A second 15 crackers from my collection. May come in handy for some during the days stuck in doors avoiding bat flu. As I have said before. I love fitba and a close second favourite hobby is reading. When I can combine the two I am in my element. The hybrid hobby. Ill read anything from any countries fitba, or any era. You can never know enough. The following are in no order. I wont ruin them for you but just briefly touch on the topic.
I would also like to acknowledge the sad passing of Aberdeen historian Jack Webster who died this month. Jack was author of “The Dons: A History of Aberdeen Football Club” in 1978. This was updated in 1990 and again for the centenary year in 2003 for the “The First Hundred Years of the Dons”. But apart from being the author of these books he is also part of the history of the Dons for allowing its fans to read such a fantastic and comprehensive history of their beloved club. RIP Jack. Your three books sit proudly in my living room book shelf
I hope in these extraordinary times this may help you burn a bit of time. Amazon or Ebay will see you good. Most will be going cheap
1- THOSE ABERDEEN MEN CAN’T PLAY FOOTBALL – Fraser Clyne
This is a cracking read. Very detailed despite being written by an Arbroath fan. Based mostly around Orion, Victoria United and Aberdeen (the original) . But it does cover the likes of Bon Accord (36-0), Aberdeen Rovers (35-0), Aberdeen R*****s, Britannia, Black Diamond and a host of other now defunct clubs from a bygone era. Well worth a read for any Dons fan. Come on you Tartans wouldn’t really have worked, it was talked about during the original talks for the club
2– ON THE TRAIL OF THE SCOTTISH HOLY GRAIL:FROM THE TOONS TO THE JOONS, Shaun E Smith
This book deserves a special mention as I stole the idea. Although the author was fifty and I was 34 when I started. Basically he wanted to do something for his fiftieth so instead of a party or a holiday he was to go to every team to win the Scottish Junior Cup in his life. Being a great idea I stole it and only have three teams left to do. An important book in my groundbothering life
3 – CLOUGHIE:WALKING ON WATER – Brian Clough
Quite obvious what the subject is. The great man that was Brian Clough in his own words. He is funny, he is bitter, he is no holds barred and he is upfront about his issues. I was given this out of the blue by a work mate a few weeks ago and it became one of my favourites quickly. Staying in Archie Gemmills spare room while trying to sign him for Derby is one of many funny wee stories. pennies on Ebay these days
4- FROM TRIUMPH TO TRAGEDY:THE CHAPECOENSE STORY – Steven Bell
Sad stuff this. If you took away the disaster itself the story is like that of a film. Plucky wee team get from lower leagues up to the top flight. Without a sugar daddy I might add. Quite the tale. Then the plane crash which was totally avoidable. Hard to put down
5-PIRATES, PUNKS AND POLITICS:FALLING IN LOVE WITH FC SANKT PAULI-Nick Davidson
A fantastic insight into the cult club that is St Pauli. The left wing views. The love for Hamburg and the community. The anti racism, homophobia, most isms really(funny how they are linked with celtic and their sectarianism). The author writes well and makes you want to head to the Millerntor and scoof a few Astras. May have to take a trip when the bat flu blows over
6- FROM PARTITION TO SOLIDARITY: THE FIRST 100 YEARS OF POLISH FOOTBALL – Ryan Hubbard
Exactly what it says on the tin. The first one hundred years of fitba in Poland. Somewhere I have not been to view a game. First off this is great as is shows you where you were going wrong with pronunciations of clubs. Widzew Lodz = Vijev Vooj. They would be my team of choice when I do head over. Looks and sounds a great place to visit, city wise and fitba wise. Good book as I didn’t really know much about the game in Poland
7-WELCOME TO HELL?IN SEARCH OF THE REAL TURKISH FOOTBALL – John McManus
McManus tries and succeeds to dispel the myth about the violence and hatred in Turkish fitba. It skips from past to present throughout highlighting incidents and matches from all eras. I find the way he puts Turkish society across as the friendly , funny people they are(I have been before and can vouch for that).Really good read and again its one of those books that males you want to go take on a few games
8- ANOTHER BLOODY SATURDAY- May Guy
A book on attending matches at Partick Thistle, Accrington Stanley, Bhutan, Tibet and other obscure places. Aye sign me up for reading that. This is more a tribute to Mat Guy and all his books. It doesn’t have to be this one. Try any of them. “Minnows United” or “Barcelona to Buckie Thistle”. All three are worth it. Good author. I was supposed to head to Accrington Stanley in a couple of weeks, all because I read about his trips. Sign of a good book
9- THE BROMLEY BOYS – Dave Roberts
To start, all Dave Roberts books are good. But this will be liked by anyone that reads it. Its funny and you can relate to parts. The guy clearly loves Bromley and this delves into his childhood stories of sneaking out of boarding school to get to see his team and a lot more hijinks along the way. Dare I use the old cliché , ach I might as well, its a heart warming tale
10- A SEASON WITH VERONA – Tim Parks
This is a cracker. One of the best fitba books there is. Tim Parks is a Uni tutor in Milan but lives in Verona. He choses to follow Verona home and away for a season and document it. A brilliant read from the first chapter and the incredibly long bus journey (complete with Lemoncello) to Bari. A must read for Italian fitba fans
11-MATCHDAYS:THE HIDDEN STORY OF THE BUNDESLIGA – Ronald Reng
This was not what I thought it was going to be. I didn’t realise it was about one man. That man was Heinz Hoher. A man who dedicated his life to the Bundesliga as a player, coach, manager from the leagues inception in 1963. Alcohol problem, gambling problem but his biggest addiction was fitba. Ace read. Incredibly when I finished the book I looked Heinz up to see what he was up to these days. He died three days prior when I was reading the book. Spooky (but a true story, second time that has happened to me)
12– THE ROMFORD PELE – Ray Parlour
Got this as part of a job lot. Would never have owned it otherwise. Turns out its one of the funniest fitba autobiographies I have read. Is Parlour the most fined player by one club ever. Constant “that cost me two weeks wages” throughout the book. Well worth a squint
13- ULTRA:THE UNDERWORLD OF ITALIAN FOOTBALL – Tobias Jones
The best fitba book of 2019. An in depth look at the community that is the ultra fanatics in Italy. While praising the family togetherness of ultra groups he doesn’t shy away from the underground criminal element, links to the mafia, violence, drug dealing. The author meets up with groups from Torino, Roma, Genoa, Cosenza, Catania and many more. Interesting stuff
14-Keane – Roy Keane
I was late to the party on this. Many many years late. Didn’t stop it being a good read. No football fan in the world wouldn’t have had Roy Keane in their team. He views on Cantonas kung fu kick are the highlight of the book
15-GARRINCHA- Ruy Castro
Big book this but worth the time and energy. What a player and what a mad life from start to finish. Bit of an arsehole which there is no getting away from. Not much more I can say on the guy as id rather leave it to the book. Over a million people lined the streets for his funeral procession after his early but self inflicted death
FITBAWBAG 