For a memorable week in June 1964, the Beatles toured New Zealand,
giving concerts in the four main centres and changing life as we knew it
for ever. For teenagers of the time, it was the most exciting week of
their lives. Teachers were ignored and parents defied as thousands of
young people devised ingenious ways of seeing their idols.
For this
book Graham Hutchins has interviewed dozens of people who were directly
affected by the visit, from fans who attended the concerts and people
who accompanied the Beatles on tour, to contemporary musicians and John
Lennon’s Kiwi relations. The visit of the Fab Four is remembered through
the reminiscences of these eyewitnesses, and through a mass of
photographs and memorabilia that illustrate the text. The author also
assesses the long-term impact the Beatles made on New Zealand music and
on society at large. Full of memories and nostalgia, this is the ideal
souvenir of one of the most remarkable weeks in New Zealand’s history.

 Graham Hutchins fell in love with trains at an early age. As a youngster growing up in the railway town of Te Kuiti, he would gaze on the steaming monsters as they thundered through the King Country. Before long, train travel became more than a pastime, more than a fascination: he was hooked. As he recounts in this book, he was just ten years old when he undertook a journey alone on the night train to Auckland. From then on he travelled as much as he could, and later as a young man searched out the smaller forgotten lines to experience what they had to offer.

 

Stop the Train! I want to get on describes his experiences travelling throughout New Zealand on regular passenger trains, railcars, goods trains and work trains. The routes he traverses include the Central Otago line, the Gisborne Railcar, the Southerner to Invercargill, a mixed train through rural Taranaki, a workers’ train from Greymouth on the Rewanui Incline, the Endeavour to Hawke’s Bay, the Silver Fern Railcar and more. Many services have now been axed, but he vividly recalls their delights, from the scenery outside to the often primitive conditions inside and the people he encounters along the way. He also tells many engaging tales about the history of the lines and what makes each so distinctive. Sometimes alone, on other occasions with his wife Jenny or his mate Russell, he conveys the unique experience and sheer pleasure of rail travel in every corner of New Zealand, from the 1950s to the present day.

‘Some people take to the bottle, others go shopping. I jump on a train, if I can find one, and wait for the swish and sway to take me away. Away from the down times. For me the diversion comes as much from the rhythm as the passing landscapes from the train window.’

 

Graham Hutchins remembers the incredibly varied journeys he has taken by train throughout New Zealand. They have given him a lifetime of pleasure.

Night trains and The Northerner

The Midland Line: Christchurch to the West Coast

The Gisborne Railcar

The Central Otago Line: Alexandra to Dunedin

The Picton–Christchurch Railcar

The Silver Star: Auckland to Wellington

Greymouth to Rewanui and back

By mixed train on the Stratford to Okahukura Line

Hamilton to Mount Maunganui

The Silver Fern Railcar on the Main Trunk Line

The Endeavour: Wellington to Napier

The Southerner: Christchurch to Invercargill

The Northern Explorer

Country folk have their own way of doing things and their own sense of humour too. They are naturally wary of men in suits and university types, and such people have to be put to the test before they can be accepted. They are not too keen on new-fangled ways of doing things either; a meal of mountain oysters is one thing, but washed down with a glass of bull’s semen? What’s the world coming to? 'Once Upon A Cowpat' is a hugely enjoyable collection of rural yarns, with subjects ranging from the Hokitika Wildfoods Festival, country rugby and encounters with farm machinery, to uppity animals, time in the pub and Mystery Creek. The stories are peopled with a diverse collection of oddball farming types, tough hunter-gatherers, ten-acre blockers and wet-behind-the-ears farm workers. They frequently find themselves in some pretty hair-raising and sometimes downright hilarious predicaments. Tall tales or gospel truth? Well, Graham Hutchins has met some real characters in his time, but he is also a master story-teller, so you’ll have to make up your own mind on that one. One thing’s for sure though: this is a book that men and women of all ages will enjoy, whether in gumboots or fireside slippers.

LAST TRAIN TO PARADISE is a celebratory account of a time when train travel was more than just the accepted means of travelling around New Zealand. It was also an era when rail journeys provided excitement, companionship and romance. Royal trains, troop trains, rugby specials, tourist trains ... all come to life in Graham Hutchins' evocative descriptions of rail travel in the golden age. In the first half of the twentieth century, travelling by train was the easiest way to get around New Zealand. Lines existed between most provincial towns, and world-famous visitors like Mark Twain and Lord Kitchener frequented the network. The Rotorua Limited carried the well-to-do in some style to take the waters in Rotorua; the Central Otago Express ventured through the tussock hinterland as far as Cromwell; the Auckland-Opua Express took passengers keen to discover the delights of the Bay of Islands; while the Onehunga Boat Train used to be part of the main route between Auckland and Wellington. LAST TRAIN TO PARADISE describes the halcyon days of New Zealand rail, some of which the author was fortunate enough to experience personally. The "name" trains and journeys cover a considerable period of New Zealand's history, from the late 1800s to the golden era of train travel (the first five decades of the twentieth century). Among the special journeys covered are the Prince of Wales' royal progress through New Zealand in 1920, and travelling with fans on the "Test Match Special" to enjoy the rugby in 1956. Graham Hutchins vividly evokes a way of life that has all but disappeared, recalling a host of characters and incidents from an age less obsessed with the motorcar. The book includes a wide variety of fascinating and unfamiliar photographs, both of the trains themselves and the people who travelled in them.

 A full train plunges into a raging river at Tangiwai; the Wahine is tossed onto rocks at the entrance to Wellington Harbour; an Air New Zealand DC-10 plunges into Mt Erebus; an earthquake destroys Christchurch … disasters like these are known to all New Zealanders: they are part of our history. But New Zealand has experienced many less well-known disasters, some of them shocking and brutal.

 

Graham Hutchins and Russell Young describe some of the most extraordinary events in New Zealand history. Who knew that a fire killed 39 people at Seacliff Mental Hospital in 1942? That 10 people died in a lahar on White Island in 1914? That a yacht race between Lyttelton and Wellington in 1951 resulted in 10 fatalities? That a tornado ripped through 150 houses in Hamilton in 1948? A fire raging through Raetihi in 1918 was so fierce it destroyed houses, shops and 11 timber mills. Drownings were so common here in the 19th century that they were called ‘the New Zealand death’.

 

These and many other remarkable stories are told in this eye-opening book. While it describes accidents and tragedies, it also reveals acts of heroism. For when human beings make mistakes, others often achieve daring feats of rescue. Some of the stories show that we underestimate Mother Nature at our peril, but many also testify to the courage of the human spirit. Few books are genuine page-turners; this one is.

 

There are really two games, the one you see and the one you don't. The way I see it, the best way to use access to both worlds is to illuminate and reveal, not idolize and adore. It's better to be wrong than to be played for a fool. – Colin Cowherd
 
In this age of billion dollar athletic marketing campaigns, “feel good” philosophy with no connection to reality, and a Sports Media echo chamber that’s all too eager swallow whatever idiotic notion happens to be in vogue at the moment, it’s tough to find people who aren’t afraid to say what they’re really thinking.
 
But that’s where Colin Cowherd comes in. As his millions of fans on ESPN Radio and ESPNU already know, Colin is the rare sports analyst who’s brave (or crazy) enough to speak his mind—even if it pisses some people off. Of course, it helps that a lot of what Colin has to say is simply hilarious. Lots of writers can tell you about Boston’s storied sports history. But how many can tell you why the city of Boston is America’s five year old? Lots of writers will brag about the stuff they got right, but how many will happily list all the calls they got completely and utterly wrong? Whether he’s pointing out the stupidity of conspiracy theories, explaining why media bias isn’t nearly as big a deal as many assume, or calling out those who prize short term wins over sustainability, Colin is smart, thought-provoking, and laugh-out-loud funny. Some of the questions he’s not afraid to ask in You Herd Me! include:
 
Is Tiger Woods really a sex addict—or does he just have good PR?
Is “work-life balance” really the ideal we should all strive for—or is that just a way for people feel better about mediocrity?
Is talent really all it’s cracked up to be—or can too much talent actually be counterproductive?
Is the X games really a sport—or would we all be better off if we admitted it’s something else entirely?
Is Hell really a supernatural place of fire and brimstone—or is it actually just another word for living in Tampa?
 
Unapologetically entertaining and packed with behind-the-scenes insights you won’t get anywhere else, You Herd Me! is unlike any other sports book ever written.

From the muscle god who launched the YouTube channel Bro Science Life comes the only book that will teach you everything you need to know about getting swole.
 
For years, bros, meatheads, and gym rats around the world have posed pressing questions: What can you bench? Can I skip leg day? What goes in this protein shake? And importantly—do you even lift, bro? At long last, answers to these questions and more can be found in one handy volume—THE SWOLY BIBLE, written by the Internet’s favorite gym expert/literary genius, Dom Mazzetti.

In it, Mazzetti lays out the truth about how to make gains in the gym and in your life, including:
- How to Get Hyped for a Lift
- The True Meaning of Meal Prep
- How to Eat Chicken Without Wanting to Kill Yourself
- The Best Tips for Taking a Post-Workout Selfie
- How to Get Your Girlfriend to Start Lifting
- Why Crossfitters Are the Worst
- And much more

Written in Dom’s signature comedic voice, with illustrations throughout, The Swoly Bible is the perfect gift for anyone in your #fitfam.


From the Trade Paperback edition.

An irreverent, hilarious insider's look at big-time NCAA basketball, through the eyes of the nation's most famous benchwarmer and author of the popular blog ClubTrillion.com (3.6m visits!). Mark Titus holds the Ohio State record for career wins, and made it to the 2007 national championship game. You would think Titus would be all over the highlight reels. You'd be wrong.
 
In 2006, Mark Titus arrived on Ohio State's campus as a former high school basketball player who aspired to be an orthopedic surgeon. Somehow, he was added to the elite Buckeye basketball team, given a scholarship, and played alongside seven future NBA players on his way to setting the record for most individual career wins in Ohio State history. Think that's impressive? In four years, he scored a grand total of nine—yes, nine—points.

This book will give readers an uncensored and uproarious look inside an elite NCAA basketball program from Titus's unique perspective. In his four years at the end of the bench, Mark founded his wildly popular blog Club Trillion, became a hero to all guys picked last, and even got scouted by the Harlem Globetrotters. Mark Titus is not your average basketball star. This is a wild and completely true story of the most unlikely career in college basketball. A must-read for all fans of March Madness and college sports!

From the New York Times bestselling author, pro skater, satellite radio star and host of The Jason Ellis Show comes The Awesome Guide to Life, a hilarious follow-up full of no-holds-barred advice to help you get the most out of life.

Drawing from his own experiences, Ellis offers the wisdom he's accumulated to help you handle any situation. Laugh-out-loud funny, told in the irreverent voice that draws legions of fans to his radio show, The Awesome Guide to Life teaches you how to create your signature look, how to party, how get laid, how to maintain a relationship, how to pick up a hooker—and more.

But to maximize the opportunities that life has to offer you have to have confidence, Ellis argues—the confidence to define what you want, pursue your passion, and make your dreams a reality. In The Awesome Guide to Life Jason Ellis shows you how to develop the positive attitude you need to truly make things happen.

This is not just a book about running. It's a book about cupcakes. It's a book about suffering.

It's a book about gluttony, vanity, bliss, electrical storms, ranch dressing, and Godzilla. It's a book about all the terrible and wonderful reasons we wake up each day and propel our bodies through rain, shine, heaven, and hell.

From #1 New York Times best-selling author, Matthew Inman, AKA The Oatmeal, comes this hilarious, beautiful, poignant collection of comics and stories about running, eating, and one cartoonist's reasons for jogging across mountains until his toenails fall off.

Containing over 70 pages of never-before-seen material, including "A Lazy Cartoonist's Guide to Becoming a Runner" and "The Blerch's Guide to Dieting," this book also comes with Blerch race stickers.

The bestselling autobiography of the greatest rugby player of our time: Brian O'Driscoll.

Since 1999, when he made his international debut, there has been no greater player in world rugby than Brian O'Driscoll. In 2010 Rugby World magazine named him its world player of the decade - and since then the legend has only grown.

Now, at the end of his amazing career - which culminated in fairy-tale fashion with Ireland's victory in the 2014 Six Nations championship - he tells his own story. Honest, gritty and thoughtful, Brian O'Driscoll's Autobiography is not just an essential sports book. It is an essential book about family, friends, hard work, courage and imagination.

'Honest, charming and revealing - a thoroughly good read' Rugby World

'A thoroughly enjoyable read ... After reading The Test I warmed even more to O'Driscoll as a player and a man. He stood for a new ethos in Irish sport that refused to accept mediocrity or glorious failure' Fergal Keane, Irish Times

'O'Driscoll's honesty ... takes the reader to a place they simply have not been before' Vincent Hogan, Irish Independent

'A must-read insight into the life and mind of Ireland's greatest rugby player' Irish Mail on Sunday

'There are fascinating insights into the lengths he was willing to go to perform at the highest level' Sunday Business Post

WrestleCrap: The Very Worst of Professional Wrestling examines some of the ridiculously horrible characters and storylines that pro wrestling promoters have subjected their fans to over the past twenty years. Why would any sane person think that having two grown men fight over a turkey was actually a reasonable idea? Was George Ringo, the Wrestling Beatle, really the best gimmick that a major promotional organization could come up with? And who would charge fans to watch a wrestler named the Gobbeldy Gooker emerge from an egg?

In an attempt to answer such questions and figure out just what the promoters were thinking, authors Randy Baer and R.D. Reynolds go beyond what wrestling fans saw on the screen and delve into the mindset of those in the production booth. In some instances, the motivations driving the spectacle prove even more laughable than what was actually seen in the ring.

Covering such entertainment catastrophes as an evil one-eyed midget and a wrestler from the mystical land of Oz, not to mention the utterly comprehensible Turkey-on-a-Pole match (a gimmick which AWA fans might recall), WrestleCrap is hysterically merciless in its evaluation of such organizations as the WCW and the WWF. This retrospective look at the wrestling world’s misguided attempts to attract viewers will leave wrestling fans and critics alike in stitches.

Hi. In your hands, right now, you hold the culmination of thousands of years of human intelligence, ingenuity, and brilliance. Now put your goddamn phone down and pay attention to my book.

What is in my book, you ask? (I'm really glad you asked, by the way, because now I get to tell you.)

Time travel. Gay marriage. Sportsballing. Futuristic goggles that DO NOTHING.

Tiny brags from my publisher, stuff like: "This is an uproarious, uncensored take on empathy, personal responsibility, and what it means to be human."

Excessive brags about myself: "An extraordinarily clever, punishingly funny, sharp-tongued blogosphere star, NFL player, husband and father, one-time violin prodigy, voracious lifetime reader, obsessive gamer, and fearless champion of personal freedom."

Oh, and also an essay on the Pope's Twitter account. Honestly, if that doesn't draw you in, there's no hope left for humanity. I also give my own funeral eulogy, in case you were hoping I'd go away and die now!

So please, join me in the glorious art of windmill tilting by reading this "collection of rousing, uncensored personal essays, letters, and stories" (I have no idea why that's in quotes).

Join the herd of Beautifully Unique Sparkleponies.

(You know you want to.)

Ultimate Fighter champ Forrest Griffin and Erich Krauss, who previously brought you the New York Times bestseller Got Fight, now offer a hilarious and very timely guide to surviving the coming apocalypse. Be Ready When the Sh*t Goes Down provides everything an aspiring Mad Max needs to know about post-apocalyptic living. Since it’s coming soon anyway, we might as well all Be Ready When the Sh*t Goes Down.

Beginning in a jail cell and ending in a rugby tournament- the true story of how the most inspiring charm offensive in history brought South Africa together

After being released from prison and winning South Africa's first free election, Nelson Mandela presided over a country still deeply divided by fifty years of apartheid. His plan was ambitious if not far-fetched: use the national rugby team, the Springboks-long an embodiment of white-supremacist rule-to embody and engage a new South Africa as they prepared to host the 1995 World Cup. The string of wins that followed not only defied the odds, but capped Mandela's miraculous effort to bring South Africans together again in a hard-won, enduring bond.

Whether he is accidentally cooking his brain with hand warmers or yanking his lure away from a trophy fish just before it takes the bait, Bill Heavey can do no right. For almost a decade, he has chronicled his incompetence on the back page of Field & Stream, where his hilarious dispatches about life as a hapless outdoorsman who lives in suburbia have earned him legions of fans. But Heavey is more than a humorist. The stories in this book range from amusing tales of a modern dad struggling to navigate the finer points of parenting and married life to longer and more serious narratives that involve travel, adventure, and tragedy. No matter what he’s writing about, Heavey is a master of blending humor and pathos—and wide-ranging outdoor enthusiasms—into a poignant and potent stew.

DIV

Richie McCaw, Rugby World Cup winning captain and the New Zealand All Black's most capped player of all time, is unquestionably the greatest player of his generation. He is arguably the most talented player of all time.

In his bestselling autobiography, McCaw talks with brutal honesty about the roots of his family life that defined his character and how it gave him the strength to emerge from the lowest moment in his career to lift the Webb Ellis Cup, and become the most successful captain world rugby has ever seen.

As he prepares to become the first captain to successfully defend the World Cup, McCaw has set the standard of what a professional rugby player should be. Hugely popular and respected, his sheer presence means that he is a natural leader both on and off the pitch and his story is not just a brutal account of life on the front line, but an exhilarating portrait of modern rugby.

/div

A Simon & Schuster eBook. Simon & Schuster has a great book for every reader.

The funniest and most popular sportswriter in America abandons his desk to caddy for some of the world’s most famous golfers—and some celebrity duffers—with hilarious results in this New York Times bestseller.
 
Who knows a golfer best? Who’s with them every minute of every round, hears their muttering, knows whether they cheat? Their caddies, of course. So sportswriter Rick Reilly figured that he could learn a lot about the players and their game by caddying, even though he had absolutely no idea how to do it. Amazingly, some of the best golfers in the world—including Jack Nicklaus, David Duval, Tom Lehman, John Daly, Jill McGill of the LPGA tour, and Casey Martin—agreed to let Reilly carry their bags at actual PGA and LPGA Tour events. To round out his portrait of the golfing life, Reilly also persuaded Deepak Chopra and Donald Trump to take him on as a caddy, accompanied the four highest-rolling golf hustlers in Las Vegas around the course, and carried the bag for a blind golfer.

Between his hilarious descriptions of his own ineptitude as a caddy and his insight into what makes the greats of golf so great, Reilly’s wicked wit and an expert’s eye provide readers with the next best thing to a great round of golf.


From the Trade Paperback edition.

TAKE THEM OUT OF THE BALL GAME–PLEASE!

From star running back Bryon “Bam” Morris’s interesting (and totally illegal) sideline career to the 1950s Kansas City A’s sneaky relationship with the New York Yankees; from French golfer Jean Van de Velde’s epic choke on 18 at the 1999 British Open to the infamous Cleveland Ten-Cent Beer Night riot of 1974; from Hungary’s bloody 1956 Olympic water polo match with the Soviet Union to the definitive analysis of basketball coach Larry Brown’s sartorial evolution and hoops maven Mike Fratello’s hair devolution–if it’s bad and sports related, then it’s likely in The Worst of Sports.

An uproarious collection of the most controversial and regrettable moments in major pro and college athletics, with a sprinkling of the obscure, The Worst of Sports is a compendium of abject failure, harebrained decision-making, avarice, and rank stupidity–in other words, the stuff that some athletes, and fans, are best at.

Whether you’re a casual fan or a face-painting zealot, you’ll find plenty to root for (or against) in The Worst of Sports.

“Original and funny, this book will entertain the pessimist that lurks in all of us who don’t root for the Yankees.”
–Mike Greenberg, author of Why My Wife Thinks I’m an Idiot


From the Trade Paperback edition.

Club throwing is an art! It relieves stress, burns calories and it keeps the other players on the course on their toes. So there's no need to lie, no need to be embarrassed. You're a club thrower--welcome to the club.

Here's your official guide to the art of club throwing, and it includes:

--Throwing clubs for distance and accuracy
--Club throwing Q&A
--The 20 basic throws
--What to do when you're REALLY teed off

Dan Baum is a gun fanatic. He is also Jewish Democrat who grew up in suburban New Jersey. In Gun Guys, he takes us on a guided tour of gun stores and gun shows, shooting ranges and festivals, contests and auctions, trying to figure out what draws so many of us to guns in the first place. Is it just part of being American?  Introducing a wide cast of characters, Baum shows both sides of the gun culture in America, bringing an entire world vividly to life, and in doing so helping to find a middle ground in the gun debate, where actual conversation can take place.

The Baseball is a salute to the ball, filled with insider trivia, anecdotes, and generations of ball-induced insanity. 
 
Which Hall of Famer once caught a ball dropped from an airplane?
Why do balls get stamped with invisible ink?        
What’s the best ticket to buy for catching a foul ball?
Which part of the ball once came from dog food companies?
How could a 10,000-year-old glacier help a pitcher grip the ball?
 
In this enlightening, entertaining, and often wildly funny book, Zack Hample shares ballpark legends and lore, explores the history of the baseball souvenir craze, and also details the evolution of the ball, Finally, Hample—who has snagged more than 4,600 balls from 48 different major league stadiums—offers up his secret methods for snagging your own ball from major league games.
 
Features a ballhawk glossary, profiles of legendary ballhawks, top 10 lists, and black-and-white photos throughout.


From the Trade Paperback edition.

Congratulations, you just got drafted into the NFL. Now what?
Here’s what’s ahead of you: rigorous training, complicated playbooks, financial conundrums, intense pressure to perform—and temptation. Welcome to the big leagues.

Informative, smart, funny, and beautifully illustrated, The Rookie Handbook has everything NFL rookies need to know to survive their first season of pro football, straight from veterans Ryan Kalil, Jordan Gross, and Geoff Hangartner. The three authors have a combined thirty years of NFL experience, but they too were rookies themselves, once upon a time.
 
Much like rookies, NFL fans only know what they see on TV or read—obsessively following Rich Eisen and scouring obscure blogs for fantasy football info. But when it comes to what goes on in the inner sanctum, behind the locker room doors, it’s a mystery. The Rookie Handbook is the insider’s guide to that exclusive club, pulling back the curtain to reveal how players act and think—and what they do when no one is watching.

Legendary player and teacher Jackie Burke is the preeminent elder statesman of American golf. A PGA Champion, a Masters Champion, a Vardon Trophy winner, and a PGA Player of the Year, he won four consecutive tournaments in 1952; and is a winner of seventeen events on the PGA Tour, a five-time Ryder Cup member (twice as captain), and a member of the PGA, Texas Golf, and World Golf Halls of Fame. Before leaving the PGA Tour he cofounded (with Jimmy Demaret) the world-famous Champions Golf Club (host of the Ryder Cup, U.S. Amateur, and five PGA Tour Championships) and has instructed students including Phil Mickelson, Hal Sutton, Steve Elkington, Ben Crenshaw, and many other PGA Tour pros in a career that has spanned seven decades.

Reverberating with the straight-talking Texas wisdom that could only come from Jackie Burke, It’s Only a Game will bring the words of this venerable sage to everyone who loves the links. Spiced with anecdotes from a long and illustrious career, this stirring book features pithy insights on the nature of competition and the erosion of amateur play. Burke goes on the record about profit-minded equipment manufacturers and self-promoting golf gurus. His provocative topics include insight into why the 2004 U.S. Ryder Cup team suffered its worst defeat ever (Burke was a cocaptain), the alarmingly high cost of playing public and resort courses, country clubs that stress cosmetic appearances over the playing of the game, and a host of other topics. He also provides no-nonsense, time-tested secrets for improving anyone’s golf game, based not on shallow “tips” but on a well-rounded, sensible approach to the game that he began developing before the Great Depression.

At the age of 8, Chad Gibbs attended his first Southeastern Conference football game. Since then he has been in a constant battle to not let his love of all things pigskin consume him. As a Christian, Gibbs knows he cannot serve two masters, but at times his faith is overwhelmed by his fanaticism. He is not alone.In 2008 over six million people attended an SEC football game. They spend thousands on season tickets, donate millions to athletic departments, and for three months a year order their entire lives around the schedule of their favorite team. Gibbs and his six million friends do not live in a spiritually void land where such borderline idol worship would normally be accepted. They live in the American South, where according to the 2008 American Religious Identification Survey, 84 percent identify themselves as Christians. This apparent contradiction that Gibbs sees in his own life, and in millions of others, has led him to journey to each of the twelve schools to spend time with rabid, Christian fans of various ages and denominations. Through his journey he hopes to learn how others are able to balance their passion for their team with their devotion to God. And if Gibbs learns others are just as messed up as he is, at least he will know he is not alone.

Sevens should never be viewed as an abbreviated form of rugby. Rather, it is rugby magnified, and a closer inspection of the overall skills of rugby.

This exciting and essential new edition of Coaching Rugby Sevens offers clear direction on how to coach and play the game of rugby sevens. Emphasising the three key principles of space, alignment and movement, all game situations are covered in detail, focusing on both attack and defence. Each chapter looks at a different facet of the game, and is clearly illustrated with drills, plays and set pieces, linking theory with practice.

Rugby sevens continues to grow globally through the World Sevens Series and will appear at the Rio 2016 Olympics. This timely new edition covers developments in the laws of the game and changes in play due to tactical advancements. It also covers how the principles and ideas of sevens can transfer to 15-a-side rugby, providing valuable new thinking on how the two games interact.

Rick Reilly has been called “one of the funni­est humans on the planet—an indescribable amalgam of Dave Barry, Jim Murray, and Lewis Grizzard, with the timing of Jay Leno and the wit of Johnny Carson” (Publishers Weekly). In Tiger, Meet My Sister, Reilly com­piles the best of his columns from his last five years with ESPN, columns that will make you laugh, cry—and quite a few that may make you want to throw this book across the room. Rick Reilly tends to get under people’s skin like that.

He has no compunction telling readers, in his singular quick-witted style, how he really feels about some of the most popular sports figures of our time. Wondering about quarterback Jay Cutler? “Cutler is the kind of guy you just want to pick up and throw into a swimming pool, which is exactly what Peyton Manning and two linemen did one year at the Pro Bowl.” Or how about Tiger Woods? “Sometimes you wonder where Tiger Woods gets his public-relations advice. Gary Busey?” But for every brazen takedown, Reilly has written a heartwarming story of the power of sports to heal the wounded and lift the downtrodden: the young Ravens fan with cancer who called the plays for a few—victorious—games in 2012, or the onetime top NFL recruit who was finally exonerated after serving five years for a crime he didn’t commit.

With a new introduction and updates from Reilly on his most talked-about col­umns, as well as his expert opinion on athlete tattoos, NFL cheerleaders, and running with the bulls in Pamplona, Tiger, Meet My Sister showcases an unparalleled sportswriter at the top of his game.

Each chapter covers a different event that may or may not have already made major news headlines around the world. Bella, gives you her version of things she witnessed or truths she was told while being directly involved in the life of this Quarterback.

In the book you will discover how Bella was able to become close enough to this controversial superstar, to be given the opportunity to learn his many secrets. You will also come to find out how it was for Bella to have to bear such a burden of becoming a loyal keeper. Bella starts out as just another lover to a popular sports figure, but eventually ends up as so much more.

Discover how an unlikely encounter that should have resulted as just a one night stand, somehow turned out to blossom into a comradery that was meant to last a lifetime. Read along and bear witness to the love, joys, fears, rituals, betrayals, devastation and so much more.

Each chapter contains an intriguing truth that separates it from the others. What you may have thought you already knew, may very well shock you to learn it was otherwise. Read as Bella takes you back in time with her to sporting events, prison calls, tearful admissions, dogfighting conversations, painful allegations, intense romance, and more.

Find out how it all began, ended, and most importantly, how it was able to remain a secret for so long. Take a look inside and discover what really made Bella Escritor the “Quarterback Keeper”.

Beginning in a jail cell and ending in a rugby tournament—the true story of how the most inspiring charm offensive in history brought South Africa together.

After being released from prison and winning South Africa’s first free election, Nelson Mandela presided over a country still deeply divided by fifty years of apartheid. His plan was ambitious if not far-fetched: use the national rugby team, the Springboks—long an embodiment of white-supremacist rule—to embody and engage a new South Africa as they prepared to host the 1995 World Cup. The string of wins that followed not only defied the odds, but capped Mandela’s miraculous effort to bring South Africans together again in a hard-won, enduring bond.

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Phil Gaimon’s Ask a Pro answers every question you’ve always wanted to ask about pro cycling...sort of. Gaimon gathers the best of his popular Q&A column—and pokes fun at his younger self.

Despite the howling protests from his peers, no one’s ever been more willing to spill the beans on what it’s really like inside the pro cycling peloton than the sarcastic scribe Phil Gaimon. Building on the outrageous success of his hilarious 2014 debut, Pro Cycling on $10 a Day: From Fat Kid to Euro Pro, Gaimon gathers the absolute gems from his monthly Q&A feature column in VeloNews magazine into his new book, Ask a Pro: Deep Thoughts and Unreliable Advice from America’s Foremost Cycling Sage, adding a dose of fresh commentary and even more acerbic and sharp-eyed insights.

With six years of material to work with—including his incredible rise into the pro ranks, the devastating loss of his contract for 2015, and his bold return to the Big League—Gaimon covers every possible topic from the team dinner table to the toilet with plenty of stops along the way. Gaimon offers wise-ass (and sometimes earnest) answers to fan questions like:

· How much chamois cream should I use?

· I’ve started shaving my legs. How can I be accepted by my friends?

· What do you do to protect yourself when you know you’re about to crash?

· How many bikes does my husband really need?

· What’s the best victory celebration? Do you practice yours?

· In women’s cycling, what is the proper definition of a pro?

· What do you say to someone if they honk or almost hit you?

· Do you name your bikes?

· What do pros think when they see a recreational cyclist in a full pro kit or riding a pro-level bike?

· Can you take your bike apart and put it back together?

· How bad does the weather have to be to call off a training ride?

· How do you know when it’s time to change a tire?

· When you’re in a breakaway all day, do riders form a future friendship?

· Riders keep complaining about "unsafe" weather at races. When did pro cyclists turn into such wussies?

· How do the pros define a "crash"?

Gaimon wields his outsider’s wit to cast a cock-eyed gaze at the peculiar manners, mores, and traditions that make the medieval sport of cycling so irresistible to watch. Ask a Pro includes new resources from Gaimon, too, including his Cookie Map of America, dubious advice on winning the race buffet, a cautionary guide for host housing, Phil’s pre-race warm-up routine, and a celebrity baker’s recipe for The Phil Cookie.

From an award-winning humorist, a touching memoir and manifesto that reveals the deep secrets of fan jinxes, hexes, and charms

Did you know there is a secret to winning ballgames? It’s not the players, managers, money, or luck. It’s juju, and no one knows it better than Hart Seely. Seely has spent a lifetime practicing the art of juju from his living room. And winning ballgames for the New York Yankees. He paces floors. He yells at defenseless TVs. He rallies the team like Churchill addressing the collective British soul. But what he is really doing is harnessing juju energy to influence the outcome of games. And it works.

In this uproarious, unforgettable fan confessional, Seely shares the basics of juju for the beginner—“Setting the Table,” asking for a called strike instead of a walk-off homer—to advanced juju—“Bringing the Neg,” predicting bad events to keep them from actually happening—to the deepest, darkest formulas of this age-old art. Along the way readers come to know Hart and his hilarious band of fellow juju practitioners, a secret club of friends whose fandom bonds them across decades, not to mention won/loss columns.

Nostalgic, heartwarming, and laugh-out-loud funny, The Juju Rules is a memoir of a life well-lived in service to one’s team that shows how love can be a powerful passion in the best way.

**WINNER British Sports Book Awards SPORTS BOOK OF THE YEAR**

**Shortlisted for the William Hill Sports Book of the Year Award**

Gareth Thomas had it all. He was a national hero, a sporting icon. He was a leader of men, captain of Wales and the British Lions. To him, rugby was an expression of cultural identity, a sacred code. It was no mere ball game. It gave him everything, except the freedom to be himself.

This is the story of a man with a secret that was slowly killing him. Something that might devastate not only his own life but the lives of his wife, family, friends and teammates. The only place where he could find any refuge from the pain and guilt of the lie he was living was on the pitch, playing the sport he loved. But all his success didn’t make the strain of hiding who he really was go away. His fear that telling the truth about his sexuality would lose him everything he loved almost sent him over the edge.

The deceit ended when Gareth became the world’s most prominent athlete to come out as a gay man. His gesture has strengthened strangers, and given him a fresh perspective. Gareth’s inspiring and moving story transcends the world of sport to tell a universal truth about feeling like an outsider, and facing up to who you really are.

Legends in Black, a truly special book and the result of unprecedented access to some of the biggest names in New Zealand rugby, reveals the experiences, secrets and reflections of All Black greats on why we win. Through incisive, frank and no-holds-barred interviews, they share thoughts on every aspect of what it means to be an All Black: first being selected, the haka, the evolution of international and provincial rugby, professionalism, team pecking orders, the importance of socialising and camaraderie, technical advances in the game, drugs and alcohol, coaching and leadership.

Rugby Revealed is the definitive guide to rugby in terms of the roles and responsibilities of each individual position and how they combine to create a tactically astute rugby team.

This engaging guide to rugby union will help coaches and players understand the modern game, giving practical advice to achieve maximum results with optimum technique. With its mix of contributions from leading names, practical coaching advice and player statistics, Rugby Revealed includes:

· the roles and responsibilities of each position in 15-a-side rugby
· correct technique for core skills
· the mechanics of the set piece
· the elements for a successful attack and defence

Professional players such as Jamie Roberts, Aaron Smith, Johnny Sexton, George Ford, Cian Healy, Manu Tuilagi, Keven Mealamu and Marcos Ayerza, and leading coaches, including Stuart Lancaster, Mike Cron, Dr Dave Alred, Mike Ford, Brendan Venter and Sir John Kirwan, are some of the 101 top names who share their insights into the game.

This highly accessible guide will help new, emerging and developing players and coaches reach their rugby potential.

The revelatory autobiography of a rugby colossus: Paul O'Connell. WINNER OF THE CROSS SPORTS BOOK AWARDS RUGBY BOOK OF THE YEAR

There has never been a rugby player quite like Paul O'Connell. He is synonymous with passion, heart and determination; but he is also the thinking man's rugby player, a legendary student of the game.

As the heartbeat of Munster, British and Irish Lions captain in 2009, and captain of the first Ireland team to defend a Six Nations championship, O'Connell has emerged as perhaps the most beloved of the golden generation of Irish rugby players. In an autobiography as intense as its author, he tells the story of his remarkable career.

'The years of O'Connell and O'Driscoll were as close to a golden age as ever Ireland will get and O'Connell's book tells you how it all happened ... It should be mandatory for every Irish squad member to read O'Connell's book to better understand what it takes to make a team' David Walsh, Sunday Times

'O'Connell has emptied the tank here. ... What has come out ... is a psychological profile that is almost shocking at times in what it reveals about the bloody single-mindedness of the competitive gene' Hilary A. White, Irish Independent

'The intense physicality of his rugby upbringing is an abiding theme ... along with humour, the craic and an extensive knowledge of how teams work' Paul Hayward, Daily Telegraph

'I found The Battle entrancing' Stephen Jones, Sunday Times

'Excellent ... [an] eye-opening account of the never-ending battles he fought' Rugby World

'Revelatory ... Unflinchingly charts his personal evolution ... He is not at all easy on himself' Keith Duggan, Irish Times

God Loves Golfers Best is the ultimate collection of golf jokes, quotes, and cartoons sure to tickle the funny bone of any avid duffer. A perfect gift or self-purchase for the golf fan in your life!

Examples from God Loves Golfers Best:

Golf is a lot like taxes. You drive hard to get to the green, and end up in the hole.

What should you do if lightning strikes during your round? Walk around holding a 1-iron, because even God can't hit a 1-iron!

A man is getting married and is standing by his bride at the church.
Standing beside him are his golf clubs and bag.
His bride whispers, "What are your golf clubs doing here?"
The groom replies, "This isn't going to take all day, is it?"

In primitive society, when native tribes beat the ground with clubs and yelled, it was called witchcraft; today, in civilized society, it is called golf.

Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About Rugby But Were too Afraid to Ask explains the often-baffling laws of modern sport in a light-hearted and easy-to-understand way to the new fan/spectator or the 'sport widow'.




This is a witty, off-the-wall guide to the rules of the modern game, as if written by a very patient but understanding friend. Writer Iain Macintosh explains how rugby works and why is it so popular, and reveals the history of the sport. He guides the novice through the basic rules of the game in a bouncy, easy-to-fathom style, but also explains the fast-changing pace of the modern game that has made it even more compelling.

If you've ever been terrified by phrases like 'ruck and maul', or never quite understood the legalised 'bundle' that is a scrum, this book will remove the mystery and explain all you ever needed to know about rugby, but were too afraid to ask.

Celebrate one of the greatest and most beloved baseball players who ever lived—and certainly the most quoted. The Yogi Book is the New York Times bestseller filled with Yogi Berra’s immortal sayings, plus photographs, a career timeline, and appreciations by some of his greatest fans, including Billy Crystal and Tim McCarver.

Yogi Berra's gift for saying the smartest things in the funniest, most memorable ways has made him a legend. The Yogi Book brings all of his famous quotes together in one place—and even better, gives the story behind them. "It ain't over till it's over."—that’s Yogi's answer to a reporter when he was managing the Mets in July 1973, and they were nine games out of first place (not only quotable, but prophetic—they won the pennant). "Nobody goes there anymore. It's too crowded."—Yogi's comment to Stan Musial and Joe Garagiola about Ruggeri's restaurant in St. Louis in 1959. "It gets late early out there."—Yogi describing how shadows crept across Yankee Stadium's left field during late autumn afternoons.
 

Total Rugby and Think Rugby are rugby classics - two of the most important and influential books ever written on the game of rugby. Thousands of players and coaches around the globe have benefited from the concepts and methods in these books, equipping them with the coaching skills and strategy to play the very best in fifteen-a-side rugby.

Total rugby is the antithesis of play-safe rugby - an open, ebullient game in which every player is encouraged to show what he can do as an attacker, defender and supporting player. Total Rugby has become one of the game's most seminal coaching manuals - it highlights inspirational rugby coach Jim Greenwood's radical examination of every facet of the game and his ability to clearly convey the wealth of knowledge he accumulated over many years in the sport.

This is football comic-ery, but not as you know it. Welcome to the inimitable work of illustrator David Squires.

Football and comics. Once a hearty Saturday combination to match cartoons and cereal, in recent years they’ve drifted apart. Thankfully for us, Squires is here to change all that.

In The Illustrated History of Football, his first book, Squires relives some of football’s most glorious moments and meets its greatest figures. In a sport full of handsome paycheques and corporate sponsors, he also casts a critical eye over corrupt backroom workings and helps pierce football’s overblown balloon.

Funny, good-looking and preternaturally astute, this book is everything Sepp Blatter wishes he could be.

* 130 black-and-white illustrations
* A reference to more than 660 terms from climbers and mountaineers
* Perfect stocking stuffer!

In this hilarious yet authoritative illustrated lexicon of climbing terms and slang, former Climbing Editor-in-Chief Matt Samet has compiled a reference of more than 650 terms used by climbers and mountaineers around the world.

The Climbing Dictionary runs the gamut from technical terms (belay, harness, rappel, Stopper) to slang (dab, choking the cobra, gaston, old dad, pimpy), to regional (such as the South's "baby-butt" slopers), antiquated ("press-up"), and foreign terms that have achieved universal usage (au cheval, colonnette) and much more.

Each word's definition includes its part of speech, origin (if known), its meaning, and a humorous but factually sound example sentence to demonstrate usage. Throughout the dictionary, Mike Tea's illustrations -- both technical and humorous -- help explain harder-to-define terms such as piton, sling, cam, hand jam, or drop-knee.

Sure to become the reference -- or even the sicktionary -- for novice climbers and expert mountaineers alike.

Are you obsessed with "climbing-ese"? Know a term, back-story, or phrase that didn't make the book? Connect with Matt on climbingterms.com and check out newly submitted terms, submit your very own, and stay up to date on all things the Climbing Dictionary. While you're at it, be sure and"like" the Climbing Dictionary on Facebook, and follow Matt on Twitter.

Since making his national debut in 1998, Stephen Jones has emerged from the shadows of the true greats of Welsh rugby, such as Barry John, Phil Bennett, Jonathan Davies and Neil Jenkins, to make the fly-half position his own. In this revealing autobiography, he provides a rare insight into the demands and pressures of wearing the almost mythical number 10 jersey that has such a pre-eminent status in the Welsh psyche.

As well as playing an integral role in Wales's two Grand Slam victories, Jones has appeared in three Rugby World Cups and was part of the 2005 British and Irish Lions squad. He has witnessed at first hand how the Welsh rugby establishment has struggled with the transition to professionalism, and in this candid memoir he recounts the many highs he has experienced, as well as the challenges he has faced, throughout his career so far.

Jones gives an intriguing account of how he became one of the few Welsh players to play in France, recalling the brutality of the game there and how he became a cult figure amongst fans of Clermont Auvergne, where he was twice voted fly-half of the season.

In Stephen Jones - A Thinking Man's Game: My Story, the Welsh rugby star reveals how his steely resolve, utter determination and sheer passion for rugby have allowed him to bounce back from numerous setbacks to become one of the most popular and respected figures in the game today.

ALL NEW 3rd EDITION!

Some still  say ultimate is the most misunderstood flying disc field running team sport on the planet. Most people think it’s Frisbee football played barefoot and without boundaries. Those people are wrong. Ultimate is a sport played by 4.7 million people a year in North America—more than korfball, lawn darts, lacrosse, curling and FootGolf combined. Ultimate is so popular that it even has rules that are sometimes followed. This book will provide you with complete and total knowledge of the ultimate game. And since this is the revised 2015 Third Edition you can now read all about Brodie Smith, the AUDL, MLU, the TCT, more Brodie Smith and the Olympics and be amazed.

THIS BOOK INCLUDES: 
• The Eight Ultimate Player Types 
• Brand-New 50 Most Common Nicknames 
• 28 Near-Useless Throws on the Field
• Brodie Smith’s Date of Birth
• How to Tweet Your Ultimate Team 
• Where to Play Ultimate Without Being Mocked 
• How to Score at an Ultimate Party
• Whether or Not You Should Go Pro
• Useful Playing Tips from Experts of the Game 

LOOK INSIDE FOR ANSWERS TO: 
Can I play ultimate with a mohawk? 
Where do ultimate teams come from? 
How can I become a champion and still be Canadian? 
What is “throwing Fire”? 
How can I survive a tornado attack? 

 

The 3rd edition is available ONLY as an e-book, not on paper.

Who needs an excuse to play golf? But just in case, this book will get you out on the course where you belong!

From the myth of William Webb Ellis to the glory of the 2003 World Cup win, this book explores the social history of rugby union in England.

Ever since Tom Brown’s Schooldays the sport has seen itself as the guardian of traditional English middle-class values. In this fascinating new history, leading rugby historian Tony Collins demonstrates how these values have shaped the English game, from the public schools to mass spectator sport, from strict amateurism to global professionalism.

Based on unprecedented access to the official archives of the Rugby Football Union, and drawing on an impressive array of sources from club minutes to personal memoirs and contemporary literature, the book explores in vivid detail the key events, personalities and players that have made English rugby.

From an era of rapid growth at the end of the nineteenth century, through the terrible losses suffered during the First World War and the subsequent ‘rush to rugby’ in the public and grammar schools, and into the periods of disorientation and commercialisation in the 1960s through to the present day, the story of English rugby union is also the story of the making of modern England.

Like all the very best writers on sport, Tony Collins uses sport as a prism through which to better understand both culture and society. A ground-breaking work of both social history and sport history, A Social History of English Rugby Union tells a fascinating story of sporting endeavour, masculine identity, imperial ideology, social consciousness and the nature of Englishness.

Meet Mike Greenberg, the popular host of ESPN Radio’s Mike and Mike in the Morning, the highest-rated drive-time sports talk show on the dial. To his three-million-plus listeners, Greeny is the guy who’s equally as comfortable dissecting zone defenses as he is discussing cashmere sweaters. He’s been to Super Bowls and World Series, All-Star Games and Final Fours. He’s interviewed Michael Jordan, Joe Montana, and Wayne Gretzky. He gets paid to enthuse about sports, which means he’s the envy of most men in America.
This is the hilarious, sometimes touching, and endlessly entertaining debut of one of America’s fastest-rising sportscasters, a wry and revealing look at one man’s good-hearted but mistake-prone attempt to grow up before his children do. Marriage, fatherhood, manhood, fame, athletes, crazed aunts with gambling problems, the true significance of sports, the worst possible thing to say in a room full of pregnant women–no topic is beyond his reach. But don’t take our word on it, read what Greeny has to say about:
• Dating: “People who reminisce fondly about dating are blocking out all the disasters and focusing only on the few great nights. If that is all you choose to remember, fine. But be aware that no experience is without good moments. I’m sure during the sacking of Rome there were a few decent nights; maybe they put on a play.”
• Life on the road:
“Wife + television = no sleep.”
“No wife + no television = no sleep.”
“Wife + no television = sleep.”
“No wife + television = porn.”
• Keeping things in perspective: “Never assume you know more than the guy in the camouflage tux.”
• And, of course, marriage: “All of us are married to women who think we’re idiots.”
Whether he’s talking trash on the radio or talking dirty diapers over a fancy dinner, Greeny’s determined to reconcile two halves of a whole. So if your enthusiasm has ever been curbed, or you’re feeling remote without the remote, or you’re just wondering what exactly goes on in a guy’s brain, Why My Wife Thinks I’m an Idiot will be a source of comfort and unadulterated laughter.


From the Hardcover edition.

‘Top 10 of Everything Rugby’ is a journey through the history of international rugby, ranking the best and worst of the game in lists that cover everything from best captains, great rivalries and acts of heroism to wasted talents, scary psychos and darkest scandals. There have been iconic players, gentleman thugs, giant chokes, huge upsets, memorable comebacks and acts of violence that make even the toughest enforcers shiver. Gregor Paul offers his choices on all of these – but of course he doesn’t expect you to agree!The book also includes Gregor’s Top Ten picks on:• The best of the Rugby World Cup• The best of the eight top-ranked rugby-playing nations• The best players in every field positionThis is a book both the committed and casual rugby follower will find impossible to put down. With every possible relevant and irrelevant facet of the game covered, ‘Top 10 of Everything Rugby’ is the ultimate judge on the acts, people and performances that have defined the sport.

Acclaimed world champions in 2003, the England rugby union team came home from the World Cup in New Zealand eight years later to the sound of silence. Their rugby was uninspiring and their reputation in tatters. Stuart Lancaster - former burger-flipper, PE teacher and the novice Saxons coach - was tasked with turning a failing team around.

The transformation was astounding. Now Lancaster's side has the work ethic, humility and resolve to compare with that World Cup-winning team. Much of this is down to their coach, but with so little international experience, how did he bring about this renewal?

Part biography, part examination of leadership, The House of Lancaster pulls apart the England rugby machine and looks at how it has been put together. Filled with exclusive interviews from the leading protagonists, players and coaches, as well as containing unprecedented access to Lancaster's methods, The House of Lancaster shows how the vision, personality and leaderships skills of one driven man can turn a team into genuine world-beaters.

With a foreword from Sir Ian McGeechan OBE

Shane Williams has spent almost a decade thrilling the rugby world with his evasive running skills and a box of tricks that has left the best defences grasping thin air, disproving the notion that size matters in modern professional rugby. He's been called the little wizard, the artful dodger and a whole host of other superlatives, and wherever Williams has played, the crowd have been on the edge of their seats.

As his teenage years came to an end, Williams looked set for a life of relative obscurity playing scrum-half for his local side, Amman United, and scratching around in a variety of day jobs. All that changed, however, when he was plucked from nowhere by then Neath coach Lyn Jones, and his rise to become Wales's most dangerous strike runner was meteoric. Following his international debut aged 21, Williams lit up Wales's 2003 World Cup campaign and went on to become an integral part of the Grand Slam-winning side of 2005, a year in which he also toured with the British Lions to New Zealand. In 2008, when Wales took the Grand Slam once more, he made a sensational contribution to the side's glorious victory.

After leading the great Bryan Habana a merry dance on the way to two mesmerising tries on Wales' tour to South Africa just two months later, Williams became the first Welshman crowned IRB World Player of the Year that autumn. He then completed the 2008-09 season with a second Lions tour, touching down twice in the 28-9 third Test victory against the Springboks.

In Shane, Williams reveals the inside story of his incredible rugby career so far, the personal trials that have come with success and how he has managed to defy the odds to become a living Welsh rugby legend.

This is the perfect companion to the ultimate pop culture phenomenon--The Puppy Bowl—and the ideal book for anyone who loves a cute puppy!
 
The Puppy Bowl is the biggest event of the year for puppy athletes (and puppy lovers) everywhere. These pups might be cute, but they take their play seriously, tumbling over each others’ wagging tails, sniffing with wet noses, and barking in happy scrums, all in pursuit of good fun and friendly competition.
 
Celebrating more than a decade of frolicking fun, Puppy Bowl: The Book collects all the most adorable and hilarious moments from The Cutest Show on Earth. From the starring puppy players to the halftime kitten show to the game’s coveted MVP (Most Valuable Puppy), this is one book no puppy fan will want to miss.
 
Puppy Bowl: The Book captures all of the excitement you love most about the game—the playful tackles, the cutest stumbles, and the cheerful, yipping touchdowns—into one action-packed collection of the cutest puppies you’ve ever seen.

At 47, Tim Derk had long been the San Antonio Spur’s crowd-pleasing Coyote and was widely regarded as the NBA’s funniest, most inventive mascot. Then, as the Spurs were headed toward their third championship, Derk suffered a massive stroke and his seemingly charmed existence was shattered. Here, he recounts his courageous battle to recover from the stroke’s devastating impact, both on his body and his career. Amusing reminiscences of Spurs’ players and owners, and of his own on-court hijinks, enliven Derk’s uplifting tale of stroke survival.

Crowood Sports Guides provide sound, practical advice that will help make you a better player whether you are learning the basic skills, discovering more advanced techniques or reviewing the fundamentals of your game. Featured in this new, substantially revised and updated edition of Rugby Union are: star tips, kit checks, rules checks and key points; skills and techniques at every level; action and sequence photographs; helpful, detailed diagrams in colour; an introduction to rules and equipment. Aimed at those learning the basic skills as well as those who wish to discover more advanced techniques or to review the fundamentals of the game. Superbly illustrated with 150 colour photographs and 50 2-colour diagrams. Foreword by Conor O'Shea, the RFU Directory of the National Academy.

In 1969, Lily and Nolan Doyle put the bombs and bastards of Belfast behind them and fled The Troubles in Northern Ireland to raise their family in the seclusion of small-town British Columbia, Canada. But firstborn son, Daniel, has troubles of his own... Danny Boy loves hockey but Danny Boy loves women too. And he can't seem to quit either. A tale that body-checks its way through Canada, Europe and the US, this is the story of the boy too big for his own skates, the teen with stars in his eyes and the man who discovers he is more than just a defenseman.

Shy boy Amadeo reigns supreme at table football in his local café. Taking on all comers he is one of “the unbeatables” with his loyal team of tiny foosballers. But there’s another “unbeatable” in town. Aggrieved by his only ever defeat at the hands of Amadeo in a foosball match when they were kids, Flash the town bully returns to seek revenge. Not only does he destroy the foosball table, but he challenges Amadeo to a game of actual football. Amadeo has never played real football - and Flash, with his insatiable quest for glory, has subsequently risen to become the world’s most famous soccer star. With the future of the village at stake and his foosballers scattered, the situation looks hopeless for Amadeo. Unless he can recruit the help of his eccentric fellow villagers and the girl he loves, Lara, to take on the world’s best football team captained by his nemesis Flash. And unless the foossballers can be reunited. “It’ll be like Barcelona against a non-league team with an injury crisis,” predicts Lara. What nobody predicts, however, is how Amadeo’s foosballers will affect the game… The Unbeatables novel is the ultimate fantasy football story. Expanding upon the original movie, the novel includes additional adventures and characters. Written for young adults (and not so young adults), the book is a scintillating, action-packed 90 minutes of end-to-end incident, comedic flair, goalmouth scrambles and dubious off the ball challenges on the ethos of the modern game. Praise for The Unbeatables: “The witty dialogue and banter makes for some very funny moments, while the digs at the excesses of modern footballers will ring true to followers of the Beautiful Game.” - Radio Times “The Unbeatables is great fun for young and old.” - Daily Express “Nice jokes at the expense of FIFA, overpaid prima donna footballers and slimy agents.” - Daily Mail “Lively and consistently funny.” - Irish Times “An utterly charming gem. Deft one-liners. Back of the net!” - Irish Independent

From a pint and a pie to ice baths and deep tissue massages ... from Cornish Colts to World Cup final captain ... from qualified cattle inseminator to owner of a sports fashion label ... Phil Vickery, aka "Raging Bull", has pretty such seen and done it all in life and in rugby, straddling the amateur and professional eras like a bovine colossus.

Raging Bull is the iconic tight-head prop's own incredible story, the tale of a true legend of rugby union; a tough, no-nonsense player who is as fearless and uncompromising on the pitch as he is a great raconteur off it.

His career spans amateurism and professionalism, starting in the Cornish countryside and travelling to two World Cup finals and two Lions tours.

Vickery is a hugely passionate player. He sports a tattoo which announces 'I'll fight you to the death', and has overcome serious injuries (including eight operations) in a career of stunning highs and devastating lows. He plays his sport in the best traditions of rugby and he is a story teller par excellence.

Raging Bull will transport readers to the England front row in Six Nations clashes at Twickenham, to the changing rooms on British Lions tours, and to the bars of many an amateur rugby club. It will remind fans what rugby is really all about – the fun and camaraderie, and the passion and commitment, as the former herdsman turned England and Lions star takes you to the heart and soul of the sport he loves.

 Welcome to the world of The Grade Cricketer. Described as the most original voice in cricket, The Grade Cricketer represents the fading hopes and dreams of every ageing amateur sportsman.

In this tell-all 'autobiography', The Grade Cricketer describes his cricketing career with unflinching honesty and plenty of humour, in turn providing insights into the hyper-masculine cricket 'dressing room'.

This one-time junior prodigy is now experiencing the lean, increasingly existential years of adult cricket. Here, he learns quickly that one will need more than just runs and wickets to make it in the alpha-dominated grade cricket jungle, where blokes like Nuggsy, Bruiser, Deeks and Robbo reign supreme.

Through it all, The Grade Cricketer lays bare his deepest insecurities - his relationship with Dad, his fleeting romances outside the cricket club - and, in turn, we witness a gentle maturation; a slow realisation that perhaps, just maybe, there is more to life than hitting 50 not out in third grade and enjoying a few celebratory beers afterwards.

Or is there?

* * *

The Grade Cricketer book is based upon the popular Twitter account, @gradecricketer, which has received critical acclaim for its frighteningly honest portrayal of amateur cricket.

Now, the time has finally come for this middling amateur sportsman to tell his story in full.

'The Grade Cricketer is the finest tribute to a sport since Nick Hornby's Fever Pitch, and the best cricket book in yonks. 

It's belly-laughing funny but it's also a hymn to the grand and complex game delivered with a narrative pace and ability I'm afraid most Test players don't have. 

For anyone who ever dreamed of excelling at a sport but never quite made it but still gave it your life, this is the story. A great read!'

- Tom Keneally AO.

Lions legend Bobby Windsor has enjoyed triumphs beyond the dreams of most international players but has also suffered personal tragedy. His rugby career as the best hooker in the British Isles during the second golden era of Welsh rugby in the 1970s is a turbulent tale of blood and thunder on the pitch. There are riotous incidents off the pitch, including unscheduled fights with professional boxers, revelations about illegal payments during the so-called amateur era and what Windsor did to upset the Establishment and become blackballed by one of the most famous clubs in the world.

Windsor's irrepressible sense of humour comes shining through on every page, except when he gives chapter and verse on the personal crisis that drove him to plan suicide.

The Iron Duke is the no-holds-barred, warts-and-all story of a working-class Welsh folk hero who rose from humble beginnings to become a permanent member of the greatest Lions team in the history of rugby union.

Rich Eisen always wanted to write a book, not only because he has a lot of fun, interesting stories he's been dying to share with everyone, but also because he's interviewed hundreds of athletes--many of whom like to refer to themselves in the third person. In his eleven years as a national television sportscaster, Rich Eisen has been envious of those athletes because Rich Eisen has never been able to do that on his job, so the host of NFL Network decided to write a book and use it as an admittedly feeble excuse to go third-person on everybody. Not throughout the whole book, of course. That may get quite exhausting for the reader. But for an entire book jacket? Well, Rich Eisen was all over that.

That's the why behind this book. As for the how, Rich Eisen just took it one sentence at a time and hoped for the best. You know, start with a few words and turn those words into sentences which turned into paragraphs and chapters and, eventually, into this book. Rich Eisen didn't worry about the big picture and just kept focusing on the things that he could control--the keyboard, the ON/OFF button on his computer, his dictionary, his thesaurus, and last--but certainly not least--the spell-check on his word processing program. One day, when it's all over, only then will Rich Eisen look back on his career and try to put it all in perspective, but right now Rich Eisen absolutely knows he would not be where he is today without his spell-check.

By now you must be wondering: What's this book about? It's about a journey. It's about eating, living, and breathing the most popular sport in the history of America. The passion. The pageantry. The pigskin. Thanks to his role as host of the NFL Network's signature program, NFL Total Access, Rich Eisen gets to go to virtually every event on the NFL Calendar---the Super Bowl, the Pro Bowl, the Scouting Combine, the NFL Draft, and the Hall of Fame Induction Weekend. You name it, Rich Eisen is there. And thanks to this book, you can go along for the ride with him--in front of the camera interviewing league MVPs and former presidents of the United States or behind the scenes with some of the game's all-time greats like Deion Sanders, Ray Lewis, and Brett Favre, just to name a few. I mean, Rich Eisen doesn't want to name-drop. In all seriousness, Rich Eisen doesn't have an ego problem.

At any rate, if you love the NFL (and who doesn't), then this book is for you. If you're curious what it would be like to live the sport year-round, this book is for you. You see, it's not all about Rich Eisen. It's about you reading this book and enjoying it to its fullest. At least Rich Eisen hopes you will.

Advance Praise for Total Access:

"I've always admired Rich Eisen's work, so it's no surprise to me that his book is very entertaining. What is a surprise is that he's somehow found time to write it in between the NFL Network's 6,347 hours of coverage of weak-side linebackers who could be draft-sleepers. That sort of programming and this book about it are both genuine public services." ---Bob Costas

"A lot of things in our lives are far less than as advertised, but this book advertises Total Access and gives you Total Access. That's right. Total Access! I'm not kidding. I liked this book and I'm not a reader." ---Tony Kornheiser, columnist for The Washington Post and co-host for ESPN's Pardon the Interruption

"Rich uses his great sense of humor to detail the life of an on-air NFL personality. It is a world I know well, but still I couldn't stop turning the pages. It is a great read---a must for anyone who loves television and Pro Football." ---Joe Buck, Fox Sports