It's What Makes The Man

Agent Orange has a confession to make...

Don't get me wrong, I love gameday. I'm extremely excited about all the potential new signings that are rumored to be happening and I love going out to the pre-season matches. But... in all honesty, my favorite part of the season and the moment that I look forward to the most is the day that Omiya unveils the new uniform for the upcoming campaign.

Alright, I admit that it's a bit odd that I scour the internet looking for the slightest hint at what the new shirt will look like. And yeah, I did watch my fair share of BRAVO during my time at Arizona State University. All I'm saying is that the kit sets the tone for how the season will go. We've been fairly lucky with the choices Omiya has made in the past regarding their on-field apparel. Sure, the early years resembled co-ed rec league softball uniforms, but the choice of orange and navy was inspired. It's a look that says, WE ARE OMIYA... OR EHIME.

The four years I have followed Omiya have gone something like this:

2005 - I liked the uniform. Wasn't sure at first how I felt about orange, soccer, or Ardija at first, but I grew to love all three.

2006 - Even better. The team and the uniforms were both sharper and more dynamic... a little.

2007 - What was the deal with the six-spiked, horizontal stripe, layered monstrosity that the good folks at Lotto decided to foist upon us? It nearly killed us as a J1 entity... well, that and the lack of on-field talent and managerial acumen. I like to call that kit the Enilton Grande.

2008 - I didn't quite know what to expect with either the team or the uniform. Both were very pleasant surprises until DCMX went belly-up and they decided to plaster the big white box with the gaudy red DoCoMo logo right smack dab in the middle of a football apparel masterpiece. Just like urinating on a Rembrandt. I'm not saying that the slump was caused by splattering that red abomination across our chests... No, I am saying exactly that. The slump was caused by splattering that red abomination across our chests.

It could be much worse. Yokohama FC had a dreadful uniform in 2007 and they were the worst team in J1 history. Verdy committed a major sin by going with a monochrome kit. First rule, unless you are wearing white or very dark colors, don't go monochrome! Ever wonder why Sagan Tosu has never sniffed J1? Maybe it's because they dress like a baby nursery (the Rising Sun News has a thread of truly awful J-League uniforms here. I'm hoping the fine people at Lotto don't get any ideas).

The 2009 edition is going to run at around 18,000 yen, so one word better come to mind when I get my first glimpse: FABULOUS. Now it's off to watch old downloads of Project Runway and dream of our glorious new kits!

*