Sport
Fighter Andy Lee (with Niall Kelly) Gill Books €22.99
LEE has been one of the most compelling, and likeable, characters in Irish sport for a decade or more and this is a wonderful book that does a fine job of explaining how he managed to survive – and thrive – in the harsh and unforgiving world of professional boxing without losing any of his likeability or charm.
Red Card Ken Bensinger Profile €21
A forensic dissection of the Fifa corruption scandal that fizzes with the ferocious energy of a superior thriller, with every chapter ending on a cliffhanger.
Going To The Match Duncan Hamilton Hodder & Stoughton €35
Constructed around 17 matches that the author travelled to watch during the 2017-18 soccer season, across all levels of the game. It is a fan’s-eye view that brilliantly expresses the passion that millions feel for the game.
The Barcelona Legacy Jonathan Wilson Blink €26.59
The latest offering from Wilson is perfectlytimed, given the latest battle for football’s soul is taking place in the Premier League; and it’s one that Pep Guardiola is clearly winning. With typical skill, Wilson weaves how much of the thinking that underpins modern soccer came from Johan Cruyff’s Barcelona ‘dream team’ of the 1990s – from his club captain Guardiola to Luis Enrique, Ronald Koeman and Frank de Boer. And how a young translator at Barcelona – Jose Mourinho – developed into an anti-Cruyffian manager.
The Hurlers Paul Rouse Penguin Ireland €20
Painstakingly researched and wellwritten, Rouse charts how the efforts to revive hurling in some counties culminated in the first All-Ireland final, between Thurles and Meelick, in Birr on Easter Sunday 1888. This is a vital look into the early years of the GAA and is a perfect gift for both sport and history lovers.
Dark Arts Mike Ross Umbrella €20
Among Irish rugby players of the past decade, Ross wasn’t an obvious subject for an autobiography. But his tale is one that was worth telling. The heartbreak he and his family had to endure after they lost his brother Andrew to suicide is movingly told, while the fact that nothing came easy to Ross and he had to take a long road to the top establishing himself in Leinster make this a deftly-told
underdog story.
At All Costs Davy Fitzgerald (with Vincent Hogan) Gill Books €22.99
Fitzgerald is one of the most divisive figures in GAA so a decision to write a second autobiography will be met with derision by some. But FIGHTING FIT: Davy Fitzgerald on the sideline, and, below left, Andy Lee this is an entertaining glimpse into what inspires the man often viewed as simply a fire-brand on the sideline and it should soften his public image.
The Boy On The Shed Paul Ferris Hodder €28
This is no ordinary football autobiography because Ferris was no ordinary footballer. A Catholic brought up on a Protestant council estate in loyalist Lisburn, he endured sectarian hatred and his family home was burned out during the Troubles. His talent on the pitch would shine regardless. Hailed as ‘the new George Best’, Ferris made his Newcastle debut at 16 but injuries decimated his career and he became a physio – and later a barrister.
State Of Play: Under The Skin Of The Modern Game Michael Calvin Century €23.80
It is 50 years since Arthur Hopcraft’s seminal The Football Man and Calvin does a fine job updating Hopcraft’s treatise on the cultural and social impact of the game. A perceptive observer of what is at the heart of the game, this is Calvin’s best, most thoughtprovoking, book yet. The chapter on Jeff Astle, the legendary West Brom striker who suffered terminal brain damage from heading the ball, is especially heart-breaking.
The Lost Soul of Eamonn Magee Paul D Gibson Mercier Press €16.99
Joint-winner of the William Hill Sports Book of the Year in the UK, the story of how Magee rose to become world welterweight champion while surviving being slashed in the throat, being shot by the IRA and going to prison is compelling while also heartbreaking, when he loses his son, Eamonn junior who was stabbed to death in Belfast in 2015.
Tiger Woods Jeff Benedict and Armen Keteyian S&S €18.99
A scathing and vivid reexamination of the double life of a serial philanderer, sex addict and liar who was also once a revered athlete and the wealthiest sportsman in the world.
The Mountains Are Calling Jonny Muir Sandstone Press €27.99
Hill running in Scotland is a tough, daunting, punishing sport but Muir writes about it with such eloquence and passion that he makes you want to drop everything and head for the Highlands.