Book picks similar to
England: The Biography: The Story of English Cricket by Simon Wilde
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Undefeated: Inside the 1972 Miami Dolphins' Perfect Season
Mike Freeman - 2012
Now, 40 years after sports history was made, acclaimed sports writer Mike Freeman celebrates the Dolphins’ singular achievement in Undefeated. A riveting story filled with heartbreaking injuries, miraculous finishes, and tested relationships—featuring a roster of gridiron greats, including Bob Griese, Earl Morrall, Larry Csonka, Paul Warfield, Mercury Morris, Nick Buoniconti and others—Undefeated follows a underdog team on its remarkable run: 14 regular season victories, 2 postseason wins, and a Super Bowl championship. It is a book no football fan will want to miss.
Hillsborough - The Truth
Phil Scraton - 1999
Now, following the private prosecution for manslaughter brought by the bereaved families against two senior police officers, this revised edition considers the background, progress and implications of that court action. It examines the conduct of the seven-week trial, the legal arguments, the key evidence, the cases for the prosecution and defence, the judge's controversial direction and the outcome. The jury, while acquitting his assistant, failed to reach a verdict on the match commander, Chief Superintendent Duckenfield. The judge then refused a retrial. Using verbatim accounts, the book's detailed analysis demonstrates the inadequacy of the law and the inappropriate breadth of judicial discretion, which undermines and inhibits such cases.Hillsborough: The Truth is already established as the definitive, unique account of the disaster - in which 96 men, women and children died, hundreds were injured and thousands traumatised - and its long-term aftermath. It reveals the contradictions between the Taylor Inquiry and the anachronistic and controversial inquest system, which returned verdicts of accidental death when negligence had been clearly established. It also exposes the appalling treatment endured by the bereaved and survivors in the immediate aftermath; the inhumanity of the identification process; problems concerning the emergency response and standards of medical care; and the systematic review and alteration of police statements by South Yorkshire police managers and their solicitors - evidently approved by the West Midlands police investigation team and Lord Justice Taylor.Powerful, disturbing and harrowing, Hillsborough: The Truth puts the disaster into the context of institutional complacency, which made a tragedy on this scale inevitable. It shows how the law fails to provide appropriate means of access, disclosure and redress for those facing the consequences of institutional neglect and personal negligence. And it tells how ordinary people can suffer when those in authority sacrifice truth and accountability to protect their reputations.
Pundits from Pakistan: On Tour with India, 2003-04
Rahul Bhattacharya - 2005
Pundits describes the subsequent tour, detailing the matches, the moods, the games and the players. More than merely that, though, it is also a book about the first major sporting encounter between India and Pakistan in 15 years - a period in which the two countries had fought one war and come close to another. What emerges is a fascinating contemporary account of a beautiful game in its most crucial setting, captured through the eyes of a young Indian discovering Pakistan.
Grantland Issue 3
Bill Simmons - 2012
It will feature the best sports writing from the website, delivered in a full-color book featuring original artwork and a host of print exclusives—including original fiction, new writing from editor-in-chief Bill Simmons, posters and pull-out sections, old-school baseball cards and mini-booklets, and a cover that looks and feels like you're holding a basketball. Like its namesake website, Grantland Quarterly will regularly include some of the most exciting and form-pushing sports writers currently plying the trade, including Chuck Klosterman, Malcolm Gladwell, Tom Bissell, Harris Wittels, John Brandon, Anna Clark, Chris Jones, Colson Whitehead, and many more.
The Commonwealth of Cricket: A Lifelong Love Affair with the Most Subtle and Sophisticated Game Known to Humankind
Ramachandra Guha - 2020
He offers vivid portraits of local heroes, provincial icons and international stars.Following the narrative of his life intertwined and in love with the sport, Guha captures the magic of bat and ball that has ensnared billions.
Against All Odds: The Untold Story of Canada's Unlikely Hockey Heroes
P.J. Naworynski - 2017
Outraged, a Royal Canadian Air Force squadron leader, Sandy Watson, quickly assembled a team of air force hockey players who were “amateur enough” to complete under the Olympic guidelines.Sergeant Frank Boucher was recruited to coach the team and begin the cross-Canada search for players. Hubert Brooks, a decorated flying officer and serial escapist from POW camps, was another early recruit. Andy Gilpin joined from the RCAF base in Whitehorse, as did airmen from Quebec, the Maritimes and western Canada. And when their starting goalie, Dick Ball, didn’t pass a medical exam, Murray Dowey was called up from his job as a TTC driver and occasional practice goalie for the Toronto Maple Leafs.The ragtag team got off to a rough start, losing so many exhibition games that Canadian newspapers called them a disgrace to the country. But the RCAF Flyers battled back, and Boucher’s defensive strategy paid off. They eliminated the American team, tied the Czech team and beat the Swiss as the hometown crowd pelted the Canadians with snowballs during the game. On the same ice where Barbara Ann Scott won a gold medal, the underdog RCAF Flyers also won Olympic gold, and their goalie, Murray Dowey, set an Olympic record that still stands.Against All Odds is the inspiring untold story of a group of determined men, fresh from the battlefields of WWII, who surprised a nation and the world.
Man and Ball: My Autobiography
Stephen Ferris - 2015
It was, however, preferable to his day job of paving driveways, and that day in 2005 saw the start of an incredible journey for Ferris, Ulster and Ireland rugby. A Celtic League title in his very first senior season with Ulster. A Grand Slam in 2009, followed by a sensational Lions breakthrough. A starring role in Ireland's greatest World Cup win, over Australia in 2011, when Ferris famously picked up Will Genia and carried him ten yards. And leading Ulster from nowhere to the Heineken Cup final.Stephen Ferris had an incredible rugby career, tragically ended by ankle injuries so severe they will never properly heal. He is an inspiration to the population of Ulster, an emblem of the sport that serves as such a positive expression of its culture and identity, and earned the respect and admiration of fans across Ireland for his strength, pace, skill and courage. Fearless, funny and full of an incredible array of stories from behind the scenes of Ulster, Ireland and the Lions, this is the must-have rugby book of the year.
Ronan O'Gara: Unguarded: My Life in Rugby
Ronan O'Gara - 2013
Ronan O'Gara has been at the heart of Munster and Irish rugby for the past fifteen years. Now, as he comes to the end of a glittering playing career, it is time for him to reflect on those many successes and occasional failures with the straight-talking attitude that has become his trademark. Never one to shy away from the truth, the result is Ronan O'Gara: Unguarded. Packed full of anecdotes and analysis of the teammates O'Gara has been proud to share the shirt with, and of the coaches he has played under -- often in controversial circumstances -- this is the definitive record of an era when Munster rose to triumph in Europe, and Ireland to win the Grand Slam, before crashing down to earth again. It is simply the must-have rugby book of the year.
The Rules Of The Game
Pierluigi Collina - 2003
Collina describes how it feels to make a difficult decision, the pressures from the crowd and the players while taking us through the most significant matches he has refereed.
Billy Slater Autobiography
Billy Slater - 2017
Slater’s story is that of a young country recruit with superb natural talent who rose quickly to the top level, playing with the Storm after just one pre-season in Melbourne and starring for Queensland during just his second season in the NRL. But inside the player who has scored so many audacious tries on the game’s biggest stages is a fierce competitive drive and a relentless work ethic, one inherited from parents who worked tirelessly to provide for their two children.In his fourteen years in the NRL, Slater has been confronted by the Melbourne Storm salary cap scandal, career-threatening injuries, the disappointment of lost grand finals, his early axing from the Queensland team, a game-losing mistake with the Kangaroos and accusations about his allegedly rough style of play. Slater has emerged not merely as a great of the game, but as an even more resilient character, a respected spokesman for his sport, a devoted husband and father, and – in a moment of emotional vindication – a member of the Storm’s defiant 2012 premiership team. Billy’s story is told with contributions from Slater’s family, as well as other rugby league legends like Cooper Cronk, Craig Bellamy, Darren Lockyer and Cameron Smith.
We Will Rise: A True Story of Tragedy and Resurrection in the American Heartland
Steve Beaven - 2020
With a charismatic young coach and a freshman phenom, this small Indiana city hoped to see its team shine in the national spotlight. Then, on a foggy night, after just four games, the plane carrying the team and its coach crashed after takeoff, killing everyone on board.The tragedy seemed insurmountable, a devastating blow to the identity of a fading factory town. But, with the support of a city in mourning, ambitious new coach Dick Walters promised to rebuild the cherished institution. Assembling a team of castoffs, walk-ons, and overachievers, Walters restored the legacy of the team and its fans. Against all odds, his young men made history.A tribute to those who were lost, and to those who carried on, We Will Rise is the rich and powerful story of an underdog team and its fans and the spirit of a resilient community.
Jackie Tyrrell: The Warrior's Code: My Autobiography
Jackie Tyrrell - 2017
Kilkenny were beaten in that final by Tipperary but Tyrrell’s inner-most thoughts from his diary, both in the lead-up to, and after the game, provide the narrative to a compelling life story. His unique insights paint the picture of a relentless individual and a relentless team – the most successful side in the history of Irish male sport. The intrigue and aura around Kilkenny coach Brian Cody and his players was always heightened because very little ever emerged from the camp, or the dressing room. Now, for the first time, Tyrrell opens a unique window into the elite mindset and attitude which forged such unprecedented success. Tyrrell’s own journey is chronicled with brutal and unwavering honesty. The hurling legend’s constant drive to be a winner with his beloved county have pushed him towards breaking point many times. Tyrrell operates somewhere between obsessed and maniacal. On the pitch, he displayed the ruthless mentality of an assassin but behind it all, he had to conquer crippling self-doubt and fear. It took until his fourth successive All-Ireland final for Tyrrell to believe he had finally arrived as a senior inter-county hurler, going on to become one of the most feared and respected defenders in the game.
Pushing the Boundaries: Cricket in the Eighties: Playing Home and Away
Derek Pringle - 2018
First chosen by England whilst still at university in 1982, Derek featured in the national side for the next 11 years. He played 30 Tests, 44 One Day Internationals, and appeared in 2 World Cups.Inside the dressing room, and out on the pitch, Derek witnessed at first hand an era of English cricket populated by characters such as Botham, Gooch, Lamb, and Gower. An era so far removed from today's rather anodyne sporting environment. And it wasn't just at international level that the sport lived life to the full. He was an integral part of Essex's all conquering side that won the County Championship 6 times as well as numerous one day trophies. Full of insight and experience here is the story of one of English cricket's most tumultuous periods told by someone who was there.
Racing Hard
William Fotheringham - 2013
He saw the Tour for the first time in 1984, avidly following that year's race on television in the Normandy village where he lived. Since joining the Guardian in 1989, William Fotheringham has been at the forefront of British cycling journalism. Here he reflects on the events of the last twenty-three years - the triumphs, the tragedies and the scandals that have engulfed the world's most demanding sport. Key articles from his career are annotated with notes and reflections. What would he have said if he'd known then what we all know now about Lance Armstrong? Which cyclists and teams were not all they seemed? And which victories still rank as the greatest of all time?This is the definitive collection of cycling reporting.