INTRODUCTION
Although cigarette cards portraying images of famous actresses, animals and the military had been in production in the USA since the 1870's, it wasn't until the late 19th century that the idea spread across the Atlantic to Britain.
When the UK was first introduced to this new phenomenon it just happened to coincide with the fledgling Football League in 1888, and as most of the smokers at that time were men the card manufacturers of the time realised the commercial potential for these cards, and started printing photos of footballers.
Many companies such as Willis, Field Favourites, Ogden's, Taddy and Rutherford's cashed in on these early days of cigarette cards, but it is the more recent card collections that usually contained bubble gum from the mid 1960's onwards that I will dealing with on this site.
Like many boys who were born in the 1960's (1967 to be exact), collecting football cards and stickers was a prominent part of my childhood. I can recall many lunchtimes spent in the school playground persuading classmates to make that vital trade in order to complete a particular team set or collection.
Most of my after-school hours during Primary and early Grammar years were spent opening packets of cards or stickers, in pursuit of that elusive Ray Train (Carlisle Utd. in case you had forgotten), or maybe a Luton Town badge or possibly dare I say a St.Mirren team group. The quantity of pink chewing gum sticks that I must have chomped my way through during this period of my life doesn't bare thinking about.
I managed to complete a number of collections of cards and sticker albums during this time, but it wasn't until I moved out of my parents house and got married 8 years ago and came across some of the said items in the roofspace that I rediscovered my love for this hobby.
Back in the 70's and 80's there were less things to occupy a child's amusement, unlike today's Playstations, Nintendos, XBoxes and computers, although it is coincidently the latter of these items that has helped fuel my craving for these cards and stickers at the age of forty - I am of course referring to Ebay.
When I first started trading on Ebay I thought that there would only be a handful of diehards still interested in a long forgotten passion, but to my amazement, I quickly found out that there were hundreds if not thousands of people like myself.
The cards and stickers were first and foremost produced to be collected, and the fact that they provide a detailed and colourful history of the beautiful game and how it has developed during my own lifetime, convinced me that it is a hobby which gives me a great deal of satisfaction.
I hope you enjoy looking at some of the cards and sticker collections as much as I have enjoyed collating them.