[drc]

I know nothing about the team, but if it's a famous team and rare it would still have value even if it was from the early 1900s. If the player provenance is correct, that would raise the value.

The damage to the corner is a significant value problem, but if everything is on the up and up about the photo (including the provenance) and the photo is rare to unique, the buyer probably got a fair deal. The caveat being that I haven't seen the photo in person and haven't given here an opinion about age or authenticity, and am just musing about value. Player provenance, if it can be shown, and it it's unique or, say, one of three known examples, that would be a big thing towards the value.

I have seen where old but later reproductions (by old I mean, for example, Civil War image made in 1895, rather than made in 1965) have sold for good money, but it's when the subject is famous and the overall photo is well done and looks good (display value) and usually when it was made by an 'official' or otherwise known professional photography studio. If a reproduction is old enough, it in and of itself is an antique.

From my personal collecting sentiment I'm not a fan of later made photographs, but I know there are collectors who will pay good money for quality examples.