Cricket Dreaming by Barry Nicholls

  Cricket Dreaming by Barry Nicholls  $25 (+ $5 postage) The experiences, stories and characters of a life in cricket.

The Story of 78 by Barry Nicholls

  The Story of 78 by Barry Nicholls  $25 (+ $5 postage) One of the most thrilling and consequential grand finals in South Australian lore. Sturt and Norwood fight out a classic.

Memoirs of a Mug Punter by John Harms

  Memoirs of a Mug Punter by John Harms  $30 (+ $5 postage) Can a horse syndicate also set a socialist example? Can truth and beauty be found at a country race track? Follow the adventures of Courting Pleasure, and those who had a stake in her.

It’s Your Wally Grout by Wally Wright

  It’s Your Wally Grout  by Wally Wright  $25 (+ $5 postage) Wally Wright gives a personal account of the career of his grandfather, the great Australian wicket-keeper. John Harms looks at It’s Your Wally Grout

1964 A Game, A Season, A State by Michael Sexton

  1964 A Game, A Season, A State   by Michael Sexton   $30 (+ $5 postage) Michael Sexton looks at the characters and the times which made for a golden period in South Australian football. Review by Chris Riordan

Australia: Story of a Cricket Country (edited by Christian Ryan)

  Australia: Story of a Cricket Country (edited by Christian Ryan) $75 (special Almanac price) (+ $10 postage) (normal retail price $90) The game, its characters and its place in Australia’s culture: superbly told in words and pictures. An extended version of John Harms’ essay for the book. John Butler reviews Australia Story of a [Read more]

The Australian Game of Football since 1858

  The Australian Game of Football: Various $90 (hardcover) (+ $10 postage) The official AFL publication celebrating football’s 150th anniversary. From the hotly debated origins of the game to modern times, this book encompasses a broad sweep across football’s history.

The Story of the Melbourne Cup

  The Story of the Melbourne Cup: Various $90 (hardcover) (+ $10 postage) The history, the horses and the personalities that have made the Cup the nation’s race. Superb photos and writing covering 1861 until the present day.

Australian Football Clubs in New South Wales by Miles Wilks

  Australian Football Clubs in New South Wales by Miles Wilks   $35 (A4 size)  ($10 postage) A comprehensive look at the contribution of NSW Aussie Rules clubs to the VFL/AFL. Filled with stories and photographs of those who have crossed the border to make their mark in the big leagues. Miles Wilks discusses Australian Football Clubs in NSW

The Stats Revolution by Ted Hopkins

  The Stats Revolution by Ted Hopkins:  $30 (+ $5 postage) Ted Hopkins helped win one of the greatest ever grand finals, then became a poet and writer, and then invented a system of measures that transformed the way the game of football was understood. ‘Football’s Futurist’ tells his story his way.

Manangatang by Adam McNicol

   Manangatang by Adam McNicol:  $45 (+ $5 postage) Adam McNicol’s  tribute to his family’s Mallee hometown. Full of wonderful anecdotes  and characters. A little gem of Australian social history.

AFL Legends by Sean Gorman

   Legends The AFL Indigenous Team of the Century by Sean  Gorman $40 (+$5 postage) Sean Gorman’s celebration of the indigenous footballer in the VFL/AFL. John Harms reviews Legends  

Tortured Tales of a Collingwood Tragic by James Gilchrist

  Tortured Tales of a Collingwood Tragic by James Gilchrist:  $30 (+ $5 postage) “A little Nick Hornby, a little Frank McCourt…” – Greg Baum James Gilchrist’s long and complicated relationship with the Collingwood football club.   John Butler reviews Tortured Tales…

Book Review: Tortured Tales of a Collingwood Tragic

Tortured Tales of a Collingwood Tragic James Gilchrist Connor Court Publishing  Paperback  $30   Your choice of football team can affect so much. This presumes, of course, that familial loyalties allow for the luxury of choice. For many, this is not an option. Food, shelter and clothing can be at stake. Even if you are [Read more]

Tortured Tales of a Collingwood Tragic by James Gilchrist:

James Gilchrist will be speaking at the ECCC Sportsnight on the 25th October. Details here.   Tortured Tales of a Collingwood Tragic is the story of one boy’s struggle to become a man despite the pain of drawn grand-finals, boundary-line incidents, the schoolyard taunts of Carlton-loving scumbags and even the awkwardness of coming to terms [Read more]

Book Review: 1964 A GAME, A SEASON, A STATE

by Michael Sexton published by and available through www.sportswords.com.au   Michael Sexton’s 1964 is a “niche” book. Those for whom “1964 SANFL season” strikes a chord – typically 50+ sports loving Croweaters – will cherish this wonderful snapshot of South Australian society and sport.

Review: Mr. Cleansheets

Mr. Cleansheets Author: Adrian Deans Publisher: Vulgar Press Published 2010 Reviewed by Adam Muyt This is a lads book, a ‘Boys Own’ adventure through the footballing landscape that is England.  Seriously, I can see this book doing well in the UK amongst a large slab of the football-loving populace.  Not bad for an aussie author [Read more]

Book Review: Best On Ground

Best on Ground – Great Writers on The Greatest Game Peter Corris and John Dale (eds) Viking (an imprint of Penguin Books) 2010 The stories of how supporters have come to support a particular team, and how their life has been moulded by that allegiance, are good stories when well told. This collection of sixteen [Read more]

Book Review: A Prodigious Tome for an Epic Tale

A Prodigious Tome for an Epic Tale Book: The Red Fox: The Biography of Norm Smith Writer: Ben Collins Publisher: The Slattery Media Group, 2008. Contemporary football biographies continue to fill a lucrative corner of the sports publishing market place. Rarely does a champion seem to retire without the close accompaniment of a publishing deal. [Read more]

Book Review: This Sporting Life

By Phil Dimitriadis One of the early fictional accounts of a footballer’s life was This Sporting Life by David Storey. This work examines the contradictions and paradoxes that affect a footballer’s career directly and vicariously through the actions and attitudes of those involved with the main character, named Arthur Machin. Machin works at the factory [Read more]