Rugby - Ireland Japan

[DTCwordfan]

Have the Irish RFU lost their brain cells....why are Ireland playing in purple at home and not their Emerald green.....? Nuts.

Then the commentary hasn't started well ' Ireland are looking rusty'.... Indeed?? When 12 players play for Leinster?? Bllox to that.

[jno]

they've done the purple before but I've never known why. Their usual alternate is either white or black

[ichkeria]

Well it's happened before.
No dafter than a lot of shirt choices elsewhere.
it's only Japan in a meaningless Autumn international.
14-0 already I'll take that sort of rusty

[elliemay1]

They've worn purple before in 2016

[DTCwordfan]

19-0 now....as you say, ichk, rusty?

[DTCwordfan]

especially as the All Blacks and Italy are 0-0 after the 1st quarter....

[ichkeria]

Those are very like our old school colours!

[DTCwordfan]

Mine were brown and gold on white shorts, brown socks...

[Khandro]

In ancient Rome, purple was the colour of royalty, a designator of status, it was more important at the time that purple was expensive. Purple was expensive, because purple dye came from snails. ... To make Tyrian purple, marine snails were collected by the thousands and had to be boiled for days.
So I guess they are demonstrating that in rugby, Ireland are the aristocrats!

[DTCwordfan]

surely the Irish would have eaten them, lock, stock and helix, washed down with a few jars of Guinness or Murphy's.....

[Peter Pedant]

they dont have to wear green
they can tell the other side by the way the - - um Dook of edinburgh sign
and if they are shouting banzai it is certain

or even scooth pleeth but that is a bit secong world war

[Peter Pedant]

liffey water - chrissakes

[Peter Pedant]

Khandy gets 10/10
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tyrian_purple

murex snails - they have excavated due factories - near the lakes, smelt a bit because they used human refuse in its production

found in tombs but faded after 2000 y

and today boys and gurlz - pas de murex - you can pick up a shell and say ( zoo-otoblist or conchogist ) there arent any of those now!

yes first example of something being hunted to extinction for human foibles and pride

surprising to see such deep deep comment on AB ....

oh, a million ( murex snails silly ) for 1 mg dye
notably more expensive than gold ( then )

[Peter Pedant]

saying only the nobs can wear purple is an example of a sumptuary law
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sumptuary_law

1350 ( no not BC silly ) - Chaucer prolog - they are all wearing apparel which go against the then sumptuary laws - - but you have to know what they are. ( sumptuary laws silly ) in order to work it all out

Stuart times - slashed jacket - you slashed the top layer and pulled thro the still expensive second layer - - also subject to sumptuary laws.

Queen Adelaide said that only british silk could be work at court 1830 - but that cdnt be sumptuary

[jno]

that's like requiring that people be buried in good British wool rather than silks and satins, which was the case for a century or so. Old parish registers say Jane Doe was buried on 6 June "in woollens only".

[Buenchico]

>>> why are Ireland playing in purple at home and not their Emerald green

Probably purely for commercial reasons.

If Irish supporters see their team playing in their 'alternate' kit, they're far more likely to go out and buy such a replica kit (even if they've already purchased a regular green replica kit). It might well be a condition of a deal between the IRFU and the manufacturer of replica kits (which, of course, brings in loads of money for the IRFU) that Ireland play in purple at home occasionally, in order to boost sales of replica kits.