When my father sold his football programme collection several years ago, the gentleman who bought it had surprising news. Dad was very proud of a complete set of Tottenham Hotspur programmes from 1960-61, the season they won the Double.
He thought Hungary’s visit to England in 1953 might fetch a few quid, too. He was wrong. The big games, England internationals, FA Cup finals, had little scarcity value. Tens of thousands would have been printed, and many kept as souvenirs, it was explained.
The worth, he was told, was in his bizarre one-offs. Obscure games in the Third Division North or South that he had somehow picked up over the years.
Barrow versus Workington. Newport County versus Plymouth Argyle.
As a football mad schoolboy, dad would write off to the secretary of clubs asking for a programme and enclosing a stamped addressed envelope. They usually obliged.
Wolverhampton Wanderers — his team — sent him every home programme for five or six consecutive seasons. The good years, too, when Billy Wright was captain and Wolves were at the pinnacle of the English game. Programmes back then were as unique as each club.
The print on the pages of Newcastle United’s skinny team sheet was so heavy it seeped through and made it hard to read the names. Arsenal’s was the nearest to modern matchday magazines, glossy and thick, reflecting their wealth.
By contrast, Tottenham’s was just four pages, one sheet folded in half.
Poignant: The programmes for the cancelled match two days after the Munich disaster were supposed to be destroyed, but a handful still exist Teamsheet: The programme shows the line-up for the cancelled fixture, but five of United's starting line-up diedThere was nothing special about Barrow’s game with Workington, so the few spectators who attended would not have treated any surviving items with great care.
Over time, these mementos would be discarded or cleared out in bundles from dusty attics. Dad’s copy could be the only one left of a match between two teams who are now part of football’s ancient history.
It was a true collector’s item.
I mention this only because at Old Trafford last week, fans could be seen placing copies of the United Review from Sir Alex Ferguson’s final Manchester United home game in protective plastic bags, sometimes three or four at a time. Maybe they harboured dreams of making a killing.
A great signs: Former England footballer Colin Grainger holds the programme from his England debut against Brazil in 1956. It was later signed by Pele Line up: The teams from Grainger's debut
United say they printed 70,000 copies and demand has been so high they may authorise a second run. Sotheby’s should not be notified just yet.
However, anyone who has a copy of the programme from the Scottish League Cup, Group 8, Forfar Athletic versus East Stirlingshire on August 10, 1974 (attendance 661), might care to invest in a safe.
If it comes signed by a young man called Alex Ferguson, embarking on his very first game as a manager with East Stirling, maybe get a guard dog, too.
Old and the new: The programme from Royal Arsenal's game with Gainsborough Trinity in 1892 (left) and Liverpool's game against Manchester United last September - their first after the Hillsborough verdictCapital gains: Early football programmes from various London clubs auctioned at Bonhams auction house
Who's that Waltham Forest No 6? This might seem unremarkable but just look down the away team and you might spot a famous (misspelled) name Hammer time: A programme from West Ham's 1976 game against Ipswich (left) and the programme from a slightly more famous game in the Hammers' history Golden oldie: The programme from Newcastle's game against Newton Heath - later Manchester United - in 1897
Running away with it: Doncaster Rovers' programme for a game against Bradford in 1959 ONE FAN SPENT £2800 ON 700 SPECIAL EDITION FERGIE PROGRAMMES
One cunning fan snapped up 700 of West Brom's special edition programmes for Sir Alex Ferguson's final game in charge.
To mark the Manchester United boss being at The Hawthorns to bring down the curtain on his incredible career, West Brom produced a 144-page programme, which is the biggest ever produced for a domestic fixture in England.
And one fan stunned a programme seller by handing over £2,800 for 700 copies, which were £4 each.
Another supporter earlier bought 300 copies for £1,200, which means that one twentieth of the 20,000 editions printed were in the hands of two fans.
The programme, which featured a 40-page tribute to Ferguson, were in hot demand and the club had already sold over 5,000 online by Friday.
Special edition: West Brom have produced 20,000 editions of the 144-page programmeMore... MARTIN SAMUEL: Chairmen who act more like players... now that's fantasy football I'll have 700 programmes please! One cunning fan snaps up £2,800 worth of souvenir Fergie special editions You'll NEVER play for me again! Di Canio lays into Bardsley after shamed Sunderland star poses with £50 notes in casino... and you can read the Italian's amazing 24-minute rant right here You're keen, David! New United boss Moyes starts work at United's training ground... 41 days before he's due to take charge
