Re: Your top 5 cricket books
Posted: Thu Dec 31, 2015 10:36 amam Bays wrote:OK a new number one - with a bullet: The Keepers By Malcolm Knox.
As I said below, as a poor keeper who loved spending my summers behind the sticks trying to make my bowlers and fielders look good got this on christmas day and was hesitant to read it as I thought it might be a just a re-hash of Pollards book from 1993. However this is 360 odd pages of 'Keepingology Gold. Knox has interviewed all the living Australian Test keeprs to do this book (except Neville as obviously his deadline preceeded the 2nd 2015 Lords test). He has used his prior research in writing Never a Gentlemans Game to write on the likes of Blackham, Murdoch, Kelly and Carter and then used interviews and research to discuss the keepers since Oldfield. The best bits are the discussions of the nearly never was's Maddocks, Taber, McLean, Wright who either had to wait long times to get a crack or because of selection perceptions or team needs only got a few tests or had there careers cut short. Great book, makes me want to get the kit bag and bring out the old faithfulls or find a brick wall and do the old golf drill up to 100 again!
For me once i started reading this i couldn't put it down unless I had to do in the finest traditions of Marshy, get another beer....am Bays wrote:From the Steve Smith captaincy test thread I was inspired by Footy Smart's and Dogwatcher's comment on cricket books (of which I've got a few)
It got me thinking what are you're favourite cricket books? Borrowing from the move High Fidelity where Rob, Barry and Dick spent most of the time discussing their top 5 albums/songs for whatever; what are your top 5 cricket books in your collection?
Mine:
1. The Gloveman - Jack Pollard
As a 'keeper I'm naturally drawn to history of the trade I plied poorly on the cricket field but loved watching on the TV. My favourite bit of cricket footage is: Butcher St Healy b Bevan at Old Trafford in 1997. A brilliant legside stumping from a ball that just kept drifting down leg side by the best 'Keeper I've ever seen. To read of the likes of: Blackham, Carter, Oldfield, Duckworth, Tallon. Langley, Grout, Knott, Taylor, Marsh and Bari is just magic and Pollard has a good easy ready writing style. I love his other works too such as Six and Out which I couldn't find a spot for here.
2. Border and Beyond - Mark Ray
A critical look at the years of Border's captaincy by former first class cricketer Mark Ray who was able to get on the inside of the Australian team to an extent due to his playing background (doubled as a net bowler whilst he was part of the Poison Typewriters Club - nod to DK). This is a really good read as Australia rose from being an also rans in 1984 to the challenging the West indies for the title of dominant test nation in 1994. it illustrates Borders personal growth from reluctant test captain to the outstanding leader he was and how the likes of Boon, Marsh, Jones, and Healey would support him in his role.
3. Never a Gentlemans game - Malcolm Knox
As I said before if you think any of the current cricket controversies are new in the last 40 years think again. All been done before in the same period 100 years earlier. Got a bit hard to read at times due to Knox quoting and referencing multiple sources and at times I thought he was showing too much bias to the players argument against the then administrators. Still a damn good read though and made me more aware of what is referred to over in the home country as "The Golden Age of cricket. Malcolm also wrote one of my other favourite books Taylor and beyond which looked at the Mark Taylor years as test captain but not as well IMO as Ray looks at the Border years.
4. Golden Boy - Christopher Ryan
The unauthorised "biography" of Kim Hughes due to the fact he didn't want to dredge up old wounds that he had healed with Marsh and Lillee. Really looks at that turbulent 10 years of Australian cricket from 1977 to 1987 as he was seen as the Golden haired establishment boy who was thrust up against the big three WSC boys of Chappell, Marsh and Lillee. The book exposes the depth of ill-feeling at the time in WA and Australian cricket and culminates with the Rebel tours of South Africa and how Hughes became involved in it. A thoroughly good read that took me back to my time when I first started watching this game on the ABC (1978-79) and my first real cricket hero Rodney Marsh.
5. Extra Cover- Jack Egan
A book I read three times cover to cover when I first got it (well we were driving from Darwin to Adelaide for holidays in 1989) This book is a collection of interviews jack Egan did with various cricket identities in late 1988 and early 1989. it includes but is not limited to then current test umpires, players (M Taylor, M Hughes and T May to name but a few) Shield cricketers, Cricket Commentators, former players, journalists, administrators, coaches, Australian medical staff, fans and selectors. it is a good read and a bit of marker in history for what was happening in Australian cricket right before we started to dominate the cricket world through the 90s.
HMs to:
6. First Tests - Sam Connell
7. The Chappell Era - Mike Coward
8. Six and out - Jack Pollard
9. The Game is Not the Same - Norm Tasker with Alan McGilvray
10. Bowlology - Damien Flemming (semi autobiographical, self deprecating, anecdotal p!ss funny insight into Australian cricket during the Bowlologists playing era)
How good was it, AmBays? I read it in two days. Excellent book with some fresh takes on things. I loved the way he linked their injuries and also the angst caused when a keeper is replaced. The book explained why these things occurred in a fresh context, it's not just about state-based rivalries, but it's a deep-seated need for the security a keeper provides.
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