The classic plain white shirt with a red rose stood the test of time up to the start of the 1990s Photograph: Bob Thomas/Popperfoto/Getty Images
Cotton Traders made the first departure from the plain white design, adding a blue collar and two thin blue and two thin red hoops to the right upper arm of the white shirt. England lost to Australia in the final. They did revert to the traditional plain white jersey for the following season’s Five Nations competition as England completed the grand slam Photograph: Phil O'Brien/Empics Sport
During the tournament England wore an all-white loose fitting shirt. Simply designed, the shirt carried no advertising, featuring only the Nike swoosh under the collar and the red rose. The 1999 tournament was England’s worst World Cup, comprehensively beaten by South Africa in the quarter-finals Photograph: Richard Sellers/Sportsphoto
During the group stages, England wore a blue change strip against Fiji Photograph: Francois Guillot/AFP/Getty Images
In the 2001-02 season, Nike produced the last of the original long sleeved and button collar shirts. The jersey, which was white with a red flash from shoulder height, was the last to carry BT Cellnet as a sponsor Photograph: Mike Hewitt/Getty Images
Nike introduced tight-fitting rugby apparel in 2003 with the intention of reducing the ‘opportunity to be tackled via the shirt.’ Nike describe their Dri Fit Knit Fabric as ‘specially engineered to be stronger and more flexible than previous jerseys, while also wicking away sweat. As well as reduced panels to improve comfort, the new shirt also featured gripper print on the torso (for carrying a wet ball) and on the shoulders (for locking into a scrum). The manufacturers also introduced shorts and socks created with three different fabrics to ‘improve comfort and moisture management for the full 80 minutes’ Photograph: Tom Jenkins
England launched a new, strikingly different trip to be worn for the 2007-08 season. The kit incorporated an asymmetic sash at a diagonal running across the jersey and shorts creating a 'unique version of the St George cross'. Manufacturers Nike describe the strip as, 'lightweight, tighter, durable and visually striking, the new England rugby kit is designed to give the team every possible advantage, helping the players meet the varying physical demands of the game in their individual positions.' The RFU’s commercial director Paul Vaughan noted that the strip signalled a major departure from the last few years, saying it was ‘innovative and fantastic’ Photograph: Adrian Dennis/AFP/Getty Images
England wore a purple change strip in the narrow victory over Argentina at Twickenham. The colour was chosen after designers drew inspiration from the tracksuits awarded to players during the 1970s, 80s and 90s. The strip led Will Carling to say, 'for me, the colour purple means England rugby, while Steve Borthwick said, 'I associate the colour with one of the golden eras of the English game'. Overall, 8,000 purple shirts were sold during November, compared with an average of 3,000 shirts during the same period Photograph: Tom Jenkins
England will sport a dark grey strip when they face Australia on Saturday. The Nike shirts, which retail at £90, carry the motto Rugbeia Floreat Ubique (Rugby flourishes everywhere) as well as a poppy and a St George’s Cross to ‘capture the spirit of the England side.’ According to Nike, the new strip will provide England’s players with a ‘battle-ready uniform of steel’, although purists will argue that the RFU is putting financial interests above history and tradition Photograph: Public Domain
