IT will be one of those question asked amongst sports fans of all ages; just what is the most famous Scottish sporting kit of all time? 

What one did you want to wear as a kid or a fan, and what one made you close your eyes? Was there a shirt you wished your team wore, or another you just wanted to see disappear?

And what about those other items in sport, the colour schemes, race suits, helmets and clothing that meant so much to so many?

Read more: Sport Times' 100 Most Memorable Scottish Kits: Numbers 12-6 featuring Rangers, Hibs and Hearts

Every reader and aficionado will have their own ideas on this one, just like they will know the outfits that made them cringe.

Over coming days, we will be counting down to what is the Most Memorable Scottish Kit of all time, and what makes the most famous – and infamous – designs over the years.

If you’d like to vote or have a say on what colours make it on to the top 100, either contact us through Twitter, @hssport, or through the Herald Sport Facebook page - and let the debate commence.

Pictures: Herald Archive, SNS group, Getty Images
Graphics: David Moor (Historical Football Kits)

5. Celtic (Away) 1991 -1992

MISS: There are some famous shirts that didn’t even merit a mention on this poll, simply because of one thing, ‘NDF’ - no distinguishing features. Scotland 1984 and 1990 rugby Grand Slam-winning kits being a classic example; blue, with a thistle, no sponsors, flashes or manufacturers logos.

This isn’t something you could ever say about this Celtic away shirt from the early 90’s which had every distinguishing feature - and a few that had never previously been witnessed - included in its design. It was football’s equivalent of dazzle camouflage. Funnily enough, Celtic weren’t seen as winners around this time.

There were genuine concerns amongst the Herald readership that this marriage of thinking and colours (or was it just a messy divorce of ideas?) would slip through the net. Not a hope of that happening, not when so much correspondence was prefixed with ‘and don’t forget ...’

How could we ever do such a thing, hence the reason that it makes the top five, deservedly so in my mind, if for no other reason than as a lesson from history. Budding designers, be warned.The Herald:

4. Rangers 1996 - 1997

HIT: This was the last design Rangers received from Adidas, and once again, there were no complaints from fans as to the quality of the jerseys or the team wearing it, emphasised on its very first outing, the 1996 Scottish Cup final against Hearts.

Rangers were unstoppable, with a hat-trick from Gordon Durie, and a man of the match display from Brian Laudrup.

A year later, this was the shirt worn when Rangers completed their nine in a row run at Tannadice.

In all, the Rangers /Adidas venture produced three new home shirts for the Ibrox team in just five years, each one of them unique, each one popular with the supporters and with those charged with selling them.

And the official away kits weren’t bad either.

Hence why all three have ended up in the top 10 of our 100 Most Memorable list.

That is a pretty impressive strike rate for any manufacturer, given some of the calamitous efforts we’ve featured during this series.

Why then, did Rangers suddenly end the partnership after this design and head off in the blue yonder, hand and hand with Nike?
Quite simply, it was down to money. What a surprise.
The Herald:

3. Rangers 1992 - 1994 

HIT: if the previous Rangers home kit was understated, this one was unannounced when it made its debut at Hampden on Scottish Cup final day, 1992.

It proved to be a winning start for Rangers in their new Adidas kit, defeating Airdrie, the beginning of an amazing year for the Ibrox club.

There was never any doubting who manufactured this outfit, with the three white panels, off the shoulders, synonymous as the Adidas trademark. The away kit (in white with red flashes) wasn’t bad either.

But this one became one of the most photographed jerseys ever, for two reasons.

One was entirely to do with camera and film technology, meaning it was easier to shoot full colour than black and white. The second was all to do what happened on the field of play.

Rangers were the first Scottish side to qualify for the all-new Champions League, and got there after an epic ‘Battle of Britain’ encounter with Leeds United.

Remaining undefeated in Europe, while clinching a domestic treble, meant this kit was an all-time favourite for fans and snappers alike.The Herald:

2. Celtic 1965 - 1972

HIT: If European football didn’t know Celtic’s green and white colours beforehand, they certainly remembered them one late afternoon in Lisbon, back in May, 1967.

Celtic defeated Inter Milan, European royalty, to become the first British club to win the European Cup and put the hoops firmly on the map.

While dominating in Scotland, Jock Stein’s side came so close to performing similar miracles in Europe;  another European Cup final in 1970, having beaten Leeds United famously over two legs. Then semi-final heartbreak, in ‘72 when Inter gained revenge in a penalty shoot-out, and two years later when they were kicked off the pitch at Parkhead by Atletico.

In all that time, Celtic never changed away from this kit. And when they did, it was only to make minor modifications to the collar. The longevity of maintaining the same design, along with the performances on the pitch, across Europe and on TV, helped this colour scheme to be instantly recognisable.

To such an extent, that in the late 80’s, a player who joined Rangers had to break the news to a disappointed wife that he’d be playing in blue, and ‘not the nice green and white bands’ she had dreamt of!

That said, if these hoops are indeed so famous, why would anyone ever want to alter such a classic design?

After all, these colours and the shirt pattern are just right for a football team with an Irish heritage. Probably why Hibernian thought of it first...
The Herald:

1. Scotland 1965 - 1971

HIT: And a universal hit at that. The V-necked jersey that preceded this one might have shaded it, had there been enough who could remember seeing it in the flesh. As it is, this one heads our 100 Most Memorable Scottish Sporting Kits, and a cracking winner it was.

However, unlike other kits that would arrive later, and play a significant part in the recollections of a great many fans, this one is remembered almost entirely around one never-to-be-forgotten moment in Scottish sporting history.

That came in 1967, when Scotland travelled down to London to take on England, newly crowned champions of the world. Had this been a boxing contest, the Scots would have departed North London with the championship belt.

As it was, the Scots had to make do with the Home International crown - not that it stopped anyone from believing we were unofficial world champions!

This time could be considered as the high-water mark for Scottish football; Celtic would win the European Cup, Rangers would be in the final of the Cup-Winners-Cup.

But at international level, even after the win at Wembley - which also doubled as a European Championship qualifier - we still couldn’t reach the finals.

As for the World Cup, even after a four-goal haul for Colin Stein against Cyprus, we would miss the finals in Mexico. For all this was a great strip, the world never saw it.

And a wee anacdote to conclude this series. The Herald: