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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A jolly good read, 2 Oct 2002
By A Customer
I picked this up thinking 'Oh No, not another bleeding Nicky Hornbyesque football and my mid-life crisis tome', but unlike many I've cringed through I strangely felt a need to carry on reading.Mike Ward's frank and self-deprecating account trying to rediscover some passion in his life now that he had reached the grown up age of 41 is both hilarious and compelling. By focusing on Brighton & Hove Albion - a small seaside town (oops City) second division team with a football ground in urgent need of demolition - you might think he would be facing an uphill task to reinvigorate his life. But oddly the team suited him as well as his shiny new combat trousers fitted his waistline. I smirked and chortled right through this book as Ward became, at first just interested and then down right mouth-stretched-open-wide-yelling-at-the-top-of-his-voice passionate about a side which began to dominate his every waking moment. He would covertly listen to commentaries through an earpiece while his wife wasn't watching, slip into the supporters' shop to try on the XXXL size replica top and secretly scheme to join travelling fans to away games. I loved this book. There was not a page without a laugh and it all seemed so relevant. Then again I am 42, have three children and work 9-5, five days a week with er...a fading interest in football - is there something missing from my life?
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by Ben Goldacre
