Canterbury to dominate world cup scrum

QUEENSLAND: Sportswear and lifestyle brand Canterbury is set to dramatically ramp up it its domestic presence in anticipation of this year's Rugby World Cup.

The New Zealand-headquartered brand - touted by many as the world's leading manufacturer of on-field rugbywear - has announced plans to launch an aggressive marketing campaign to help drive sales of both its on-field and off-field apparel.

Separate campaigns will be launched by both the Australian and New Zealand Rugby Unions.
The brand, which has already confirmed its sponsorship of the Australian, Irish, South African, Scottish and South African sides, hopes the September 7 to October 20 event staged in France will help turn around the poor sales of its Wallabies jerseys following the team's recent slump in form.

Canterbury Australasian CEO Howard Goldberg said the brand intended releasing around 10,000 replica jerseys for Australian supporters from June with additional scarves, T-shirts, polos, track suits and other branded merchandise also on offer from Canterbury stores and retail partners including Rebel Sport.
Goldberg said while it was unrealistic to expect a repeat of 2003 - where the RWC was staged in Australia and led to a 35 per cent lift in sales - he was confident the country would "get in behind the Wallabies".
Internationally, the event was "very exciting" for the brand with the global television audience expected to exceed 3.5 billion, leading to massive exposure for the brand, he said.

Keen to keep details about the technical side of the on-field apparel under wraps, Goldberg confirmed the Wallabies' new jerseys would incorporate new technology developed by the brand.
It is understood it will be closely aligned to Canterbury's new compression 'base layer' range.
The range, suitable for both hot and cold conditions, is currently in use by several international sports men and women across rugby, golf and cricket.