J. Baines - Football Cards (01) - Baines's Prize Jersey Competition

1890s
Baines's Prize Jersey Competition
J. Baines
12 cards

Thousands of cards were issued by John Baines and his contemporaries, like W.N. Sharpe and J. Briggs, from the late 1880's to the early 1920's. They were the Panini and Topps of their day. Very few can be tied down to specific sets as the cards were so diverse in design. There are some from around 1887 that were printed for actual cup-ties, but very little is known about those early rugby competitions.
The cards shown here though, do make up a set. In total there are 12 cards, each with the same information on the back. I have included the back design plus 11 of the cards (2 footballers and 9 rugby players), which means there is one missing. 

Birkenhead Park - A.E. Fenton
          He appears in the Cheshire team photo of 1895
Castleford - G. Howell
Celtic - Doyle
          Dan Doyle won 8 caps for Scotland between 1892 and 1898
Hunslet - A.H.R. Albert (Goldthorpe)
          He made his debut in October 1888 and retired in 1910.
Queens Park - Sillars
          Probably a mis-spelling, William Sellar played for Queens Park in the 1895 F.A. Cup Final v Blackburn Rovers.
Runcorn - ?
Stanningley - ?
Tyledsley - John Berry
          Played for Tyldesley before and after 1895, winning three caps in 1891.
Ulverston - J.R. Robinson
Wigan - Wm. Halliwell
          Joined Wigan rugby club some time prior to 1895.
Wilson