Sacre bleu French kit comes with cheeky quip

The newly-unveiled French jersey. Photo / AP

Maybe the biggest joke of the new French rugby jersey - now even jerseys are the subject of mind games - is that the French probably won't get to wear it against the All Blacks in their World Cup pool clash.

The French unveiled their new jerseys this week with a tweak of the All Blacks' noses - letting it be known that two famous victories over the All Blacks were the inspiration for the new garb.

The 43-31 victory over New Zealand at the 1999 World Cup and the equally seismic 20-18 quarter-final victory four years ago were the basis of a new Nike jersey. It features two tones of blue - the top half the same shade as the kit worn at Twickenham in 1999 and the bottom half a tribute to the shirt worn at the Millennium Stadium in 2007.

However, quite apart from the dubious wisdom of annoying the All Blacks on home turf, it is unlikely the French jersey will be seen at Eden Park on September 24 when the two countries square off in their Pool A match. That's because the French will almost certainly have to wear their away kit - an all-white strip with a three-colour trim - to avoid a clash with the All Black jersey (to be unveiled at the Tri Nations match against South Africa on July 30).

Other countries are also beginning to roll out their World Cup kits and the prices are steep. Ireland's new jersey will make its debut in a test match against France at the start of August, with replicas already fetching €66 ($115). An "authentic" test edition is also available at €90 ($158).

If that seems steep, it's nothing like France's All Black-flavoured offering. They will also wear it for the first time against Ireland. It costs €75 ($132), more expensive than any other Six Nations jerseys, while the "authentic" edition comes in at an eye-watering €130 ($230). The All Blacks' new Adidas jersey is still a secret but it has been designed and tested in conjunction with several senior All Blacks including captain Richie McCaw. All McCaw will say is "it is revolutionary and also respectful to the All Blacks' long and proud history".

"I'm a traditionalist when it comes to rugby and fans can rest assured that it still looks like a rugby jersey. It's still an All Blacks jersey that you're proud to hold up and proud to run out and wear," he added. Other players involved in the development include Dan Carter, Andrew Hore, Brad Thorn, Conrad Smith, Mils Muliaina and Keven Mealamu.

Adidas country manager David Huggett said the the new All Blacks strip will contain a "visible difference". The NZRU said the new strip would mark the biggest changes in technology and design to the iconic jersey in more than a decade.