Product Description

Denis Smith was football's real hardman in an era in which brutal defenders such as Ron 'Chopper' Harris, Norman Hunter and Tommy Smith introduced themselves to opposing centre-forwards with a friendly whack on the upper thigh. A man who knew no fear, Smith's fierce tackling once earned him the accolade in the Guinness Book of Records of the most injured man in football. Despite his reputation as a hatchet man, earned partly because of his tough upbringing on the unforgiving streets of Stoke-on-Trent, Smith was an integral part of the Stoke City team which won the first major trophy in the club's history in 1972. Coveted by Leeds, Manchester United and Brian Clough, alongside greats such as Gordon Banks, Alan Hudson, George Eastham and Jimmy Greenhoff, the unfashionable Potters established themselves amongst the elite in the English game.Then, as his career developed into management, Smith was responsible for the birth of the careers of the likes of Andy Cole, Garth Crooks, Steve Bould, Lee Chapman and Marco Gabbiadini. As manager, Smith helped York tot up the first ever hundred point total in Football League history, defeated Arsenal in the FA Cup and took on mighty Liverpool before moving on to Sunderland, a club who had fallen to the lowest position in their history. Dragging them up by their bootstraps, Smith led his rebuilt team back into the top flight within three years before being sacked in a season in which his side eventually reached the FA Cup final.A career managing clubs such as West Bromwich Albion, Oxford United, Bristol City and Wrexham has provided him with an incredible breadth of experience of how to deal with footballers with problems as diverse as egos, jealousy and a death amongst his playing squad and seen him become one of the few managers to preside over 1,000 matches in charge.Tough-talking, candid and in places brutally honest, Smith's autobiography reveals his tough upbringing amidst the gangs of Stoke-on-Trent, how he helped save Sir Alex Ferguson's job, the stories behind encounters with the likes of Ian Botham, Eddie Jordan, Clive Lloyd, Geoff Hurst, Frank Williams and how he nearly changed the course of former England coach Steve MacLaren's career. Denis Smith is a cult hero in the following places: Stoke-on-Trent, Sunderland, York, West Bromwich, Bristol, Oxford & Wrexham. This book includes over 100 photographs from Denis' own collection.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #121255 in Books
• Published on: 2008-10-31
• Original language: English
• Binding: Hardcover
• 272 pages

Review
[Denis Smith] takes his place with the game's definitive hardmen - fiery, unforgiving - a detailed, opinionated book- there is more than a welcome hint of humour, too. --- David Foot, Western Daily Press

Fascinating reading ... crammed full of stories charting a career in sport that has spanned decades. --Wrexham Evening Leader.

Customer Reviews

A thoroughly enjoyable read.
Denis Smith has such a wealth of experience as a player (I saw him play in the 1972 League Cup semi-final against West Ham) and as a manager (he managed by home team, York City to it's greatest achievement) all through the golden age of the early 70s up to today. His experience and philosophy on playing and management, how to find players, how to get the best out of them, comes across well in this book. I just finished reading it yesterday (November 19 which coincidently was Mr. Smith's 61st birthday). If you are a supporter of any of the teams Denis managed or played for, or if you are an aspiring manager and want to learn from someone with a very successful track record - or if you are a Chairman looking to hire a great manager! you'll enjoy reading this. (Note: Sam Smith is a pseudonym, also a fine beer, but not related to Denis Smith).

Cracking Read
For anyone with as much as a passing interest in football autobiographies I thoroughly recommend this one. An absolute cracking read from one of footballs nice men. As a devoted Bristol City supporter i really wish Dennis had been with us longer and he is always welcome at Ashton. An excellent read.

one over the eight
anyone who is a supporter of any of the clubs Smithy was associated with will enjoy his autobiography.His undoubted passion for the game and commitment to players and clubs comes through.But beware-The proofreader responsible for this tome had gone either awol or had had one over the eight and the end result is littered with grammatical,punctuation and spelling mistakes.You will need a bit of patience to grasp the gist from time to time but is worth the effort.Top marks for the author nul points for the publisher who should know better.