In March 1871 the first international match took place between England and Scotland at Raeburn Place in Edinburgh. Donned in all white the fledgling England team lost that day 0-1 but it was the start of remarkable history. This Rugby Football Union (RFU) product is written by the curator of the World Rugby Museum, Phil McGowan, and recounts the story of how the England team (and rugby itself) grew from an amateur collection of public schoolboys playing in a 'Home Nations Championship' into the globally recognised team they are today, watched by 80,000 at Twickenham and millions on television.
This is a complete history of the England rugby union team - told by the players themselves. Based on a combination of painstaking research into the early years of the England team through exclusive interviews with a vast array of Test match stars from before the Second World War to the present day, world-renowned rugby writers Stephen Jones and Nick Cain delve to the very heart of the English international rugby union experience, painting a unique and utterly compelling picture of the game in the only words that can truly do so: the players' own. This is the definitive story of English Test match rugby - a story etched in blood, sweat and tears; a story of great joy and heart-breaking sorrow; a story of sacrifice, agony, endeavour and triumph. Behind the Rose lifts the lid on what it is to play for England - the trials and tribulations behind the scenes, the glory, the drama and the honour on the field, and the heart-warming tales of friendship and humour off it. Absorbing and illuminating, this is a must-have for all supporters who have ever dreamed of walking the hallowed corridors of Twickenham as a Test match player, preparing themselves for battle in the changing rooms and then marching out to that field of dreams with the deafening roar of the crowd in their ears and the red rose emblazoned on their chest.
From 1997 to 2003 England and Australia battled for domination of the rugby world in one of the greatest rivalries the sport has ever known. In The Men in the Arena, William Hill shortlisted authors Peter Burns and Tom English explore every aspect of the teams' journey to the 2003 Rugby World Cup final, telling the story primarily in the words of the protagonists at the centre of the battle. Featuring exclusive new interviews with players and coaches from both teams plus an array of superstars who faced them from New Zealand, Ireland, France, Wales and beyond, this is the inside story like it has never been told before.
England Rugby Heroes is the official illustrated RFU celebration of England's greatest rugby players. Drawing on more than 150 years of rich rugby heritage, each carefully crafted biography describes the player's career, his highlights, and his special skills--such as David Duckham's pace and swerve, Martin Johnson's strength and leadership, and Jonny Wilkinson's kicking and tactical acumen--that elevate him above the rest. Written by respected England rugby authority Julian Bennetts, England's Rugby Heroes is illustrated with more than 150 color and black and white photographs and is a unique record of the greatest players to sport the famous Red Rose of England.
For over 130 years the British & Irish Lions have stood out as a symbol of the ethics, values and romance at the heart of rugby union. To represent the Lions is the pinnacle for every international player in Britain and Ireland, and the dream of tens of thousands of avid fans who fol-low them. A Lions tour, undertaken every four years to the southern hemisphere, is more than a series of rugby matches played out on foreign fields; it is an epic crusade where the chosen few face a succession of mental and physical chal-lenges on their way to the Test arena, where they do battle with the superpowers of the world game. Behind the Lions sees seven esteemed rugby writers delve to the very heart of what it means to be a Lion, using diaries and letters from those who pioneered the concept, to interviews with a vast array of players who have followed in their footsteps. In so doing they have uncovered the passion, pride and honour experienced when taking up the unique challenge of a Lions tour. This is a tale of heart-break and ecstasy, humour and poignancy that is at once inspirational, moving and utterly compelling. And it is the only story worth hearing: the players' own.
A wry, affectionate and amusing take on English class and customs from an outsider's perspective. For years German lawyer and author Detlev Piltz has been observing England, its life, customs and above all its classes. He argues that whenever an English person meets another, they will immediately try and place the individual they are talking to in a class by their speech, deportment, clothing, address and general aura. Why might this be, and does the English class system still exist in the twenty-first century? This book argues that it is very much still alive. Piltz examines the 'hard' and 'soft' class markers that permeate English society, from where Britons go on holiday to what they wear, eat, drive and what they name their pets. He explains how the way you pronounce the word 'garage' indicates your class, and asks whether it makes sense still to talk of the English Gentleman, a species of human being so often admired in continental Europe yet parodied and satirized ad infinitum. England: A Class of Its Own is based on an incredible amount of research and riddled with amusing quotations. In the same vein as Jilly Cooper's Class, this is a book that will give pleasure and amusement to many.
Volume one of a bibliography documenting all that has been written in the English language on the history of sport and physical education in Britain. It lists all secondary source material including reference works, in a classified order to meet the needs of the sports historian.
LONGLISTED FOR THE WILLIAM HILL SPORTS BOOK OF THE YEAR PRIZE ‘The greatest story in English sport told beautifully by one of its greatest writers’ Gary Lineker 'A spellbinding piece of work' Oliver Holt; 'Absolute tour de force' Henry Winter Award-winning writer Paul Hayward delivers a compelling and unmissable account of the story of the England men's football team, published as they prepare for the World Cup in Qatar. On 30 November 1872, England took on Scotland at Hamilton Crescent in Glasgow, a match that is regarded as the first international fixture. More than 5,000 fans watched the two sides play out a 0-0 draw. It was the first of more than a thousand games played by the side, and the beginning of a national love affair that unites the country in a way that few other events can match. In Hayward's brilliant new biography of the team, based on interviews with dozens of past and present players and coaches, including Viv Anderson, Gary Lineker, Alan Shearer and current coach Gareth Southgate, we get a vivid portrait of all aspects of the team's story, reliving highlights such as the World Cup victory in 1966 and the time when football came home in Euro 96, as well as the low points when the players were obliged to give the Nazi salute in 1938 and the era when England's hooligan fans brought shame on the nation. From Stanley Matthews and Bobby Moore through to more modern heroes such as Paul Gascoigne, David Beckham, Wayne Rooney and Harry Kane, Hayward brings a large cast of characters to life. For anyone who wants to understand England football, and why it means so much to so many, England Football: The Biography is an essential and vital read.
The first history of sport in Ireland, locating the history of sport within Irish political, social, and cultural history, and within the global history of sport. It studies the relationship between sport and national identity, how sport influences policy-making in modern states, and the ways in which sport has been colonized by the media.
The Extraordinary Book of South African Rugby will hook any rugby fanatic. Packed with facts, stats, quotes and anecdotes, from the comical to the controversial, this collection celebrates the rich history of South African rugby. This extraordinary book will run fans through the most enthralling stories to come out of South African rugby, including: How Manie Reyneke was late for his wedding reception after playing a club semi-final; the 90-metre penalty by Oostelikes; how the first Springboks to travel by plane limped over the ocean on three engines; how Kimberley travelled 60 hours by mule wagon on their first tour to Cape Town; how Springbok Andy MacDonald killed a lion with his bare hands; the spectator tackle that cost Western Province the Currie Cup; Paul Roos' weekly 260 km cycle to Pretoria to play club rugby.
