I’m a well-known fan of sticker albums and card collections. Over the years I’ve amassed Panini albums back to 1978 (not got them all, but I’ve got a few) and a few full card sets too.
I tend to relive my childhood, grabbing the sets I couldn’t complete back then. I have two full Pro set collections, and a few full Barratt Cigarette card ones too. Remember when it was acceptable to have mock cigarettes kids could eat? Madness.
Anyway, I also collect one-off Imps-related cards. The problem here is drawing the line somewhere. For instance, I’ve just submitted the Sun Soccer Cards Collection to the RICT Museum, but I’ve only put the four players in Lincoln colours in. I could have maybe looked through my piles for Mark Wallington (Leicester), or even John Deehan (Villa). Where does one draw the line? (Spoiler alert – I’ve looked through my piles and found ten Imps-related cards!).
To be truthful, I don’t draw a line, I just collect, but I do separate anything that features a player who was at Lincoln when pictured. I find it easier to make sure I’m getting everything I can, rather than taking a scattergun approach and going for anything mildly lincoln related. We only have three bedrooms after all, and if my collection gets much bigger, it’ll take one room up and I’ll be sleeping in the other spare room.
This morning I’ve been through my folder of Imps items and photographed all of the ones from official collections – I’ve ordered a few which have arrived and turned out to be cut from magazines or something. I’ve kept them, but they’ll feature a long way down this series of items!
Are you ready for a journey? I shall link each page below so you can click directly on which one you wish to look at.
Billy Dinsdale – John Player – 1928
Peter Kearns – Anglo Confectionery – 1969
Walter Wilson – Gallahers Cigarettes – 1909
Albert Iremonger – John Players – 1926
Lincoln City – Soccer Bubble Gum – 1957
Wigginton, Harford, Leigh, Fleming – Sun Soccer Card – 1978