TRUE COLOURS

BRIAN CORRY EXPLORES AN OFTEN OVERLOOKED ISSUE THAT CAN HAVE A MASSIVE IMPACT FOR PLAYERS AND FANS

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IT WAS a moment that had never been seen in the Premier League before. Manchester United emerged from the tunnel for the second half of their Premier League game at Southampton in 1996 in a different kit.

A first half drubbing forced Sir Alex Ferguson to switch from their grey away kit into an alternative white and blue strip in order to respond to the 3-0 half time deficit (United went on to lose 3-1).

The apparent cause for this poor showing was due to the colour of the jersey and the impact it had on the vision of the players.

Ferguson believed that the eye muscles had a significant impact on match sharpness, thus hiring Liverpool University professor Gail Stephenson as the eye and vision coach of the team.

Professor Stephenson had told Ferguson that the shirt colour and design blended in with the crowd and it was the worst colour choice for the players’ vision.

Having already lost to both Arsenal and Liverpool while wearing this shirt, the first half performance against Saints had been the final nail in the coffin. Shirt manufacturers Umbro were dealt with a loss in profits while United were fined £10,000 by the FA for breaching protocol relating to kits during games.

Ferguson later insisted that it had been “the best £10,000 I ever spent”. Was it an excuse or did the legendary manager have a point?

This event invited conversation about shirt colours and the impact it has on people’s vision. How does the choice of shirt colour impact players and fans but, more significantly, how does it impact people with colour blindness? What is Colour Vision Deficiency (CVD) or Colour Blindness?