THUMBING through new football cards for the coveted ‘shiny’ has been part of childhood for decades. But while most young footie fans will be searching for England players Harry Kane, Raheem Stirling or Jack Grealish this year, one team of Under 7s in Basingstoke has a new prize card – a shiny of their own to mark the end of their very first match season.

Basingstoke Colts Under 7s were presented with a souvenir sticker book, player stickers and personalised trading cards - including their own ‘limited edition’ gold-foiled shiny - this month to mark the end of the team’s first-ever match season.

Paul Marsh, assistant manager for the team, and director of THEMPC printing and marketing promotion company, came up with the idea after thinking about his own love of renowned Panini World Cup sticker books.

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He said: “Collecting and trading football cards is timeless fun, and the kids absolutely loved them. Who knows, maybe some of our players will join the England squad in future and these cards will become highly sought after. For now, we’re just happy they’ve brought some extra fun to the end of a fantastic first season.”

Each player was presented with a sticker book that included photos of the team, coaches and supporters, as well as stickers for each player that could be arranged in their chosen team formation on a dedicated centre page.

Every player also received several copies of their own personal football card, featuring a serious photo on one side and a silly photo on the other, which they could trade with team mates to collect the whole team, as well as share with family and friends as a memento.

They also received one gold-foiled shiny sticker of themselves to keep.

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