On The Cards - A Podcast about collecting sports cards.

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In this episode Hank & Mick discuss all that we have learnt from the card market in 2026. Prices have exploded. Overall demand has spiked. Is it a good time now to stop and appreciate the cards you currently hold in your collection? We think so. But being a collector is an active thing - we always want to keep growing and improving our collections. How do we do this, when prices are so high and the market is so hot?

Hank has learnt how iconic cards, with strong design (like the 1993 Scoring Kings) may have large population counts, and not be super rare... but still garner insane demand from collectors. Mick has watched the Non-Sport market explode this year... and is grateful for the Star Wars collection he has managed to piece together. Hank is still yet to buy a single non-sports card. What a year so far... and its not over yet!

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In this Episode, Hank & Mick chat about the impact that high-profile Influencers have on the Hobby. We discuss how Gary Vee drops a video about 1930s Mickey Mouse cards, and hours later the prices run out of control. This year we have also had Logan Paul and his record setting sale of his Pikachu Illustrator. Do these Influencers really push the needle on prices and demand for these cards, or are some of these cards so low-pop, that the market can be controlled easily?

We also do a deep-dive into the explosion of Non-Sports cards. We chat about the recent Disney and Star Wars trading cards boom. Mick explains his nostalgia for Star Wars, and Hank is fascinated how some of these cards are 50+ years old, and they lie dormant for years... only to have a sudden price discovery seemingly out of nowhere. 

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In this Episode, Hank & Mick are back from Chicago and unpack their first ever National Sports Collectors Convention. What was it like? What did we see? What cards did we buy? It was the busiest and biggest National ever... and in this hot market, we chat about the cards we saw, and the ones we pulled the trigger on. 

We chat about everything from having a plan, tossing it aside. Buying overpriced Jordans. Adding a 2013 Select Gold. Meeting other podcast legends at the Card Ladder booth. Buffet breakfasts. VIP Passes. Trade nights. PSA and Beckett grading lines. Seeing million dollar cards up close.  The sheer scale of the largest trading cards show in the world. The Card Casino! Its all here. Enjoy!

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In this Episode, Hank & Mick are clearly excited that they are flying out in a couple of days for The National in Chicago. The National Sports Collectors Convention is the worlds largest card show, spanning a mammoth 5 days. Hank and Mick have their flights booked, have our VIP tickets ready... and are days away from heading to the airport.

We discuss how we plan to negotiate the insane 21 hour flying time from Melbourne to Chicago. How we spend a couple of days acclimatising to the timezone by cruising around the city. Then we chat about everything from what cards we are hunting at the show, the benefits of pacing yourself... and the fact that you never know, you might find the card you want in the first hour - then what?

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In this Episode Hank and Mick discuss the big trades within the NBA, and what this means for the card market. With key players like Giannis, Ja Morant and Jaylen Brown being traded to new teams, we chat about how this might affect their card prices and collectability. And with Kawhi flipping back to the Raptors, does Mick think this is a positive or negative?

Hank thinks this all started last year with Luka being traded to the Lakers. Mick thinks theres no such thing as a lifer anymore. Is there any loyalty to a team for players and collectors? And whats next... TCG Trades? Luffy traded to MTG? Charizard traded to One Piece? 

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In this Episode, Hank & Mick discuss Good Looking Cards! What is it about a card that gets your interest... and makes you stop and take notice. Is great card design and major factor in driving prices? We chat about PMGs, Linchpins, Star Rubies, Kabooms!... all the shiny, colourful, eye candy that makes us spend stupid dollars on cardboard. 

Hank challenges Mick that the Superfractor is a more attention grabbing design than Prizm Blacks. Is the Prizm Gold are better looking card than the Prizm Black? Is the 1998 Star Rubies Jordan the best looking Jordan card ever? We even discuss ugly cards (Jordan Skyview - we are looking at you).

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This week, Hank and Mick tackle the battle between collectors who play the long game and those chasing the latest hype. Along the way, we reflect on why we love the hobby so much, from the thrill of the hunt and building collections to the friendships, nostalgia, and joy that cardboard continues to bring years after getting back into the game.

We then shift to the grading boom currently sweeping the TCG world. With PSA turnaround times blowing out and lower-tier submissions being paused, Hank and Mick compare today's Pokémon and One Piece craze to the sports card madness of 2020–21. Is the hobby heading for another reality check, or just another chapter in the cycle? Mick argues that why should sports card collectors be impacted with grading restrictions because of people wanting to grade a pile of Papa Smurf cards :) Enjoy!

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In this Episode, Hank & Mick do a deep dive into three cards they each own, and discuss why they think these cards are important in the hobby. Each card has a story behind it, a reason why it deserves a place in our collections. 

We chose to select 2 sports cards, and 1 Non-sport card each. It was great thinking deeply about why we believe each of these cards matter. Sometimes discussions like this end up solidifying your belief behind these cards and your collection as a whole.

And we will throw this out to you, our listeners... What are three important cards you own and why? Leave us a message and let us know. Enjoy the episode!

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In this Episode, Hank & Mick discuss the boom we have seen in card shows. There has been an explosion in the number and size of card shows in Australia over the last few years... and we love it. We chat about our recent experience at the Hobby Hangout XL in Melbourne, one of the biggest shows of the year. 

We chat about all that we love about it, from meeting our fans, to hunting for cards. Mick chats about his latest Gold Prizm (yep, of course he found one). Hank discusses adding a couple of Jordan cards to his PC... and his love of sellers that are fairly priced. We spend so much time on our computers, trawling eBay, that its such a great feeling to be able to join a community of card collecting freaks in person, and celebrate all that is cardboard.

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In this Episode, Hank & Mick discuss the concept of finding your niche as a collector. The trading card market is a huge sea of cardboard  - from sports cards to TCG, vintage cards to modern... and within each of these are more sets, inserts, players and characters that your mere mortal mind can comprehend. So how do we shrink the sea? How do we find the cards that matter to us?

Hank discusses his move from 80s Fleer Jordans when he first got back into the hobby in 2020, to the 90s Jordan inserts that build a majority of his collection today. Mick unpacks how he came to the realisation that the gems of the Panini era (Gold/10 and Black 1/1) were his niche. We also discuss how your niche shouldnt restrict you or hold you back in uncovering new and exciting lanes in the Sportscards or TCG space.