Product Description

NOMINATED FOR FOOTBALL BOOK OF THE YEAR IN BRITISH SPORTS BOOK AWARDS, 2011. What is it like to win at Wembley? What happens behind locked dressing room doors? What makes a good football manager? What shapes a successful player? What turns a group of individuals into a team? What binds a football club to its fans? What good can football do in its community? Answers to these questions, and many more, can be found in Family: Life, Death and Football. Award winning sportswriter Michael Calvin offers a unique insight into a promotion season. He turned up for the first day of pre season training, and was on the substitutes bench at Wembley, 333 days later. It is an intimate portrait of a distinctive football club burdened by its history. That club happens to Millwall, but the pressures and problems they face make them Everyman FC. They operate in a parallel universe to the Premier League. There are no huge budgets, no hyper-inflated egos. The players are family men, close to their roots. They understand who they are playing for, and why it matters. They remind us of the humanity football is in danger of losing, as it worships empty celebrity and the quick buck. Calvin takes the reader into the dressing room, boardroom, and on to the streets. He reports from football's front line. It is a book for the true fan, and the authentic football man.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #175083 in Books
• Published on: 2010-10-11
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 320 pages

Features

• New
• Mint Condition
• Dispatch same day for order received before 12 noon
• Guaranteed packaging
• No quibbles returns

Review
It s a fantastic insight into the workings of a football club. Mike has been on the inside. He s come up with a detailed account of what goes into a successful team, and the winning of football matches. It is the sort of book I would have loved to have read, growing up. You get a real feel for what it takes, day in day out, week in week out, over a long hard English season. I loved it. It is one of those books which draw you in, so that you suddenly wonder where the time has gone. Even as a player, I learned a lot about aspects of the game I never see. MILLWALL CAPTAIN PAUL ROBINSON --http://www.newsshopper.co.uk/sport/8432577.Players_to_join_author_at_Millwall_book_signing/

It is a unique book, a one off. I have never read, or seen, a football book like it. The access Mike had at Millwall has never been achieved anywhere else. I have been at the club for so long, but, over 300 or so pages, I learned so much I didn t know. It gives an insight into everyone s feelings. It is about a player, feeling under pressure. It is about how a manager thinks, how a club is run from top to bottom. It gives me, as a player, an insight into the game. Just imagine, then, what this will mean to a fan. Readers will know what we are thinking, at certain times. They will see into us when we win, or when we miss a chance. They will get to know us very well. RECORD GOALSCORER NEIL HARRIS --http://www.millwallfc.co.uk/page/NewsDetail/0,,10367~2178422,00.html

--http://www.millwallfc.co.uk/page/NewsDetail/0,,10367~2178422,00.html

Apparently, no-one likes Millwall and they don t care. But don t let your prejudices about the pariahs of English football stop you buying Mike Calvin s brilliant new book about the Lions promotion season. Now I know Mike is a Sunday Mirror colleague, but Family - Life, Death And Football is one of the most in-depth books you will read about any football club. In fact, strike that. It is THE most in-depth book you will read about any football club. And probably the most gripping. Calvin was given unrestricted access to Millwall through the entire course of a season which eventually saw the south London club promoted to the Championship via the play-offs. But it just doesn t document a successful year. It is a tale of how this unique football club helps its own to cope with the tragedies of everyday life in one of the toughest areas of our capital city. The book takes you right to the heart and soul of Millwall. It makes you understand what it takes to be Real Wall . It s a bit like trying to get into the SAS, but without the laughs. Calvin addresses the mobilisation of the Millwall s lunatic fringe for the Carling Cup riot at West Ham and the issues of racism that continue to dog the club. But he also explains why, despite the violence and the vitriol, Millwall is indeed the epitome of a family club. The togetherness of players, staff and supporters - especially during some desperately dark moments that had nothing to do with how Kenny Jackett s team were faring on the pitch - is inspirational. It certainly made me finally understand what Bill Shankly was getting at when he once spoke about football being more important than life and death. Apart from family, the game is the one constant thread that people have from the cradle to the grave. I ve got to say that I still don t particularly like Millwall - and they no doubt still don t care. But my respect for the club is total. Copies of Family - Life, Death And Football can be bought through Mike Calvin s website: www.michaelcalvin.com Read more: http://www.mirrorfootball.co.uk/opinion/columnists/simon-mullock/Simon-Mullock-column-You-might-not-like-Millwall-but-you-will-care-about-this-brilliant-new-book-on-the-Lions-promotion-season-by-Michael-Calvin-article601079.html#ixzz1JDPQqhH8 --http://www.mirrorfootball.co.uk/opinion/columnists/simon-mullock/Simon-Mullock-column-You-might-not-like-Millwall-but-you-will-care-about-this-brilliant-new-book-on-the-Lions-promotion-season-by-Michael-Calvin-article601079.html#ixzz1JDPQqhH8

About the Author
Michael Calvin is one of the UK s most versatile sportswriters, having feigned expertise in everything from frog jumping to Aussie Rules football. He has worked in more than 80 countries, covering six summer Olympics, and six World Cup finals. He was named Sportswriter of the Year for his despatches as a crew member in a round the world yacht race. He has twice been named Sports Reporter of the Year, and has featured at the British Press awards on six occasions. He has been honoured also, for his coverage of sports for the disabled. He is currently chief sports writer with the Sunday Mirror, and has held similar positions at the Daily Telegraph, Times and Mail on Sunday. He took a five year sabbatical from journalism to help set up and run the English Institute of Sport, which offers strategic support to 35 Olympic sports. When asked by manager Kenny Jackett what possessed him to choose Millwall as the subject for this book he admitted: I thought it was worth a punt . Jackett laughed and said: Some punt. Some season.....