Slammin Since 1904 - Canterbury

When it comes to stash in the year 2015, the boundaries are being widened... no longer are Stade Francais the only club side with ‘jazzy’ away kit or a 'funky' European strip instead it is the norm instead of the exception. 

Personally, I enjoy fashion and rugby stash in equal measure, I’d be as happy with a bag of hoodies, rugby shirts and tracksuit bottoms as I would a new handbag. When it comes to the handbag front I really wouldn’t mind if David Flatman happened to point an Aspinal of London bag in my direction and when it comes to the stash there is one rugby brand in particular that takes my fancy; Canterbury. In my eyes Canterbury equals rugby and has done for years and I’m sure that many of you reading know exactly what I mean when I say that. 

On 17th February 2014 an announcement broke that caused England to explode with excitement; Bath Rugby had signed Sam Burgess and since then the spotlight hasn't dimmed on 'Slammin' once. Naturally the individuals in the positions of power at Canterbury snapped up Sam as an ambassador and here we are a little less than six months later discussing rugby and fashion... in particular settling in at Farleigh House and the Since 1904 collection. 

On the rugby side of things it has been a whirlwind that ended, on a domestic front at least, on 30th May after a tough defeat at the hands of Saracens in the Aviva Premiership Final. Sam shared with me how he handled the initial transition and the support of his new Director of Rugby;

‘Everyone’s made me feel welcome; I already had a few friends at the club before I came. A funny story, I was at Bradford in 2008 and George Ford came on work experience with the first team, he was 15 at the time and I said to our head coach we need to sign this kid.  So I went to George and Mike’s house for dinner with my head coach at the time Steve McNamara and tried to sign George for Bradford, and then 7 years later the roles reversed and now I’m coming to play for them. I’ve always been in touch with George and followed his career. It’s the other staff as well though and the players have been really welcoming, it’s been easy to fit straight in. It’s a great culture at Bath too and you’re out of the spotlight a bit more than in Sydney. You can go for dinner, so it’s easy to be more sociable with the guys’

I make no apologies for using the term whirlwind again, for it has been, there are few that could take the pressure of moving half way across the world and grasping a new code so well. The question for Sam was of course what has stuck out over the past eight months or so; 

The already trademarked
Burgess carry

‘I’d have to say making my debut for Bath. I only played 15 - 20mins but the last time I felt nervous was my debut as a 17 year old kid for Bradford and after that I never really felt nervous, but being a 20 odd year old man, feeling nervous before you go on the field is actually quite a nice feeling to have. That’s my biggest achievement of my first carry in the game and then after that we reached the final in my first few months. It was disappointing to loose but it was a great achievement for the club. I think the city of Bath certainly enjoyed the ride this year and I was just thankful to get to the last dance with them. It was disappointing not to get the result, but playing in that atmosphere is great’

Naturally we moved on and discussed a few things fashion related for as Canterbury’s newest recruit Sam has put his name to their off the field range ‘Since 1904’. It is fair to say I can see a number of the Bath boys donning this one, or a bespoke Bath version, next season when Canterbury take over as their official kit partner and it is succinctly described by Sam as ‘clean and sharp’. The formal description is 'a collection of high quality, heritage inspired rugby classics with a modern design twist' and this is where the human mannequin part comes in, as part of the range announcement Canterbury decided to kick off with a launch with a difference at House of Fraser. The flag ship store in Victoria was the venue of choice and Sam was 'delivered' to the people, something he actually quite enjoyed;

‘I’m not sure I’ll do it as a career, but it was certainly a good experience! I was actually quite nervous before it because I didn’t know what to expect, but it was a great vibe down in London and the people that worked in House of Fraser were great. We had fun with it and some really good characters stopped and made it a great day – some Bath supporters too!’

It may be the off season now however in a few short weeks Canterbury’s latest ambassador will meet up with England to continue on his union path. In Sam’s mind it is a case of ‘taking it step by step’ with the first stop ensuring that he makes it onto the plane to England's altitude training camp in Denver, Colorado. 

The Important Stash Details; the Since 1904 Range is sold exclusively at selected House of Fraser stores and online... perhaps a perfectly timed Father's Day gift!? As long as my Dad doesn't read this I'm on it already, enjoy!!