Ok… let’s get into the nitty gritty detail and learn why this next release is going to be so much better than the Champions Series released earlier in the year.

NRL 2007 Invincible Series - Premium Quality Hobby Set

This series is due for release on Tuesday, 3 July 2007… only nine days away.

Each packet contains nine cards plus one Footy Face Jersey Die Cut Card. Other Insert cards are randomly inserted into packs at various ratios as explained below.

The series consists of the following sub sets:

• Base Set - 195 cards (12 per team and 3 checklists)
• Footy Face Jersey Die Cuts - 192 cards - 1 per pack
• Club Player of the Year 2006 - 15 cards - 1 every 8 packs
• NRL Team of the Year 2006 - 9 cards - 1 every 18 packs
• NRL 2007 Premiership Predictors - 1 per team - 1 per Box
• Top Prospect Signatures - 1 per team - only 1 per Box
• Rookie Sensation - 6 cards - only 1 per Box

Like previous years, if you can collect the entire set of 16 Premiership Predictor Cards you can send them into Select to redeem one of only 350 NRL Enforcers Sets, plus the usual Premiership Mini Set for the 2007 Premiers.

This year the Top Prospect Signature cards are more strictly limited to 350 cards each… much better than the 500 last year.

There are also two different kinds of Signature Redemption Cards in this NRL Series.

NRL 2006 Medalists Signature Redemptions:

• 2 cards — Strictly Limited to only 120 cards each

These cards feature Cameron Smith, the Dally M Best and Fairest Medal Winner from the Melbourne Storm and Nathan Hindmarsh the Provan Summons (Fans Choice) Medal Winner from the Parramatta Eels.

The second of the Signature Redemptions included in the 2007 Invincible Series is the “NRL Force” Signature Redemptions:

• 2 cards — Strictly Limited to only 110 cards each

These NRL Force Signatures feature two exciting players each capable of turning a game in the blink of an eye… Matt Bowen from the North Queensland Cowboys and Rhys Wesser from the Penrith Panthers.

With only 110 of each of these REAL signature cards available I predict they will be in high demand, especially since each player has a strong following — not only in their club but from NRL fans as a whole.

There are also two different Case Cards in this 2007 Invincible Series, but unfortunately we haven’t been told who they will feature. I will be sure to let you know in our next email.

If you’re not sure what Case Cards are, I’ve explained it all below — in the AFL section.

A reminder the NRL 2007 Invincible Flyer can be viewed at:
http://FootyStars.com.au/Free_Stuff/NRL07InvincibleFlyer.pdf

Only 9 days to go until they are released… we don’t have to wait that long.
AFL 2007 Supreme Series - Premium Quality Hobby Set

As I mentioned in the previous section, these are due for release on Monday, 16 July.

Each packet contains nine cards plus one of 34 “Hall of Fame Series 3” cards. Other Insert cards are randomly inserted into packs at various ratios as explained below.

The series consists of the following sub sets:

• Base Set - 195 cards (12 per team and 3 checklists)
• Hall of Fame Collection Series 3 - 34 cards - 1 per pack
• All Australian Team - 22 cards - 1 every 8 packs
• Medal Winners 2006 - 5 cards - only 1 per Box
• 2006 Draft Pick Signatures - 16 cards - only 1 per Box
• AFL 2007 Premiership Predictors - 1 per team - 1 per Box
• Hall of Fame Legends - 4 cards - only 1 per Box

There are also two different kinds of Signature Redemption Cards in this Series.

2006 Medalists Signature Redemptions:

• 4 cards — Strictly Limited to only 100 cards each

Select haven’t yet identified the players featured in this sub set but we expect them to include:

• Adam Goodes - Brownlow Medalist
• Andrew Embley - Norm Smith Medalist
• Brendan Fevola - Coleman Medalist
• Danyle Pearce - Rising Star Award Winner for 2006

The second of the Signature Redemptions included in the 2007 Supreme Series is the “Hall of Fame Legends” Signature Redemptions:

• 2 cards — Strictly Limited to only 110 cards each

These Hall of Fame Legends will feature Richmond Champion Kevin Bartlett and St Kilda Great Darrel Baldock.

There are also three different Case Cards in this 2007 Supreme Series. They will feature three players who have played in more than 300 games — a magical mark achieved by only the best and most durable champions of the game.

This year the Case Cards feature Bombers legend Tim Watson who played 307 games for Essendon, Len Thompson the Collingwood star who also served time with South Melbourne and Fitzroy as he reached 301 games, and finally Glenn Archer the Kangaroos stalwart who will reach the 300 game mark next weekend against the Western Bulldogs on July 1st.

As you probably know, Case Cards are only found in a Factory Sealed Case. A case contains 12 Boxes of cards and each box contains 36 Packets.

This makes them relatively scarce for two reasons.

Firstly, they will be low in number (I reckon they will be limited to 175 or 180 cards each), and secondly, very few people will be able to get them straight out of the case. It’s usually only dealers and high end collectors who purchase a full case of cards because they are worth over $2150 a case which puts it out of the range of most collectors.

Don’t worry though… we will be making our case cards available to purchase either in our Footy Stars store www.FootyStars.com.au/store

And to prove that Select are back on the winning track, they have announced that 50 Signed Case Cards from Len Thompson will be randomly inserted to Factory Sealed cases!

This is sure to be one of the hottest contested cards from the entire release. Limited to only 50 cards and personally signed by Len himself… it will be widely sought after by Collingwood fans and footy card collectors alike.

Lets not forget that Len played for Collingwood between 1965 and 1978, South Melbourne in 1979 and then Fitzroy in 1980.

He played 301 games in total, including 4 Grand Finals. He won the Brownlow in 1972 and represented Victoria on 15 occasions.

He’s already in the Hall of Fame, and I can’t see it being long until he is elevated to legend status.

This card is a sure winner!

That completes this month’s Card Spotlight. You’ve got all the information about the Premium Series 2 release for both NRL and AFL footy cards.

Now all we need to do is wait for their release!

Right… it is now time to share with you, my reasons for being so disappointed with the new NRL and AFL Champions Series cards…

As I mentioned before, when I wrote to you last I was upset that the NRL had no signature cards in the series while the AFL did. I didn’t think it was fair to collectors when one code got a “better” set of cards than the other.

Unfortunately for AFL fans the tables turned…

The “signature” cards are NOT real signatures!

They are PRINTED REPRODUCTIONS of the player’s signature.

Can you believe it???

Printed copies of the player’s signature!

In fairness to Select Australia (the manufacturers of the footy cards)… they have called them “Gold Foil Printed Signatures” — so they are NOT deliberately trying to mislead anyone.

The name is telling you that the player’s signature is printed in a gold coloured foil print.

But I ask you this…

Is a gold foil printed signature, still a signature?

And if it is…

Is it worth as much as a personally signed player signature?

IF you answered YES to BOTH these questions I have a few more questions for you…

If I made a photocopy of a $50 note, is it still a $50 note?

And if it is…

I’d like to buy your house from you! I’ll be paying cash… as many $50 notes as you want!

I think you get my point.

It’s a shame that Select chose to go down this route. In my opinion, it does nothing positive for the card collecting hobby at all.

In my view, the printed signatures are going to de-value Select’s other perfectly legitimate limited edition signature cards — the ones that the players hand sign themselves — because every collector who buys something sight unseen will now be wondering… Is it a real signature or a printed signature?

Even the new collectors (most likely kids) that are just starting out with this series are being misled into thinking that printed signatures are cards worth collecting.

These same kids are having their expectations set so that when the next series of cards come out they expect to find one signature in every four packets (the same ratio as this Champions Series). That’s not realistic… it would be too many signature cards!

The Promotional Flyer from Select tells us that there are six gold foil signatures per team… 96 cards in the sub set. There is one card in every four packets (on average).

That means there are approximately 97,200 printed signature cards in the entire series. (900 cases x 12 boxes per case x 36 packets per box divided by four).

That’s over 1000 printed signatures per player!

That is FAR TOO MANY when you consider the two biggest factors that determine value in the card collecting hobby are scarcity and demand. With this many printed signatures available it is hardly a scarce set.

Having learnt all of this you may still want to buy the set. That’s your call.

We won’t be stocking the Champions Series for either the AFL or NRL. I don’t think they are worth the trouble of collecting and as such I don’t feel comfortable selling them to you.

Whichever way you collect cards, we encourage you to keep in mind our first rule of collecting:

“Have fun. Collect for fun, not for profit.”

If you want to see the Promotional Flyer for the Champions Series I’ve included them here (1 meg each in size):

AFL Champions 2007

NRL Champions 2007

What do you think? Have your say and leave a comment below.

After having just given Select a little bagging, I think it’s only fair that I give them credit where credit is due.

Select released two fantastic Collectors Edition Sets towards the end of last year and in my opinion they are GREAT sets!

To celebrate the AFL and NRL Premiers achievements in the respective 2006 Grand Finals, Select have released these Limited Edition Boxed Premiership Sets.

Limited to only 3000 sets, each Boxed Premiership Set features a beautifully presented collectors edition outer sleeve encasing an Ultra Pro 25 card hard case — ensuring your limited edition set maintains its value over time.

The images used in each of the cards include action photos from the Grand Final Day game. As you would expect all the big names get a mention from each of the victorious teams.

With only limited supply of these Premiership Sets available they won’t last long.

If you’re interested in the West Coast Eagles Limited Edition Boxed Premiership Set click here…

If you want to get your hands on the Brisbane Broncos Limited Edition Boxed Premiership Set click here…

Priced at only $33 a set, these collectors editions won’t be around for long. Also still available in limited supply are the Premiership Sets from 2005…

Click here for the 2005 Sydney Swans set.

And click here for the 2005 Wests Tigers set.

These Premiership Sets have already proven popular among both team fans and collectors alike.

We have received many positive comments back from happy customers who just love the style of these limited edition sets.

It’s hard to go past these cards at this time of year… I’m talking about Predictors.

The Adam Goodes Brownlow Predictor card entitles you to redeem one of only 100 Limited Edition 2006 Brownlow Medalist Signature Cards since the Swans star was judged Best and Fairest for a second time.

The Signature card is likely to be worth somewhere between $400 and $600 when it hits the market.

I’m confident it will be sold within that range, and my confidence comes from having sold the equivalent card from the previous two Brownlow Medal Winners within the last month.

First we sold the Chris Judd Brownlow Medal Signature from the 2005 Dynasty Series for $580 which I still believe is a bargain.

Second we sold the Ben Cousins Brownlow Medal Signature Redemption from this years Supreme Series for $350… definitely a bargain.

As for Goodes… time will tell but we should know by the time our next issue comes out. I’ll let you know how well it sells.

The other kind of Predictor is of the NRL Premiership variety.

If you have the Brisbane Broncos Predictor you can redeem the card for a limited edition Mini Premiership Set from Select.

The Mini Premiership Sets are typically valued at between $130 and $200 if past years are anything to go by, and given the huge popularity of the Broncos team they will probably be at the top end of this scale.

The added bonus with the NRL Premiership Predictors is that if you collect all 15 Predictors you can redeem them for the limited edition Captain Card set from Select, AND you’ll also get the Mini Premiership Set.

Both the Mini Premiership Set and the Captain Card Set are limited to 350 each so they are likely to hold and even increase in value over time

If you’ve got the right cards send them in to Select now. Numbers are issued in order of receipt which means if you want a low number set you need to get in quickly.

As I touched on before… times are exciting right now if you’re a collector of Predictor Cards.

The Brownlow Medal is awarded in just over a week, and the Premiership is drawing to an end — and this means both the Brownlow and Premiership Predictors are hotting up in price!

Have you got the favourites in your collection already?

The Brownlow Predictor card entitles you to redeem one of only 100 Limited Edition 2006 Brownlow Medalist Signature Cards IF the player featured on the card wins the Brownlow.

Chris Judd, the current favourite to win the Brownlow for a second time is hot property.

For our NRL readers the raging favourites are the Melbourne Storm.

If the Melbourne Storm win the NRL Premiership you can redeem this card for a limited edition Mini Premiership Set from Select.

The Mini Premiership Sets are typically valued at between $130 and $200 and with Melbourne dominating the competition this year it’s sure to be popular.

The ALL New Brownlow Predictors in AFL Supreme. The concept is simple, and it is borrowed from the Premiership Predictors of previous years.

There are 32 Brownlow Predictor cards in the set, each one featuring a different player, although card #32 is a replacement card.

Each player has only 100 cards released and each one is individually numbered on the reverse side.

If your Brownlow Predictor matches the eventual Brownlow Medal winner, you are entitled to redeem a limited edition 2006 Brownlow Medalist Signature card, personally signed by that player!

This is a fantastic way for you to get your hands on a very valuable Brownlow Medal Signature card — which are typically valued at well over $400.

According to the TAB SportsBet website the current favourites in the Brownlow race are:

• Simon Goodwin (Adelaide Crows)
• Nick Riewoldt (St Kilda)
• Adam Goodes (Sydney Swans), and
• Chris Judd (West Coast Eagles)

The replacement card has been included just in case a dark horse emerges from the pack to claim the prize.

If someone other than a player with their own predictor wins the Brownlow, the replacement card is the card you need. Think of it like a “Wild Card”.

Most people who have been in touch with me over the last 4 weeks are trying to get the predictors of the players who they think will win… but there is another type of collector out there too.

The High End Collectors are aiming to collect the FULL set of Brownlow Predictors… ALL 32 cards, knowing that when they succeed they will be one of only a handful of people able to do it.

This type of collector is different because they value having a complete set of ALL cards released in the series.

By ALL I mean:

• all Commons,
• all Guernsey Die Cuts,
• all Draft Pick Signatures,
• all 5 Medal Winners,
• all 22 All Australian’s,
• the 7 Premiership Commemorative cards,
• all 5 Signature Redemption cards,
• all 32 Brownlow Predictors, and
• the Brownlow Signature card.

And that’s not all… let’s not forget the 4 promo cards, the flyer and the official folder because they’re sure to want these too.

Whichever way you collect these cards, we encourage you to keep in mind our first rule of collecting:

“Have fun. Collect for fun, not for profit.”

If you want to see the Promotional Flyer for the Supreme Series I’ve included it here:

http://FootyStars.com.au/Free_Stuff/SupremeFlyer.pdf

Important note… if you are lucky enough to have the predictor of the eventual Brownlow Medal winner, please follow the instructions on the back of the card very carefully because they are not the same as Select’s other redemption cards.

The address to send the card to is Select’s actual PO Box not the usual MailGuard Services PO Box.

Not sure why the difference, but please keep it in mind for your own protection.

In case you don’t know, the new NRL Invincible Series has a limited release Record Breaker Signature card of Andrew Johns.

The card is a tribute to the games new highest point scorer as he surpassed the record last set by Jason Taylor throughout the 90’s.

The Joey Johns card is destined to be the most valuable card in the Invincible set. He’s enormously popular with all fans, he broke the record on Sunday to become the NRL’s highest ever point scorer and there’s only 120 signed cards!!!

This could easily be a $1000+ card in the near future, but is likely to start out around the $500 dollar mark over the next few months. Let’s face it, he’s the best player we’ve seen in a long, long time and he is guaranteed Legend status in the history of the game.

Heck, Select have already given him Legend status by including him in the Legend Die Cut sub set in this same series.

The Joey Johns card has already caused a stir among some footy card collectors. I got an email from a keen collector (and amateur conspiracy theorist) last week asking when the new NRL Invincible Series would be released. As you know there was a 5 day delay on the release until this week and his conspiracy theory went a little like this…

“Do you think the delay is because Joey didn’t break the record against Manly? Did they (Select) want to wait until he broke the record against Parramatta? Are Select trying to use Joey breaking the record as a publicity stunt to promote the new series?”

Interesting theory… but a theory none the less!

I certainly haven’t seen any press release from Select promoting the new series since Joey broke the record!