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I think these sort of books are complete marmite, and I am on the side of the fence that just doesnt see the appeal to them whatsoever.
I was sat in work one day and someone was reading one of these books (about a footballer) and one of the other lads said "Have you read the Steven Gerrard autobiography yet, its absolutely awesome."
To which I then asked "But surely steven gerrard has been playing football almost all his life and the best bits we have already seen on match of the day anyway…"
He then replied "You wanna read it mate, he stood on a rake when he was a kid and, like that could have stopped his whole career, before it even started…"
I then replied "You read an entire book, and the best part of it was someone standing on a rake…"
He said "Yeah but that could have ended his career as a footballer"
I then asked "Was there a big tense build up to him standing on this rake?"
He said "Not really…"
IMO almost all sports people are boring, and anything they ever usually do with their life is either televised or PR motivated off pitch. I have even in the past seen biographies for Dubai Millenium (a horse FFS).
What is the appeal of these books, statistically someone must like them on here?
Sports biographies are a natural consequence of the mass-belief that being physically dextrous also means you have a ‘personality’
‘Personality’ in my fuddy-duddy way of thinking should be a colloquialism for being mentally dextrous. So the likes of Euclid, Shakespeare and Einstein may just about warrant 100+ pages of character and lifestyle (ha ha) exploration but Warney, Giggsy and Fitzy don’t.
Let your appendages do the talking sportsfolk and let your biographies be restricted to ‘he was a jolly good cricketer/footballer/jockey…with a lot of money and a questionable taste in cars, clothes and wives’
There are more decent sports books published than ever before. See the William hill prize for examples
Of course there is plenty of rubbish but football in particular, has generated some excellent writing in recent years.
Crappy ghost written autobios are just the high profile end of the market. Would hardly judge the whole sector by that
…and his "Neck or Nothing", the biography of Bob Sevier, Sceptre’s trainer, is a rattling good read.
I rarely read sports biographies but I would put in a word for Sir Bobby Robson’s. Being a lifelong Newcastle United fan (yes, I know, we’re shyite
) and also an admirer of Robson since his Ipswich days would be the two main reasons I read this, but I would think it’s a decent read for anyone with even a passing interest in football.His old-fashioned standards and simple integrity come across very well and it’s full of (what I thought were) interesting anecdotes – he’s had an amazing life. One in particular stands out. He had a young beast of a footballer called Kevin Beattie at Ipswich. Now this lad was lightening quick, and somehow got entered into some FA-organised 100-yard sprint (it may have been for charity, something to do with Powderhall iirc). Bets were being struck on this, and Beattie wasn’t the favourite. Those in the know at Ipswich knew he was a certainty, and bet accordingly. About halfway through the race, with Beattie pissing it, his shorts split and his bollocks popped out. He did complete the race but he was hampered by his attempts to cover himself up, and got beat on the line
I do agree that on the whole though, most of them are probably dull as dishwater. Footballers in their early twenties are doing them these days
A lot of the football biographies are average at best, McGrath, Adams, Merson included.
Two I really did enjoy though were Niall Quinns and especially Tony Cascarino’s.
Cascarino’s was ghost written by the excellent Paul Kimmage and is remarkable for the fact that throughout the book he freely admits he was never that good. None of the self indulgent tortured genius stuff, or "I knew I was gonna be great from a young age" you get so often with this type of book. The story of a journeyman footballer very well told and highly recommended.
2 which stand out for me are
Eamon Dunphy’s book
Only A Game?
where he chronicles one season at Millwall when he was in and out of the team, and
Paul Kimmage’s book
Rough Ride
where he details the drug culture which pervaded cycling at that time, especially among journeymen professionals (AFAIK neither Sean Kelly nor Stephen Roche talk to Kimmage any more)
Most of the rest of rubbish
The best football auto bio ive read is Woody and Nord. Gareth southgate and his mate. Genuinely interesting with some suprisingly moving passages and revealing portraits
Football bios that are decent are Leo Macistry (spelt that wrong i think) on the Charlton brothers and the one on Maradona by Gordon Burns
Possibly best book on football is Brilliant Orange by Simon kuper
Cricket stands up better with plenty of quality writing
I have read countless sports books, from boxing to horseracing and beyond, but among the best of them was a book called,
"O Hampden In The Sun" by Pat Woods and Peter Burns –
recounting the day and events surrounding the 1957 Scottish League Cup final, when Celtic defeated Rangers 7-1
– which remains to this day the biggest scoreline and widest margin victory in any senior British cup final.
A fascinating read – with a large dollop of social history thrown in for good measure.
Gambling Only Pays When You're Winning
A lot of the football biographies are average at best, McGrath, Adams, Merson included.
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I don’t know how you can say McGrath’s story is average.
I have just read "The Final Score" by Brian Moore. An inspiring read by my favorite soccer commentator and lots to learn for commentators everywhere.
Craig.
I don’t know how you can say McGrath’s story is average.
I didn’t say Paul McGrath’s lifestory (if that’s what your referring to) was average it isn’t, its the manner in which it was told by ghost writer Vincent Hogan that was average imo. Big difference.
Best sports bios I have read
Leo Mckinstry’s bio of the Charlton brothers, his bio of Geoff Boycott and his bio of Alf Ramsey. I don’t share his politics but he’s very good with bio’s, outstanding really.
I don’t know how you can say McGrath’s story is average.
I didn’t say Paul McGrath’s lifestory (if that’s what your referring to) was average it isn’t, its the manner in which it was told by ghost writer Vincent Hogan that was average imo. Big difference.
I disagree on that point as well.
) and also an admirer of Robson since his Ipswich days would be the two main reasons I read this, but I would think it’s a decent read for anyone with even a passing interest in football.
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