Anton Oliver has stepped into the debate over the Highlanders' change of jersey colour by writing a strongly worded letter about the "foolish'' decision.
Oliver, the Highlanders' most-capped player, with 127 games from 1996 to 2007, said he had thought hard about whether to go public with his concerns.
"I'm not against change, but there has to be a very good reason for it. Things change - we all know that - but change for change's sake, without any cohesive reason, is foolish. Ask any marketing person: mess around with a brand on this type of scale at your peril,'' he said in The Southland Times.
The Highlanders played their final game at Carisbrook on Friday night in a new strip featuring bright green with navy blue.
Oliver is critical of a lack of consultation with the public and statements by Highlanders general manager Roger Clark that the franchise did not have the same tradition that unions like Otago, Southland and North Otago had.
"Clark seems to imply that after 16 years the Highlanders have no tradition. I find that a very offensive suggestion and I'm sure plenty of my fellow team mates - who all put a lot of miles into the jersey - would feel the same,'' Oliver says.
"I don't think they could have ballsed this up more if they had tried.''
The former All Black hooker suggests Highlanders management should apologise for the jersey situation and put a tender out to the public for suggestions about what a new jersey should look like.
