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Hoolifan: Tthirty Years of Hurt (Mainstream sport)
 
 
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Hoolifan: Tthirty Years of Hurt (Mainstream sport) [Kindle Edition]

Martin,King, Martin Knight (Author)
4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (32 customer reviews) |
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Product Description

Amazon.co.uk Review

Martin King first went to see a football match in the early 1960s at White Hart Lane. Immediately hooked, he soon became an avid Chelsea fan, or as the title of his book suggests, a Hoolifan, as over the years he became one of Chelsea's "top boys", a ringleader in orchestrating the violence on the terraces and city streets which made Chelsea so notorious throughout the 1970s and early 1980s.

This is a tough and compelling account of how, according to King, football violence was and always has been, part of the fabric of male, working-class life. Page after page describes the adventures of King and the Chelsea fans as they follow Chelsea across the country, taking "ends" (the area of the ground usually reserved exclusively for the home team's fans) and engaging in organised fights, often on a terrifying and brutal scale. There are some wonderful sections on the vagaries of football fashion throughout the 70s and 80s and the cameraderie which unites the guild-like groups of fans is evoked with great skill. But King is often too quick to hide behind claims that innocents were never hurt in the violence he actively pursued and that the media has blown the problem out of all proportion. Nevertheless Hoolifan raises some uneasy and still unresolved questions about the nature of football violence. --Jerry Brotton

Product Description

Hoolifan is the story of one man, Martin King, and his experiences spanning three decades with the country's foremost soccer gang. Chelsea have always been at the cutting edge of football violence, and King himself was at the heart of the evolving Chelsea mob for some 30 years. From his first visit to a football ground in the early 1960s, he charts his development from a rattle-waving child through to a fully fledged member of the notorious Chelsea Shed in the 1970s and finally to his exploits as a key player in the most feared football gang of the 1980s and 1990s - the so-called Chelsea Headhunters. King describes the leading characters of the various eras, not just from Chelsea but from across the country. He also records every clash, ambush and act of revenge in vivid detail, as well as the camaraderie and style of this most infamous soccer gang. This is not just another book on the well-trodden subject of football hooliganism, as, unlike so many authors, Martin King makes no attempt to distance himself from the violence and leaves readers to draw their own conclusions. At times provocative, often humorous and always honest, Hoolifan places the phenomenon of football hooliganism in its true social context.

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
By A Customer
Format:Paperback
Another cash-in on the late 90's postmodern 'lad-culture'. Written in the style of how a 15 year old might describe his weekend, always the 'noble hero', full of unnecessary embellishments (and cultural inaccuracies), heavy on the fantasy...talk about self-eulogizing. Image first, facts second. If you want believable pain, read Steve Cowens book on The Blades.
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
HOOLIFAN 20 July 2011
Format:Paperback
I READ THIS BOOK WITH INTREST AS I WAS INVOLVED IN ONE MAIN ITEM THE FIGHT WITH EVERTON FANS ON THE TRAIN.THIS IS HOW I KNOW THIS BOOK IS A WELL WRITTEN AND MAINLY TRUEFULL ACCOUNT OF THE LADS THAT FOLLOWED CHELSEA AROUND THE COUNTRY AND TO HOME GAMES A REALLY GOOD READ WILL GIVE YOU A GOOD INSIGHT TO THE CHELSEA HOLIGANS .
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
Thought provoking 9 Sep 1999
By A Customer
Format:Paperback
Whilst on the surface Hoolifan can be seen as a romp through the decades with a football mob it is undoubtedly an important social document. The psychology of young men and gangs is intentionally or unintentionally laid bare as is the social framework they operate under. Searching questions are raised over the institutionalisation of football and policing and society's attitude towards violence generally.

An entertaining and often comedic read from many angles and my only criticism is: have the authors allowed some very lateral and compelling thoughts to become obscured among the action, dialogue and event driven prose that drives the book?

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Most Recent Customer Reviews
Amazing read, personal feel
I'm not into hooliganism myself, but when I came across this book, and read the introduction on the back, I knew I had to read it. Read more
Published 6 months ago by bluemoonman
back to my youth
excellent read,took me back to my youth as a young Chelsea fan in the early seventies
Published on 19 Jan 2010 by Mr. D. Glass
Honest, Entertaining and realistic
As a Chelsea fan since the mid 70s I bought this book out of curiosity regarding which games would be talked about and what incidents etc! Read more
Published on 2 Dec 2008 by N. Lammond
up there with the best
superbly written with great humour a must for any football fan who was in or witnessed the "football hooligan" days that are apparentley a thing of the past, great book
Published on 6 Aug 2008 by gareth
Hoolifan is not a fictional account
Hoolifan is not a fictional account, the stories and characters are the real deal.

Although never a hooligan myself I am a Chelsea fan and I attended nearly all of the... Read more
Published on 8 Nov 2007 by Four Crests
Great Read
This book is a must have for those who want a wider knowledge of hooligan-ism in the early 1960's to the 1980's. Read more
Published on 15 Feb 2006 by "stan_barnett"
Hoolifan: 30 Years of Hurt
This book was an excellent read. I simply could not put it down

Though this was meant to be fictional, it was very easy to appreciate the reality of the battles that took place. Read more

Published on 27 Nov 2005 by Viscount Hodge
Brilliant!
I brought this to take on holiday. I am an Arsenal fan & fascinated by the 'hooligan' genure in general & thought this would make a handy addition to my usual chick-lit beach... Read more
Published on 18 Sep 2004 by "chillychicky"
amazing
I genuinely read this book in one night. Couldn't put it down. The harshness, humour and insight into football violence spanning over 3 decades is second to none!
Published on 11 Feb 2004 by aldogreenock
Brilliant!!!
This book gives the reader an excellent insight into one of Englands most notourious hooligan firms, "The Chelsea HeadHunters. Read more
Published on 2 Jun 2003 by "burnley_til_i_die"
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