‘It's fun': The AFL superstar with an old-school hobby
He's one of the AFL's star midfielders, but off the field, Essendon captain Zach Merrett has an old-school hobby.
Since childhood, he has collected AFL player cards, and still does, when he's not racking up possessions during Bombers games.
As a guest at the Hobby Hangout XL Trading Card Show on Sunday, Merrett signed player cards for rapt fans.
One of Merrett's treasured pieces is a 1954 card depicting his great-uncle, Collingwood premiership player Thorold Merrett. Merrett said there was 'no way' he would sell it, but otherwise it was 'fun' to find cards he'd sought, and 'always exciting' to find a random gem.
First in line to have Merrett sign the card that marked his 2016 Essendon best-and-fairest award was James Vincent, 34, of Sydenham, an AFL card collector since childhood. 'It's awesome to meet the person who's on the card and get their autograph,' Vincent said.
Proving analogue pastimes are not dead, more than 5000 people attended the Hobby Hangout XL event at the Royal Exhibition Building in Carlton.
It had 185 stalls – double the number at last year's event at Melbourne Pavilion.
Co-organiser Tiffany Spurway said popular pieces on Sunday included Pokémon and NBA basketball cards and items featuring the Labubu monster character.
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