Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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8 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
The point, 17 Jan 2004
By A Customer
A friend of mine read this book and lent it to me telling me it was well worth a read. As a lifelong football fan (or "scarf" as Theone would say) the whole concept of someone making money out of hooliganism, by publishing a book of their experiences, does stick in my throat somewhat. Nevertheless I think I am objective enough to judge such a book for its style, value, message etc and honest enough to admit that the whole ethos of the culture that Theone has spent the best part of his life immersing himself in, does fascinate me. Despite this the book is nothing more than a strictly chronological biography of the author's "football" life, season by season, and doesn't go beyond "76/77 - went to Man City, their firm were good and gave us a good run for the money. 77/78 - went to Burnley, we were good and gave them a good run for their money". There is little in the way of detailed tactics and methodology of the hooligans (that NCIS Football Intelligence has continually claimed there to be) nor is their any attempt at a either a sociological or psychological analysis of the participants. Theone doesn't touch on the impact it has had on him nor does he pass any form of opinion on the merits/impact of such a lifestyle. And neither does it shock (the most traumatic incidents cause barely a waver). It does go someway to explaining the bond between members, the respect between firms and moreover just how irrelevant the football itself is to the whole process. Objectively his story, which it is apparent is there to tell, needed to be ghost written. Subjectively how can a man tell the literate world, without a trace of shame, that he left his children in the car on their own to get stuck into a fight with another crew. Shame on you.
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6 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
Diamond in a dog turd, 3 Nov 2003
By A Customer
Not a bad first effort by the author but he seems to lose interest in the subject near the end. For most readers (who do not follow the Boro)the feeling is mutual. It is as if he was hoping that the mayhem that usually accompanies England international matches would provide the book with its grand finale. Nothing happened at the Riverside thus the book tapers off into boredom. Some readers may abandon the work at this point but they shouldn't.
The books saving grace and only highlight is the chapter entitled, "Interrogation" which is a stunning piece of writing that reminded me of a young and angry Alan Sillitoe. Recounting a nasty battle in the firms history it is both humourous and incredibly poignant. Buy it if only for that chapter.
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2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
The Frontline, 5 Jun 2005
By A Customer
2 stars if your a non-football fan, 3 stars if you follow football but not Boro and 4 stars if you follow Boro. It gives detailed accounts but doesn't talk much about the Riverside era, although theres not a lot to talk about. Its a good read coming from a proper Teessider so sometimes people from outside Teesside may struggle to understand parts of it.
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