WAFL Collectables

Given you used to be able to screw a car badge to the bonnet of your vehicle, it was only logical that someone would make a car badge featuring WAFL club logos. I've only ever seen one type of WAFL car badge and, unfortunately, I've never been able to find out who made them, but it could well have been Perth-based Sheridan's. More likely, perhaps, is that they were made by a company called Souvenir Products in Adelaide, and marketed by Christies. Among car badge collectors, this shape of badge is known as a "Christies roundel". I've now seen versions of these badges for East Fremantle, East Perth, Subiaco, Swans and West Perth, so they are out there... somewhere.

Given the design of the stickers on these, I think it's fair to assume they are the earlier of the two sets of WAFL number plate holders. But I've never been able to put an exact date on them. They were produced as a fundraising initiative for the Spastic Welfare Association and sold with a piece of advertising card in them, which urged people to "be proud of our wildflower state". I've seen the Claremont, East Fremantle, East Perth and West Perth versions of these over the years.

These "Footy Plates" were designed as brackets for standard WA number plates. They were manufactured by the Spastic Welfare Association, and sold as one of the organisation's major fundraising activities. The brackets themselves were exactly the same as the previous set of number plate holders, but the stickers on the bottom were more modern looking and included the WANFL logo. The yellow and black card that was mounted in the holder was just packaging and was designed to be discarded.

These were just another example of the amazing range of merchandise that WAFL club logos were attached to in the early 1980s. The knobs themselves were clear at the top, so that you could see your chosen club's logo through the clear plastic. At the bottom, the piece that was made to screw on to the top of your car's gearstick was made of a different colour plastic. They're tough to find nowadays and it's usually only when someone wrecks an old car that one turns up. I have noticed a few variations over the years, including a West Perth version with the colours reversed.