adidas reveals 'blackest' ever All Blacks jersey

Sports wear manufacturer adidas has unveiled the latest All Blacks jersey, which it claims is the "most technologically advanced All Blacks jersey yet produced."

adidas also highlight that the jersey is also the "blackest" kit of all time with logos and numbers on the jersey executed in gunmetal silver.

Revealed in advance of the first matches in the All Blacks 2014 European tour, the jersey, along with the shirt and socks, has been designed and woven with a range technologocial innovations - the product of a two year design process which saw adidas collaborate with senior All Blacks Richie McCaw, Dan Carter, Liam Messam, Aaron Smith, Israel Dagg and Conrad Smith.

While player feedback specified that 'fit' was the most important aspect of a rugby jersey, the forwards and the backs will be wearing different designs, the latter insisting on the figure-hugging shirts that have been standard for some time now, the former asking for jerseys that can be more easily gripped at strategic points about the person.

Using ground breaking techniques usually reserved for the aerospace industry, a body mapping process called 'Dynamic Stretch Analysis' allowed adidas to measure bodies as they moved and how much strain was being applied to the skin.

Based on this research, adidas designed the two jersey types to replicate the movements of players' skin.

In addition to the unique design for forwards and backs, a revolutionary new fabric has been used in the creation of both jerseys to allow for optimum movement.

Featuring fabric-weaving technology, which has a unique two-way stretch, Woven Carbon was developed by the team at adidas to ensure the use of a superior fabric that doesn't compromise on strength, flexibility, weight or comfort, and can withstand the rigours of the game.

The All Blacks will also be wearing compression socks, of the sort normally sported by distance runners while the shorts, have stayed more or less the same since the 1970s, are longer and slimmer and for the first time manufactured with the same material as the shirts.

Linked to the launch of the new kits, adidas has developed an extensive range of All Blacks merchandise.

The All Blacks kit can be viewed at www.allblackshop.com

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