Footy fans can collect umpire cards - Daryl Timms
June 12, 2009 12:00am
FOOTY fans might love to hate them, but now they can collect a set of umpire collector cards.
The AFL Umpires Association has released its own series of 72 cards featuring field, goal and boundary umpires in match day action shots.
And, as a bonus, there are three Grand Final legend cards. The set, available through the AFLUA website, sells for $50.
A description of each umpire, with occupation, age and achievements, is on the back of each card.
While ex-Essendon champion James Hird won't be rushing to buy a card of umpire Scott McLaren, demand for the sets is high, especially from budding umpires and memorabilia collectors.
AFLUA chief executive and former field umpire Bill Deller said this was the fourth release of cards.
"Now the cards are pretty well accepted and we get a lot of interest from the umpiring fraternity," Deller said.
"Interest is particularly from young umpires because a lot of them look up to the league blokes and they are keen to get their collections going."
He said only about 200 sets were produced and it was not a money-making venture. "We just basically cover costs," he said. "We are not a very financial organisation. We'd love to be able to give them away, but we don't have that sort of money, so we just try to recoup the expenses."
Deller said former players or coaches were not expected to buy cards, including ex-St Kilda coach Grant Thomas, who is the harshest critic of umpires.
He said sets were not marketed to the public because they were not something that they would want to buy. Asked whether he expected Thomas to buy a set, Deller said: "Maybe he might use them on the dartboard but, if he is mellowing a bit, he might want to start a collection."
Deller, who umpired five Grand Finals, is not on a card. "But I will one day as I'm in charge of doing them," he quipped.
Grant Thomas said the cards showed umpires' egos were out of control.
"As I said, they should put their egos in their lockers at the start of their careers and pick them up at the end," Thomas said. "And I can't get fined $20,000 (like he did in 2005) for saying that."
