TOP TOURNAMENT MEMORIES WITH A PERSONAL TOUCH

My Incredible World Cup Journey – Around the globe from Argentina to Brazil, By Michael Renouf, published by Fair Play Publishing, Price: £15.99

MICHAEL Renouf was captivated by the first World Cup finals he saw on television – and it’s become a passion for him ever since.

His debut tournament was way back in 1978 but he clearly remembers it like it was yesterday.

“My first World Cup was shortly after my eleventh birthday and was broadcast around the world from the distant and exotic shores of Argentina,” he writes.

“It was a far cry from the provincial county of Wiltshire in England and infinitely more exotic than the local sport of tractor pulling!”

He recalls having to make do with following Scotland in England’s absence and what a let-down that turned out to be for Ally MacLeod’s boys, despite that Archie Gemmill goal against Holland.

Renouf takes us through each subsequent World Cup up to Brazil in 2014, picking out some of the major games, incidents and controversies. For those old enough like me to remember them, it’ll bring back plenty of memories.

What the author also does is weave in bits about his own life at the time – what he was doing, where he was living and his memories of the matches.

It’s an interesting process as he goes through the various stages in life, from his school days to adult life.

One of the best chapters covers the Brazil tournament, as this was when Renouf finally saw his World Cup dream come true – he was off to the finals for the first time.

There are some entertaining stories of his adventures with his partner Gail in the South American country.

Renouf, who relocated to Mexico in 2015 and began writing professionally, added: “If you have the slightest inkling that you want to go to a finals, in the words of a company that had produced some entertaining football-based adverts, “Just Do It.”

Rating out of 10: 7