruby Jubilee Anniversary’ - but a predominate red strip just didn’t work at all.

How would you describe this?

CRONULLA SHARKS

2021 NINES

It was a wonder that these jerseys got the green light. Cronulla’s jersey for the Nines featured the inside of a shark mouth. You read that correctly.

The Warriors’ Bush shirt inspired jersey received a mixed reaction. Photo: Bradley Kanaris/Getty Images

NEW ZEALAND WARRIORS

2020 WELLINGTON

The jersey drew inspiration from the ‘Kiwi bush shirt’ and the design should’ve stayed on the long sleeve shirts. Resembled a picnic table instead of a professional rugby league team.

North Queensland Cowboys displaying their ANZAC strip. Picture: Evan Morgan

NORTH QUEENSLAND COWBOYS

2024 DEFENCE

It’s hard to put into words what the jersey actually is. If you can make sense of it let us know in the comments below.

The Eels resembled an underwhelming superhero during the 2017 Nines. Photo: Anthony Au-Yeung/Getty Images

PARRAMATTA EELS

2017 AUCKLAND NINES

Parramatta had quite a few cool jerseys over the course of the Auckland Nines, but their 2017 version was far from it.

We’d be upset too if we had to wear that gold strip. Picture: AAP Image/David Rowland

PENRITH PANTHERS

2016 ALTERNATE

Penrith’s current golden run might’ve been predicated in their alternate strip from 2016 that may have been inspired by the Olympics.

A rare miss in the jersey stakes from the Roosters. Picture: AAP Image/Action Photographics/Renee McKay

SYDNEY ROOSTERS

2011 ALTERNATE

For a club that has featured some of the cleanest away strips in the game, their 2011 edition left a lot to be desired with a strange amount of white and minimal tricolours.

Billy Slater shows off Melbourne’s AFL-style singlets. Picture: Mark Stewart

MELBOURNE STORM

2015 AUCKLAND NINES

There was nothing wrong with the design, but Melbourne tapped into their AFL roots with a sleeveless design at the pre-season Nines tournament.

The Tigers joined the Storm in solidarity of saying no to sleeves. Picture: Supplied

WESTS TIGERS
2015 AUCKLAND NINES

Similar to the above, the Tigers stretched the limits with a sleeveless jersey that divided opinion in a big way.

Fremantle clearly took inspiration from Star Wars. Photo: Michael Willson/AFL Photos via Getty Images

FREMANTLE DOCKERS

2023 GATHER ROUND

The Dockers have made a challenging set of colours work over the years, but their black fascination for Gather Round was a miss.

The two blues were one way to avoid a clash. Picture: Michael Jones

GEELONG CATS
2007 CLASH

Yes Geelong are the Cats. No that doesn’t justify claw marks on a jersey.

The Suns powered up with these clangers. Picture: AAP Image/Glenn Hunt

GOLD COAST SUNS

2016 AWAY

The chevrons resembled more of something from Mario Kart to help you power past Bowser as opposed to a reputable football jersey.

GWS paid tribute to their 100 games in the AFL in 2016. Picture: AAP Image/Dan Himbrechts

GWS GIANTS

2016 100 GAMES

2016 wasn’t a good year for expansion club guernseys. The Giants opted for photos since their inception to commemorate 100 games in the league. They should’ve left the design in the drafts.

Plastering an uninspired logo on a jersey somehow didn’t turn out to be a winner. Picture: AAP Image/David Mariuz

MELBOURNE DEMONS

2017 CLASH

They’ve cleaned up their act in recent times, but the Demons have had some shocking clash strips. Plastering their un-iconic logo on the front in 2017 falls into that category.

Nothing strikes fear into the opposition like a cartoon kangaroo. Photo by Michael Willson/AFL Photos via Getty Images

NORTH MELBOURNE KANGAROOS

2022 CLASH

Two wins for the Kangaroos in 2022 and an ordinary away strip that featured an oversized kangaroo head made it a tough year for fans.

Despite these shockers, Port had a top season in 2004. Picture: Cameron Richardson

PORT ADELAIDE POWER

2004 CLASH

A big lightning strike on a powerboard and a teal background is never the recipe for an attractive jersey.

Collingwood fans shake with rage when they see these. Picture: Matt Sampson

PORT ADELAIDE POWER

2024 PRISON BARS

Few things cause more of a stir among Collingwood fans than when the Power bust out the Prison Bars strip.

Richmond in anything other than the gold sash on black background seems blasphemous for Tigers fans. Picture: AAP Image/Julian Smith

RICHMOND TIGERS

2015 CLASH

Nothing will get fans up in arms more than a traditional club out of colours, and the reverse of their yellow sash on black background certainly did that.

Up there with the most baffling alternate strips of the modern era. Picture: Colleen Petch

ST KILDA SAINTS

2001 ALTERNATE

St Kilda in yellow. Yikes.

This eagle was on FIRE. Picture: Ian Cugley

WEST COAST EAGLES

2000 CLASH

Looking at these jerseys is a trip down memory lane, with a strong emphasis on trip.

The Eagles said farewell to Subiaco with this shocker. Photo: Paul Kane/Getty Images

WEST COAST EAGLES

2017 SUBIACO

A tribute to their final game at Subiaco Oval, with a jersey that will thankfully never be repeated.

The jerseys sum up Australia’s 2010 World Cup campaign. Picture: AP

AUSTRALIA FOOTBALL
2016 AWAY

The Socceroos were dudded with their home and away strips for the 2010 World Cup, with a two-blue design failing to hit the mark.

Newcastle Jets showed their appreciation for the RAAF

NEWCASTLE JETS

2015-16 SPECIAL

The sentiment was there in a tribute to the armed forces, but the image of fighter jets on their jerseys didn’t hit.

The crossover that nobody needed. Photo: Chris Hyde/Getty Images

NBL LOONEY TUNES

2019-20

Yes they were designed to appeal to kids, but having a future NBA star in LaMelo Ball wearing a Road Runner jersey is a big no.

A lighthouse on a jersey. Bold move. Photo: Graham Denholm/Getty Images

ILLAWARRA HAWKS

2022/23

The Wollongong Harbour Lighthouse might be somewhat iconic, but it isn’t needed on your home shirt.

The Opal and Boomers have gone for a lighter shade of gold. Photo: Kelly Defina/Getty Images

OPALS/BOOMERS

2024 LIGHT

The Boomers and Opals have opted for lighter shades of gold, but it’s a miss, particularly when watching on TV.

Photo: Chris Hyde/Getty Images

BRISBANE ROAR

2024/25 HOME

Brisbane’s home jerseys certainly will stand out throughout this years A-Leagues seasons. For the right reasons? That’s your call.

Western United's first away strip. Picture: Supplied

WESTERN UNITED
2020 AWAY

The new kids on the block made a statement with their away strip in their inaugural season, with a design resembling something out of a kaleidoscope.

The Boomers. Photo: Gregory Shamus/Getty Images

BOOMERS

2024 OLYMPICS DARK

These uniforms were panned by current and past players, with the jerseys something you’d expect the triathletes to run around in.

Australia’s bodysuits were one of a kind. Picture: David Kapernick

OPALS

2000 OLYMPICS DARK

The bodysuits were very controversial with both players and fans alike.

The All Stars in action. Photo: Mark Metcalfe/Getty Images

A LEAGUE ALL STARS

2014

Between the oversized logo and the horrid use of colour scheme, the A League didn’t put its best foot forward against Juventus.

The Crocs lacked inspiration this season in the jersey stakes. Picture: Supplied

TOWNSVILLE CROCS

2015/16 AWAY

Take your pick of which Townsville design was more uninspired during the 2015/16 season - a horrid shade of green or an all grey strip.

The Wildcats in their unconventional yellow. Photo: Paul Kane/Getty Images

PERTH WILDCATS

2012/13 HERITAGE

Just because your club has worn colours in the past doesn’t mean they need to be given new life for heritage round.

Any we’ve missed? Let us know in the comments below.