Okay, so I think the rules are written that two thirds of the torso must be covered. That applies to both the men and women. The solution Lena and I came up with for the women's comp (which Vic and NSW used) was to invest in catsuits. They covered 2/3rds of the torso without having an extra garment on top. They looked awesome - very professional with state and player numbers printed on the back. Training in Melbourne at MSAC we had a number of people come up and ask what we were training for - lets just say it made our sport look a bit more professional and credible. Okay, so the catsuits were slightly tighter than a standard cut swimsuit, but the girls are happy to wear them once a year.

As for the Vic and NSW guys, we moved away from the see-through, handmade white and black vests that were used in previous years (lets just say for most the look was criminal). Instead we used a tri vest on which we printed player numbers, with the state being printed on the arse of the togs. These tri vests (used by the world's best triathletes) didn't have sleeves, and were cut on the back so not to impede swim stroke technique. Personally, I thought the Vic and NSW men looked fantastic.

Last year at the Perth Nationals, the National organising committee went against the rules by excluding the vests from the competition. It was only notified to the States a week or two before the comp, and had been written into the B-section laws. As far as I'm aware this was not supported by either Victoria or NSW.

The intentions of our Chief Referee, Simon Talbot, in implementing the vest "Rule" was to make players more easily identifiable for referees. This in turn has also made it far easier for spectators to identify teams and players. This law was hotly debated over the course of three UHA AGMS, and the final solution that NSW and VIC came up with ended up being a happy end to it.... until WA wrote them out in their B Section rules.

Okay.... so this is my opinion, and obviously it will come under fire from various players, but I think of it this way.... we want to raise the profile of this sport that we all love, but there is one obvious disadvantage to the nature of the game - its underwater! That makes for a not very spectator friendly sport! If competition/tournament organisers are going to invest in big $$'s to have the sport videoed, recorded, televised, etc. as a sport we need to make it easier for the ordinary non-playing spectator to follow. At the next Australian Nationals we will have a potential audience of hundreds, allowing spectators into the venue across the course of the weekend. We are able to do this as we are hiring the big tv screen on the pool deck to televise games. Personally, I'd prefer these spectators to be enthralled and intrigued by our sport, staying to enjoy the sport we all love, rather than leave laughing and questioning what the hell were doing!

The game in Sheffield took a step in this direction being televised online on 24/7.tv. If we are going to continue to seek recognition and a higher profile for our sport, then there are some areas that obviously need to be adapted to make it more accessible to a general audience (an audience that may not necessarily play UWH).

Nicky, you can keep your vest on 8)