Players cast votes in away kit competition
The final stage of our away strip competition kicked off today – and a number of first-team players were on hand at Smiths of Greenock to meet the fans and cast their vote.
Gavin Gunning, Michael Doyle, Gary Oliver, Kudus Oyenuga, Jon Scullion, Conor Pepper, and Caolan McAleer all came along after training and registered their pick for the kit the team will wear on their travels in 2017-18 while mingling with supporters.
Although the squad seemed divided between the grey design with the Inverclyde skyline and the red tartan shirt, the yellow and tartan kits seemed to be proving most popular with fans.
Defender Doyle told gmfc.net: “Obviously the fans weren’t happy with the original home strip at the start of the season and they got a chance to vote on a new one, and that’s been taken a stage further with the away strip.
“I think it’s a good thing that supporters get to design and vote on their own top and should happen at every club. It gets the community involved with the club through the kids drawing their designs.
“I voted for the red tartan top. I think it’s the nicest and most unusual of the four. The yellow and the grey one have the pictures, which is unusual, but I like the tartan one.
“To be fair, I liked the blue home tartan one. I’d seen that in the past and thought that was nice as well. So I like the tartan in it and stands out a wee bit more and I’d be happy to wear it.
“We were talking about the competition in the changing room actually, and there is a split between the grey and the tartan. The four of them are nice and the boys would be happy with whichever one’s picked. We’re looking forward to seeing who wins.”
Forward Oliver added: “It’s good to see the fans have a say in what their team’s players are wearing. It’s an extra interest for the fans, and as players we’re interested to see how the vote goes.
“I went for the grey kit, number one. I just liked the colour and think it’s a wee bit different with the image on the front and I thought that was a good idea by the designer.
“We have the yellow one at the moment and last year, so the grey one is a wee change. I like number four [red tartan] as well, but I went for number one.”
Fans can view the designs in person to help them make their own decision in store or by cutting out coupons in the Greenock Telegraph, where votes count double.
The ballot runs right up until the Hibs game on Saturday 17 December to give out-of-town supporters an opportunity to make their voice heard.
Images: Jonathan Mitchell
