Been a bit absent from Mantel for a while with a few pursuits keeping me busy, but have just returned to Australia for a little while, which allows me to return to my primary passion: AFL Cards.

I am part of the Select AFL Collectors Club which allows me guaranteed access to every release, & have purchased each one over the last 18 months I have been away, which have just built up at my parents place.

SO, without further ado, I present to you...

... one of the all-time GREAT MAIL DAYS 😍

One of the first years I really heavily bought in to the higher end of AFL product upon release, the Headliners set was one of my favourites out of it. Since then Zak has gone on to become one of the most prodigious & unique talents in the league today, & still just 23 years old.


Hadn't looked at this card in a while but came across it today, & just had to snip some photos from my Insta to show it off here!


Card Grading Australia slab, CGA 10.

Shoutout @BenchMob for the idea here.

My first one is one of the all time greats for the Port Adelaide Football Club. A magician with the ball in his hands, he is quite simply one of the greats of the modern era.

CGA (Card Grading Australia) graded as Pristine+ Gold 10, so flawless in their eyes - this one will never leave my PC. I love minimalist aesthetic cards when they're done right, so this Blank Canvas is a beauty.
Link to one of his memorable performances against our cross town rivals here, watch the scoreboard when this package starts vs when it finishes. He dragged us back in this one that we eventually won - and I was there. One of my favourite ever games to be at.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EtTkIGg6WXw

Sat up to midnight last night to watch the live reveal from back down undaahhh.

Love some of these inserts & numbered chases, base cards are 🤷‍♂️ but hey, they're base. The 'Ignite' cards are particularly gorgeous!
This is an entry level product, but with some of the numbered stuff & of course the very rare auto cards that can be found, there's something for everyone in it no matter the type of collector you may be.

The Aussie Footy hobby is about to kick into gear for 2024, the first release being the most budget collector friendly Footy Stars release coming this week. Select are doing their live stream this Sunday in Australia in which they will reveal the card designs, hits, etc - & usually a sale window opens for Collector Club members before the wider sale.
Facebook Live Stream is at 7.00pm Australian Eastern Daylight Time, which will be 12.00am Sunday for me in LA (if I've worked it out correctly), 3.00am for east coasters, if there are any other footy collectors on this side of the Pacific Pond that want to lose sleep looking at video of the pretty pictures 😅