FACTUAL SPORTS REVIEW: The Oval World: A Global History of Rugby - Tony Collins

Release Date: 27/08/15
Publisher:  Bloomsbury Sport

SYNOPSIS:

Rugby has always been a sport with as much drama off the field as on it. For every thrilling last-minute Jonny Wilkinson drop-goal to win the World Cup or Jonah Lomu rampage down the touchline for a try there has been a split, a feud, or a controversy.

The Oval World is the first full-length history of rugby on a world scale from its origins in the village-based football games of medieval times to the globalized sport of the twenty-first century, now played over a hundred countries. It tells the story of how a game played in an obscure English public school became the winter sport of the British Empire, spreading to France, Argentina, Japan, and the rest of the world, and commanding a global television audience of over four billion for the last World Cup final. It also explores how American football and other games, such as Australian, Canadian, and Gaelic football emerged from their English cousin.

Featuring the great moments in the game s history and its legendary names David Duckham, Serge Blanco, Billy Boston, and David Campese, alongside Rupert Brooke, King George V, Boris Karloff, Charles de Gaulle, and Nelson Mandela The Oval World investigates just what it is about rugby that enables it to thrive in countries with very different traditions and cultures. This is the definitive world history of a truly global rugby.


REVIEW:

As a grandson of a Rugby Fanatic I like to try my best to keep up with things and as such thought a book on the subject would not only give me snippets of factoids to throw at him but also help keep me up to speed with the sport. However whilst the book was full of information, one thing that really annoyed me was the fact that there were no images within. Yes you can describe things but as they say a picture is worth a thousand words.

Whilst it is well written and easy to follow alongside lovingly researched by the author all round I have to say that I was disappointed with the book. I wanted a bit more passion within to allow readers to really get the feel for the sport and what keeps many glued to the matches rather than just a book that didn’t exude this key sporting emotion.

SPORT REVIEW: W G's Birthday Party - David Kynaston

Release Date: 05/04/11

SYNOPSIS:

On a hot morning in July 1898, the sporting world gathered at Lord's to celebrate the fiftieth birthday of WG Grace, the greatest cricketer the game has ever seen. Grace was cheered onto the field by a packed crowd as he captained the Gentlemen, the privileged old guard of the Establishment. Their opponents in this annual match were the Players, cricketers for whom the sport was a precarious livelihood rather than a summer pastime. This three-day encounter represented the climax of cricket's Golden Age, and the unstoppable arrival of the professional game that would dominate the twentieth century. In "WG's Birthday Party", David Kynaston tells the story of one of the most thrilling matches in cricketing history, as well as the colorful and sometimes tragically moving lives of the members of both teams. Using the Gentlemen vs Players contest as a lens through which to examine the hierarchy and tensions endemic in cricket at the beginning of the modern era, he presents a lively, moving, richly detailed and massively entertaining portrait of late-Victorian society. It is social history at its most compelling, from 'the most entertaining historian alive' ("Spectator").


REVIEW:

Whilst I’m not the biggest Cricket aficionado, I’ve heard stories about WG from my grandfather who is a massive fan of the sport. So when the opportunity came round for me to be able to learn more about this, possibly the first sports superstar, I had to jump at the chance. The major problem with a book about him is that it could easily turn too much into a history of the game with too much time focused upon the Victorian era.

What David does in this title is present the facts in an informative way as well as giving the reader the opportunity to get to visit what many consider the golden age of the sport. It’s an ideal gift for fans and whilst this was originally released a few years ago is a title that many may not yet have come across. Get a copy now for that Cricket fan in your life. My grandfather was more than happy to get this for his birthday.