Town’s new adidas away kit has been leaked online and as previously reported is a return to the orange worn on several occasions in the past.

The club put out a Twitter teaser for the new strip, which is due to be officially released on Monday, this morning but a number of fans found their way to other photos of it in full, including one where it is worn by Blues legend Frans Thijssen, who was back in Suffolk this week for an Evening With… event.

Town's director of retail operations, Lee Hyde, later explained the thinking behind the return to orange, initially worn late in the Sir Bobby Robson era and also during the 1991/92 and 1999/00 promotion campaigns amongst others.

“To be fair, we have been offered the choice of orange for the last three years but with the club joining up again with adidas for the first time in 25 years and the Dutch connection of those glory days with Arnold and Frans, it clicked into place," he told the official site.

“Whenever we speak to fans and gauge their opinions of what colours they like, orange comes out on top so we knew it would be a popular choice with the supporters.

“We have enjoyed some good seasons when we have worn the orange kit as our away colours and the club has had a fair few Dutch players down the years, some of them very popular, players like Martijn Reuser and Fabian Wilnis, as well as Arnold and Frans obviously.

“I also knew that with all due respect to the other brands, no one would do orange like adidas so with all that in mind and the history element of working again with adidas, it fitted perfectly.”

It’s not the first time Town kit has been leaked ahead of schedule. Last year, the Football League published both the Blues’ new kits on its official app ahead of Town’s planned release date.

There is a guide to pre-ordering both new kits on the club site here.

Photo: ITFC

Photo: Action Images

Gogs added 13:03 - Apr 18 A proper shirt with a proper embroidered badge, not like the plastic crap mitre dished up for this season. I like it. Look forward to seeing the home kit too
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Daniel72 added 13:06 - Apr 18 Orange is wrong to me in all circumstances, but never mind.
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BlueMachines added 13:14 - Apr 18 It's awful
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Lennyboy added 13:23 - Apr 18 Bloody awful, we look the same as any other adidas team other than the colour. Don't expect much difference with the home strip other than the colour. Very boring. The current strip might not be high in quality of materials but the design is first class and individual to the Town.
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Nazemariner added 15:43 - Apr 18 That is bloody dreadful! How can Adidas of got it so wrong? It looks like something a cyclist would wear. With all the talk of heritage i thought we'd get a black and white away kit similar to the one we wore throughout the late 70's and early 80's. I'm a little concerned about how the home kit will look now.
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Seasider added 15:56 - Apr 18 Frans would like it as in colours of Holland
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dude added 16:29 - Apr 18 the sideways marcus evans logo is awkward and takes up way too much real estate; the shorts should have been black; the orange color is a little too citrusy for suffolk and the badge color is way out of place. with the utmost respect for my fellow humans who could use some design scruples, could we not employ an agency to design our kits? these look thrown together and really the only reason to buy it is to support the team, not becasue it's cool. I dont want a design committee so wouldnt it make sense to get an agency to do this kind of stuff? proper talent? it does make a difference to your performance, what you wear - isn't this obvious. and now imo we have a crap away kit for then next how many year? hopefully i'm in the minority and it looks better in real life...

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dude added 16:31 - Apr 18 and as much as i love thijssen, omg...what genius thought of him being the model LOL
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Talbs77 added 16:32 - Apr 18 £45 for adult sizes is bad enough but £35 for kids is an absolute p*as take especially as only for a year ! One day the club will realise the best way to create greater revenue through merchandise and gate receipts isn't by giving the impression they are trying to fleece you at every opportunity!
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Lennyboy added 16:40 - Apr 18 I've said this time and time again, let the fans design it; they didn't do so bad with the club badge did they? I'll say it again...this is awful.
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riley26 added 16:42 - Apr 18 Like the colours, find the whites and blacks of recent away kits very bland, never too bothered about the away kit though as long as the home looks decent. Nothing much to the shirt, just an adidas sports top, but I prefer simplistic to over complicated with various unnecessary trims and embossed images... Would like a return to collared home shirts, all blue, white collar, nothing more nothing less...70's style.

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Talbs77 added 16:45 - Apr 18 BTW forgot to mention I think it's gross,
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Lennyboy added 16:47 - Apr 18 How much different is it to Chelsea's current kit, other than the colour? If we have the same shirt but blue for home kit, it will be a near replica of the 2013/14 Chelsea kit. BORING SO BL**DY BORING.
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warbeat78 added 16:49 - Apr 18 Black shorts agreed but perhaps orange adidas logo or sripes on them
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TimmyH added 20:51 - Apr 18 Amazing how people age - Frans back in his day looked like a porn king! as for the strip the more I think about it the more I dislike it - far to gaudy.
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lilcornishblue added 22:59 - Apr 18 Personally I quite like this kit! It is certainly more interesting to look at than a white and black kit, cmon guys a white and black kit is so boring and unimagnitive in terms of colour! I like it how it is but yes i can see the kit looking better with a black logo however this is the first away kit i am seriously thinking buying it would certainly stick put in a crowd!! Lets hope the home kit is just as good and even better!!! COYB #weareorange

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MisterBlue added 20:06 - Apr 20 Really should have got Gates to model it, and not Frans....
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