2013 Topps Football Variations Checklist... with pictures!

by popular request, I bring you the just released 2013 Topps Football Variation Checklist with pretty pictures for dummies like me who still can't tell the difference.
Some of the images ganked off of the interwebs show different borders.... pay no attention, just look for the picture to tell the difference.
It takes a looong time to do this and I'm waaaay too lazy to find all of the images with white borders. I take what I can get.

1 Adrian Peterson, Minnesota Vikings
Base: no gloves
Variation: with gloves

 
11 Manti Te'o RC, San Diego Chargers
Base: running
Variation: catching

20 Matt Ryan, Atlanta Falcons
Base: White jersey
Variation: Red jersey


37 Andre Ellington RC, Arizona Cardinals
Base: Ball in right hand
Variation: Ball in left hand



40 Anquan Boldin, San Francisco 49ers
Base: Red jersey
Variation: White jersey


43 Mike Glennon RC, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Base: Ball
Variation: No ball


50 Andrew Luck, Indianapolis Colts
Base: Ball
Variation: No ball


51 Demaryius Thomas, Denver Broncos
Base: catching vs Saints
Variation: jumping vs Chiefs


61 Montee Ball, Denver Broncos
Base: running
Variation: catching


70 Alfred Morris, Washington Redskins
Base: fumbling ball
Variation: running, pant stripes visible



74 Stepfan Taylor RC, Arizona Cardinals
Base: space visible between legs
Variation: no space visible between legs


100 Tom Brady, New England Patriots
Base: white jersey
Variation: blue jersey






112 Tavon Austin RC, St Louis Rams
Base: green background
Variation: crowd background


120 Ed Reed, Houston Texans
Base:
Variation: Haven't found an image of it yet....


125 C.J. Spiller, Buffalo Bills
Base: Black gloves
Variation: Pink gloves.


126 Geno Smith RC, New York Jets
Base: Throwing
Variation: Running


130 Doug Martin, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Base: playing the Panthers
Variation: playing the Raiders


145 Johnathan Franklin RC, Green Bay Packers
Base: Running
Variation: Catching

150 Robert Griffin, Washington Redskins
Base: helmet
Variation: no helmet, acting like a douchebag.



155 DeAndre Hopkins RC, Houston Texans
Base: ball in right hand
Variation: ball in left hand


159 Ryan Nassib RC, New York Giants
Base: ball behind head
Variation: ball beside head


160 Trent Richardson, Cleveland Browns
Base: white jersey
Variation: brown jersey






175 J.J. Watt, Houston Texans
Base:
Variation: no idea, not on ebay yet


200 Peyton Manning, Denver Broncos
Base: Blue Jersey
Variation: Orange jersey


210 Rob Gronkowski, New England Patriots
Base: Red jersey
Variation: Blue jersey


215 E.J. Manuel RC, Buffalo Bills
Base: running, ball low
Variation: throwing


221 Clay Matthews, Green Bay Packers
Base: helmet
Variation: no helmet


230 Arian Foster, Houston Texans
Base:
Variation: no idea yet...


245 Matt Barkley RC, Philadelphia Eagles
Base: green background
Variation: crowd background



248 Justin Hunter RC, Tennessee Titans
Base: catching ball
Variation: holding ball


250 Calvin Johnson, Detroit Lions
Base: Legs together
Variation: Legs apart



270 Julio Jones, Atlanta Falcons
Base: Running
Variation: End Zone


280 Russell Wilson, Seattle Seahawks
Base: Blue jersey
Variation: White jersey


281 Robert Woods RC, Buffalo Bills
Base: Catching
Variation: Running

314 Marcus Lattimore RC, San Francisco 49ers
Base: Ball in two hands
Variation: Ball in one hand


317 Jordan Reed RC, Washington Redskins
Base: Running
Variation: Catching


332 Tyler Wilson RC, Oakland Raiders
Base: Ball held high
Variation: Ball held low


336 Colin Kaepernick, San Francisco 49ers
Base: Throwing
Variation: Posing like a douche.


340 Wes Welker, Denver Broncos
Base: Orange jersey
Variation: Blue jersey


358 Giovanni Bernard RC, Cincinnati Bengals
Base: Can't see feet
Variation: Feet visible


375 Dez Bryant, Dallas Cowboys
Base: Catching
Variation: Running


384 Zach Ertz RC, Philadelphia Eagles
Base: Catching
Variation: Flapping around like a drunken goose


386 Cordarrelle Patterson RC, Minnesota Vikings
Base: Catching
Variation: Running


398 Jason Witten, Dallas Cowboys
Base: Blue jersey
Variation: White Jersey


400 Drew Brees, New Orleans Saints
Base: Black jersey
Variation: White jersey


402 Aaron Dobson RC, New England Patriots
Base: Ball held in two hands
Variation: Ball held in one hand. Always hold your balls with both hands kids.


403 Le'Veon Bell RC, Pittsburgh Steelers
Base: Ball held in right hand
Variation: Ball held in left hand


406 Eddie Lacy RC, Green Bay Packers
Base: Ball held in both hands (good)
Variation: Ball held in one hand (bad)


407 Tyler Eifert RC, Cincinnati Bengals
Base: Catching
Variation: Pointing


408 Michael Crabtree, San Francisco 49ers
Base: Red gloves
Variation: White gloves


410 Andre Johnson, Houston Texans
Base: Ball held with two hands
Variation: Ball held in one hand


415 Randall Cobb, Green Bay Packers
Base: no visor
Variation: Visor visible



430 Larry Fitzgerald, Arizona Cardinals
Base: Black gloves
Variation: Pink gloves


435 Keenan Allen RC, San Diego Chargers
Base: Running
Variation: Catching


440 Joe Flacco, Baltimore Ravens
Base: Purple jersey
Variation: White jersey



And there you have it. It won't be long before Topps does this for EVERY card in the frakking set.
Don't think they won't.

a special thanks to google, ebay, zistle, cardboard connection for providing said information.

An extra special thanks to topps for having one of the worst websites on all of the interwebs. Way to go guys. Aim high.

The Awesome makes his return.....

The blue elastic tying everything together is a nice touch. He's in L.A. now... it's important to accessorize.

It's the most, wonderful time, of the year......

Can you believe it??? The Premier League starts tomorrow!!!!! Well, today for most of you.

 

All teams are in action this weekend.

Last season I held a little competition.... not so much this year. Waaaay too much work. Plus I don't have any more footy cards with pretty ladies on them.

Sound off... who's your club and how are they going to do this season???

My club has a new man in charge with the retirement of Sir Alex. It'll be interesting to see the changes and how they play.

Go United!!!

a little '89 Bowman and some Cereal. Post cereal.

Oh boy. I bet the view counters are spinning overtime. 1989 Bowman. Nothing like showing off the latest and greatest in an attempt to gain viewers.

 

But it's true. Someone sent me '89 Bowman. Night Owl in fact. But it's fine. Don't hate the bird. I asked for them.

 

No. Really.

 

Owl made some rambling mention of having old Bowman and not knowing what to do with it. I made a passing comment about wanting some of the Braves.

 

Well before I could get N.O. my wantlist, he flew, FLEW to the post office (see what I did there?) and mailed me a package before I could change my mind.

 

Okay. Survey says I need four more to complete my Braves team set. I received three from Owl. How did he do?

 

Dion James. Even Braves fans have a tough time remembering Dion James. Maybe because we try so hard to forget.

 Need it! 1 for 1.

2 time MVP, batting champion, and Hall of Famer Dale Murphy! We all love Dale Murphy!

 Need it! 2 for 2!

Holy fresh face Batman! Is that Tom Glavine?!?
Why yes, yes it is.

 NEED IT!!! N.O. went 3 for 3! Without even waiting or looking at my list. Now all I need is #266 John Smoltz.
I'm sure I have it somewhere.... but who knows? Someone send me one, k?

Owl took the opportunity to stuff in a few more cards as well to make it look like he just wasn't unloading old Bowman on me.

There's my boy! The best reliever in baseball. Craig Kimbrel.

 I now have Kimbrel, Uggla, Heyward, Medlen, Minor, Beachy, and Matthews from this year's Archives. Is there more?
Am I missing any??

A quick google check (seriously, does anyone anywhere use bing???) tells me nothing.

Opening up Zistle and I find that I'm still missing Hudson, McCann, Freeman, Darrell Evans and Otis Nixon.

Otis Nixon?

Nice to see the old leadoff dog getting some hobby love.

But crap. Still five to go.

Next, a really super shiny Panini Prizm Chipper Jones. Damn it is hard watching the Braves and no Chipper.

 Another Zistle check and I see that I'm down to needing three more Prizm cards.
#19 Michael Bourn
#164 Tyler Pastornicky
#182 Andrelton Simmons

Anybody got these kicking around? I got an extra Deon Sanders to trade!!!

*crickets*

Okay, enough begging. Time for some serious cereal.

Owl was playing with scissors again....

Beautiful.

Absolutely beautiful.

Thanks for the Bowman bud!!!

Membership anyone? And cleaning up the blogroll...

Interesting development... apparently my fan base is growing.

If you'd like to join Ms VanderVoort, feel free to borrow one of the badges below and add it to your site.

Old school or new? Vintage or modern?

I also did some cleaning of the blogroll on the right hand side.... some dead and neglected blogs went bye bye... But I may have deleted some others by mistake. I got a little click happy on the delete button.
So if your blog isn't there, and you would like it there, please leave a link in the comments.

And if you'd be so kind, if Waxaholic or Just A Bit Offside aren't on yours, please add.

You can copy the links by right clicking on the names.

thanks.

There's no such thing as Poor Old Warren Spahn.

I'm sure most of you have read Poor Old Baseball Cards. It's a blog that gives love to older cards that may have been cast aside by others for aesthetic reasons.

 

I do not understand how anyone could not love and appreciate older cards..... but there are some out there that insist on collecting cards from the 50's that are razor sharp and encased in plastic.

 

I don't get it... but to each their own. That's what makes this hobby great.

 

Me? I need to feel the cardboard. Some of you right now are nodding... you know what I mean.

 

Going back a little bit, Anthony at Poor Old Baseball Cards decided to give some of his treasures away. Standard fare around the blogging world... all of us do it at some point. But a name caught my eye.

 

Warren Spahn.

 

Huh?

 

Giving away Warren Spahn? So I read further. Yep. Anthony was giving away a 1958 Topps All Star Warren Spahn card.

 

Sweet Mamma Jamma.

 

What do I have to do?

 

And to be honest, I have no idea what I had to do.... I left a comment about being willing to give up a kidney for that card.... and *BAM* it's in my mailbox a couple of weeks later.

 

Okay, so it's corners aren't razor sharp anymore. It has a wee crease. And someone added a couple of pen marks.

IT'S WARREN SPAHN!!! THE GREATEST LEFT HANDED PITCHER EVAH!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I am awestruck at it's beauty.

And it fits nicely on the same page as my '58 Eddie Matthews All Star. Now to fill the space between them with some guy named Hank.

my latest three way...

 

as most of you may know, I dabble in the ttm autograph world. I've been fairly successful, despite the U.S.P.S's attempt to send all of their children through college via my postage needs.

 

one of the people who is known for his generous signing habits, is baseball legend, Dale Murphy.

 

Being a lifelong Braves fan, I have written to him several times for an autograph. I've sent photos, cards, a ball once... all to no avail. While Mr Murphy signs anything that isn't nailed down for EVERYONE else on the planet, he avoids, nay, shuns my requests.

 

Although that restraining order looks great framed on my wall..... it's his auto I want.

 

Enter in a plain white envelope I received in the mail awhile back. It had familiar writing on it, and the name of the sender was familiar. You know him, the master of the lack of capitalization, gcrl.

 

Now gcrl lives in Minnesota. How a Dodger fan ended up in Minnesota is a story best left for him to tell, but he's there nonetheless.

However, the return address / postmark was from Salt Lake City, Utah.

 

I know gcrl isn't a travelling vacuum salesman.... and it's doubtful he took some cards along with him on vacation just to mail them away like postcards.... so wtf?

 

Curious, I open said PWE.

 

Out pops this.....

 

Now.... Mr Murphy DOES live in Salt Lake City.... So what we have here, is a good blogger friend writing to Dale Murphy, and asking him to take pity on me and send me an auto.

And that's just what he did.

If only everything in life was this simple.

Thanks Jim.... and Dale.

My fellow Canadians...

a sad day indeed... we can't even afford to keep our free agent broadcasters anymore....





have fun guys... you better learn quick what a Nascar is, and what a basketball is... some of them Yanks expect to talk about that stuff.

Who's uglier??? Vote now...

There's been some great uniforms throughout the years... but there's been some nasty ones as well.

We'll limit ourselves to baseball for now. Remember these? I know you probably tried to forget....

1976 White Sox

1999 Pirates

1979 Padres

 1999 Rockies

1978 Indians

So what do you think? Go over to the sidebar on the right and vote. And no, I'm not posting a picture of the last option. I have a reputation to uphold.

Contest winners!

Time to announce the winners of the contest for a FREE Zinio ezine subscription.

Aside from the 7 winners from the Premier League year long contest, I had three extra slots to give away.

Those three people are...

 

Fan of Reds
Mark Aubrey
Bamlinden

to go along with the 7 previous winners

me!
dayf
dawgbones
commishbob
jackplumstead
Kazi
Chuck's Used Cards

for the three of you who did not get back to me in time to choose your free title.... I chose for you.

You're welcome. I hope you like it. It was tempting to send you Justin Bieber's Fan Club Monthly... but I didn't.
You're welcome.

Expect to see your first issue in your email within the next week.

2013 Topps Baseball Series 2 Variations

this list is more for my use than anything... I'm sure everyone has this already, but I can never find it when I need it, so I'm putting it here where I know it will always be.

#1 Bryce Harper
Regular Version: Rookie Cup
Variation: sunglasses

#6 Ryan Howard
Regular Version: fielding
Variation: signing autographs

#10 Adam Jones
Regular Version: diving
Variation: sunglasses

#11 Yu Darvish
Regular Version: red hat
Variation 1: sunglasses
Variation 2: signing autographs

#22 Clayton Kershaw
Regular Version: pitching
Variation: signing autographs

#26 Chase Utley
Regular Version: batting
Variation: signing autographs

#27 Mike Trout
Regular Version: sliding
Variation 1: signing autographs
Variation 2: sunglasses

#28 Prince Fielder
Regular Version: batting
Variation: sunglasses

#34 Felix Hernandez
Regular Version: throwing
Variation: wearing sunglasses

#55 Tim Lincecum
Regular Version: orange jersey
Variation: wearing sunglasses

#78 Dylan Bundy
Regular Version: pitching
Variation: standing at dugout with fans

#110 Justin Upton
Regular Version: batting
Variation: sunglasses

#122 Andrew McCutchen
Regular Version: batting
Variation: sunglasses

#127 Giancarlo Stanton
Regular Version: batting
Variation: sunglasses

#228 Adrian Gonzalez
 Regular Version: batting
Variation: signing autographs

#242 Matt Kemp
Regular Version: running
Variation: wearing sunglasses

#316 Josh Reddick
Regular Version: fielding
Variation: sunglasses (and one amazing beard)

#331 Jose Reyes
Regular Version: running
Variation: signing autographs

#362 Yoenis Cespedes
Regular Version: Rookie Cup
Variation: sunglasses

#456 Pablo Sandoval
Regular Version: batting
Variation: sunglasses

#595 David Ortiz
Regular Version: batting
Variation: giving speech, "Boston Strong"

#660 Miguel Cabrera
Regular Version: sliding
Variation: glove, sunglasses on head, signing autographs

#661 Hyun-jin Ryu
Regular Version: pitching
Variation: sunglasses

SO there you have it... basically, if you find a card with a pic on it that looks like it belongs in Heritage (Huge close up head shot) but he's wearing cool Oakleys, it's a SP variation. If he's signing autographs, it's a SP variation. If he's wearing shades while signing autographs, it's a SP variation.

And if he's giving the Boston Strong speech, it's Topps trying to cash in and make money off of an unspeakable tragedy.

State of Emergency

Calgary, my home and the third largest city in Canada has declared a state of emergency.

We are underwater. Well, over half the city. Over 200,000 people have been evacuated. All outlying communities within 100 miles are either evacuated or under water.

My home is safe... we bought in an area well above the water table.

It's just as well the Calgary Flames suck right now and missed the playoffs. Can you imagine the Stanley Cup finals being postponed due to flooding?

Apparently, the flood line is just over Row 11 of the seats. We now have Canada's worst hockey rink, but largest indoor swimming pool.

All roads into and out of Calgary are not just closed, but gone. It's almost impossible to go from the South to the North of the city, with only one road still open.

The downtown core (you can see it in the background of the pic) is closed and underwater. Not sure what city you live in, but imagine all of the skyscrapers etc abandoned because of flooding.

One of the big worries is about the Zoo. It's virtually impossible to get to right now. We may end up with an aquarium.

They're hoping the rain stops sometime tomorrow.

the end of ebay bucks, and a CONTEST!

a little while ago, I received a friendly email from our pals, ebay. They were pleased and proud to inform me that the program called ebay bucks was being discontinued in order to serve me better.

 

For those of you not in the know, ebay bucks was a program where ebay gave you back a percentage of your spending every quarter in a form of a ebay gift certificate to be spent on whatever you please.

 

Not having this extra cash to spend will certainly serve me better. No more stressing out over what to buy, or having to deal with all of that free stuff. Thanks ebay! My life is certainly better served.

 

Anyways... they informed me that I had a certain time period in order to spend what bucks I already had in my account.

 

here's some of my loot..... oh, and if you're here because of the word CONTEST in the title, just skip to the end and follow the simple instructions. Free stuff awaits.

 

I was in a football mood, so I hit ebay.uk up first. My Edwin van der Sar collection hadn't been added to in awhile. I remedied that.

 

a 2011 Futera Unique. Futera make great cards... unfortunately, I'm more likely to come across a unicorn than these cards around here. So I must resort to the evil online empire once in awhile.

 

 2007 Futera

 and 2004 Futera. The seller offered me two free cards because of this purchase...

  

 

So I grabbed Manchester United star Ryan Giggs and former Netherlands great, Edgar Davids. I miss watching him play. He was a great Nike commercial many years ago... I must find that and post it.




 


 

two cool cards from the 2008 Euros... team mates van der Sar and van Persie.
These cards have a relief effect and it's done right.

 

 

Finally a couple of shinies from the popular games that are out there. Panini's Adrenalyn XL and Topps' Match Attax.

I've always wanted to play these, but have never found anyone else who wants to. Of course, me being a full grown adult wanting to play kid's games has nothing to do with that I'm sure.

I added a dozen more footy cards besides these... but I'll save those for another day.... maybe.... Thanks for nothing ebay.

EDIT: I guess I should have mentioned that the end of ebay bucks was for Canada only...

Oh yeah, the contest... I have a contest going for free subscriptions to your favourite magazines.
No cost, no catch, no credit card required, please don't bribe me with cash... just skim the previous post, you don't even have to read it, and comment at the bottom. Easy peasy.
Have fun.

Saving the planet.... one e-zine at a time....

The kind, patient folks at Zinio asked me awhile back if I would post about their product to all the wonderful people that hang out around here.

I'm finally getting around to it. It never rains, but it pours, right? It's been one of those months.



Anyways, What is Zinio you might be asking?

Zinio is the world's largest electronic newstand. Thousands of top magazines from all over the world. All on your computer or mobile device.
Pretty sweet.

Now I was always a guy who liked to hold the magazine while reading it. But over time, I switched. Especially with the new phones and tablets... there's no reason anymore to be lugging around a magazine or newspaper.
Not to mention the whole environmentally friendly issue. If we cut out just 10% of our newspaper or magazine production... imagine the trees we could save.

Some other goodies... with Zinio you can browse or buy single issues or subscriptions from wherever you are, whenever you like. Instantly. And using the Explore feature, you can read articles, even without a subscription, and share them with your friends.

Not something I would do, but a cool feature nonetheless.

Want to try a magazine before committing to a year long subscription? Try the new Z Pass. For $5 a month, you have a subcription to three magazines a month. Next month, keep the same three or swap them out for new titles. Now that I might use... I can never make up my mind.


EDIT: Here is a link to take you to Z-Pass.... http://bit.ly/z-pass-ah

Zinio also has specials all of the time. Every month something different is featured. So keep checking back on their site and you might find something you like on sale!


Now for those of you who have sat through my little spiel... I have a reward for you. Zinio has offered up some free subscriptions for my readers. (one less than originally planned as I'm going to keep one for myself)

So we're having a little contest. Well, two contests actually, but one is now over. After the results for the 2012-13 Premier League Contest are posted, I will have three subscriptions left to giveaway.

If you would like a FREE subscription to one of the thousands Zinio offers, all you have to do is go to www.zinio.com and browse through the titles.

Then, leave me a comment here on this post saying you would like one and mention two of the possible titles you may choose. You do NOT have to mention the one you would actually want... that's to decide later IF you win!

You must also leave me your email addy in your comment. This will be the addy I use to contact you should you win. Leave it in the form of myemailaddy AT theinternet DOT com so the spam bots don't get you.

Start shopping and good luck!

Premier League Contest - Match 38

Welcome to the last (probably) weekend of matches. Match 38. To me, that was one quick season.
Many highlights, some lowlights, but a great season all round.

Today's guest...

Thank you Amanda, you may go now....

Not a lot to play for this weekend. Only one lone spot battle for Champion's League play.

Let's look at the table.

Club	Pld	Pts
Man Utd	37	88
Man City	37	78
Chelsea	37	72
Arsenal	37	70
Tottenham	37	69
Everton	37	63
Liverpool	37	58
West Brom	37	48
Swansea	37	46
West Ham	37	43
Stoke	37	41
Norwich	37	41
Newcastle	37	41
Southampton	37	40
Fulham	37	40
Aston Villa	37	40
Sunderland	37	39
Wigan	37	35
Reading	37	28
QPR	37	25

The battle is between Arsenal and Tottenham. There can be only one. heh... Mathematically, Chelsea could be the one to miss out, but they would have to lose to Everton, while Arsenal wins AND Tottenham beats Sunderland by 17 goals.

I wonder what Vegas is giving on those odds. Even IF you won that bet, you'd never collect. Vincent Savino would have you buried under a cactus somewhere near Area 51.

So the eyes will be on Arsenal/Newcastle and Tottenham/Sunderland.  My bet is that both clubs win and the Spurs just miss out yet again.

In other matches, Sir Alex watches over his last game as Manchester United vist The Hawthorns to play West Bromwich Albion.
Elsewhere we say goodbye to Wigan, Reading, and Queen's Park Rangers.
Next season will see new participants Cardiff City, Hull City, and the winner of the Crystal Palace vs Watford match on the 25th.

All matches are on Sunday, so please post your final results on/by Monday evening.

GO United!

OH! I almost forgot. There could be a tie for the final Champion's League position. Should Chelsea draw with Everton, AND Arsenal win by exactly 2 goals, Chelsea and Arsenal will have to play a playoff game to decide the position sometime this coming week at neutral ground. (Villa Park has been chosen)

Example, if Chelsea and Everton draw 1-1, and Arsenal beats Sunderland 3-1, then we will have a tie because the only tie breaker used is goal differential.
Not likely, but still possible.

by popular request.....

at the April trade night, the owner of the shop called me over and handed me this.

 

As most of us know, these box toppers from 2013 Heritage are a wee see-through. For the box he opened for pack sales, he saved this for me for being "the resident Braves guy".

 

Oooohhh..... who could it be? I flipped over to the back, and could see a partial number. 50?

I could only see the first two digits. Could it be #500?? Topps puts stars on those even numbers! Could it be Hank Aaron?!?! Was Hank #500?!??!

 

Open it!!!

 

No.

 

It was not #500.

 

It was not Hank Aaron.

 

It was.....

 

 

A very beat up Bobby Bragan. Card #506
This baby is warped, has a few creases, and has no idea what the word 'corner' means. It's almost oval.

HOWEVER.

I happen to need this card for my Braves team set. So it will fit nicely in my binder until a replacement without that gold shield comes along.

And I think..... card #506 was card #1 of the sixth series of seven in 1964. So it's kind of a high number. Someone may no better... let me know.

Either way, it's ALWAYS a good day to add a '64 Brave to the old collection.
Thanks Darren!

Premier League Contest - Match 37

We be awarding the trophy this weekend. Well, not on this contest, that seems to be going down to the wire.
But in the Premier League, Machester United is playing their last home game of the season, so the trophy, medals, etc, will be awarded on the pitch after their game with Swansea. There will also be a tribute to retiring manager, Sir Alex Ferguson.

I know it's the World Cup.... I'm on a deadline here and couldn't find a good one of the league trophy.

I'm sure you'll forgive me. Most of you probably wouldn't have noticed. Trophy? What trophy?Where?

Anyways.

Let's check the table and see how the qualifications for Champions League is going, as well as Wigan trying to avoid the drop.

Club	Pld	Pts
Man Utd	36	85
Man City	36	75
Chelsea	36	69
Arsenal	36	67
Tottenham	36	66
Everton	36	60
Liverpool	36	55
West Brom	36	48
Swansea	36	46
West Ham	36	43
Stoke	36	41
Fulham	36	40
Aston Villa	36	40
Southampton	36	39
Sunderland	36	38
Norwich	36	38
Newcastle	36	38
Wigan	36	35
Reading	36	28
QPR	36	25

City in purple is confirmed for Champions League.
Light blue is the fight. Three clubs for two spots. However all these clubs are locked in for Europa League.
Dark blue, well, there's always next season.
Yellow, don't relax, one slip and it's the drop for you.
Red, forget it, you're dead.

Games are Saturday, Sunday, and Tuesday. So please post your comment by Wednesday lunch at the latest.

Go United!

Premier League Contest - Match 36

Welcome to Match 36!

We've got some great matchups this weekend. So let's take a peek.

 Many different colours on our table today....

Green - we know for sure United has won the Championship.
Light blue - teams battling for Champions League play next season. Only the top four clubs qualify.
Blue - clubs with nothing left to play for but pride
Yellow - Danger zone of getting dropped. But any type of result should see them through.
Orange - Chances are, one of these clubs will be relegated.
Red - it's too late. Turn out the lights. The party's over. Oprah is singing.

Club	Pld	Pts
Man Utd	35	85
Man City	34	71
Chelsea	34	65
Arsenal	35	64
Tottenham	34	62
Everton	35	59
Liverpool	35	54
West Brom	34	48
Swansea	34	42
West Ham	35	42
Fulham	35	40
Stoke	35	40
Southampton	35	39
Norwich	35	38
Sunderland	35	37
Aston Villa	35	37
Newcastle	35	37
Wigan	34	32
QPR	35	25
Reading	35	25

we have some cool matchups this weekend, including Norwich and Aston Villa in a battle to avoid the drop. I think Villa will upset the Canaries.

Matches are throughout the weekend, so please post by Tuesday afternoon.

Go United! 2012-13 Champions!

The colour of the day..... is purple.

Today's post is brought to you by.... the colour purple. And the number 9.
For there are 9 different purple cards I want to show you. Everything made sense when you were a kid. I'm not sure what happens to change all that or why.

Here, we like it simple. Some might call me simple. I've been called worse. But I digress.

I came across an online seller who had a card I wanted. Before buying it, I looked to see what else he had. This is why this post has 9 cards, and not 1.

I, like a lot of you, have a weakness for Topps Chrome coloured parallels. Orange may be my favourite. But if you've been paying attention, you'll know that today, we're talking purple.

Craig Kimbrel. I also have the black version of this card. Still need blue, red, orange, etc... etc..

Brian McCann. This one scans really well.

Tommy Hanson. I miss Tommy. I wonder how's he doing on the left coast? A quick check shows he's leading the Angels in wins and ERA (for starters). Good for you Tommy!

 

Brian Snitker. No. Wait. Dan Uggla.

The entire Braves team. It should be Michael Bourn. Find Jason Heyward.... then look down.

Brandon Beachy. I hope he's back soon.... think how good the first place Braves would be with him back pitching. Woot!

Andrelton Simmons. He threw some guy out at first from the outfield grass while sitting on his butt last night. Awesome.

Tyler PastorIwontplayaslongasAndreltonishealthynicky

and the card that started all of this, my old pal and fave, Adam LaRoche.

Not too shabby for $7.50 shipped.

Now I just have to find the rest of the Braves team set in purple. And Orange. And red... blue... black...