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Thread: Swans books

  1. #1

    Swans books

    [p.s. On the topic of footy books - can others recommend other good books about footy and footy players? I haven't read many. I did read In the Blood by Jim Mains, which I found interesting and illuminating but a bit lacking in depth and detail. I'm keen to read Roos' recently published autobiography. Playing God is pretty good - lots of detailed research and colour about Australian and footy history.[/QUOTE]

    I think that Emma Quayle's books on the draft are outstanding. Look for 'The Draft' (featuring P. Veszpremi, which follows the 2007 draft, and 'The Draftees', which follows the 2014 draft (featuring I. Heeney).

  2. #2
    Quote Originally Posted by bloodspirit View Post
    On the topic of footy books - can others recommend other good books about footy and footy players? I haven't read many. I did read In the Blood by Jim Mains, which I found interesting and illuminating but a bit lacking in depth and detail. I'm keen to read Roos' recently published autobiography. Playing God is pretty good - lots of detailed research and colour about Australian and footy history.
    I have a number of books on Swans and I�d recommend almost all of them.

    For a Helium light read, Capper�s �Fool Forward�. It gives you a bit of an insight in to how his mind ticks.

    Tasha Kennelly�s �Unfinished Business� is pretty good and gives an understanding about how difficult his transition was.

    Brett Kirk�s �Brave Hart� is more about inspiring (especially young people).

    Austin Roberton�s �The Fastest Man Alive� is intriguing regarding a period when VFL foorballer could excell at other sports and details one of our early stars.

    Michael O�Loughlin�s �Micky O� is akin to Tadhg�s book, detailing the upheaval of an indigenous talent from SA to Sydney.

    Darren Creswell�s �Crezza� is interesting. His football exploits have been forgotten by many, so this book is a wonderful refresher. But it�s his turmultuous life post-Swans (including his prison stint) that really opens eyes.

    Tony Lockett has a few �My Life� and �Ironbark Legends Tony Lockett� mostly a chronology of his youth and career, with a bit of an interesting detail about his transition to the Swans.

    David Rhys-Jones �Rhys� was interesting about his South Melbourne days and his overall career. Reminded me of Barry Hall in how he, rightly or wrongly, feels misunderstood.

    Laurie Nash had a biography �The Great Laurie Nash� by Ned Wallish, an incredible account about the almost unbelievable life of a larger than life individual from Tassie who was the lynchpin of one of our greatest football eras. If VFL/AFL was as popular as NFL bootball in the US, Nash�s life would be recounted in a movie already!

    Ian Shaw�s �The Bloodbath: The 1945 VFL Grand Final� is a great account of our last Grand Final appreance for 51 years.

    Geoffrey Edelsten �Enigma� to be read with a grain of salt (ok a whole dry lake salt pan of it) but it�s an interesting read about his account of events that led to the Swans privatisation in the mid-80s.

    Mark Branagan & Mark Lefebvre�s �The Bloodstained Angets� - ok, I love this period of the Swans history and this is a wonderful account of our Golden Era. It details how the side was assembled, the Swans success and then ultimate demise. Very enlightening.

    Mark Fiddian�s �Days by the Lake: A History of the South Melbourne Football Club� is quite a broad (ie relatively sparsely detailed) account of the history of South Melbourne. Good for the novice Swans supporter want to know more about the Club�s origins.

    Mark Fiddian�s �The Swanlake Spectacular� is a detailed (if a little dry) account of Soutrh Melbourne�s 1933 premiership. You get to know the incredible stars of an almost unbelievable period.

    Jeff Patterson only played a short time with South after joining from the Tigers. In �What a Life� you get a bit about his Swans career, but it�s his post football life that reads like a Hollywood script.

    Barry Hall�s �Pulling No Punches� details his careers with the Saints, Swans and Dogs. Plenty of reading to entertain Swans fans here and it�s nice that he takes ownership of some of his indiscretions.

    Greg Williams� �Diesel� is interesting in learning about a youth, abundant with talent, but not blessed with the physical attributes of an elite footballer who struggles to make it but when he does has a stellar career (a very significant period of which was in red and white). An enjoyable read that gives a players account of what could have been another golden era for the Swans.

    Geoff Craighead another South player who post playing days moved to the US. In his autobiography �TurnAround� there is a little bit about his playing days, but much more about his life beyond football. Not as intesting as the other books here.

    Martin Blake�s �The Rise of the Swans: A Decade of Success� the time bookending the Swans 2005 and 2012 premierships.

    Jim Main�s �Shake Down The Thunder� details the events that led to the Swans 2005 Premiership.

    Jim Main�s �Plugger and the Might Swans�, details the period leading to the Swans first Grand Final appearance in 51 years, in 1996.

    Paul Roos �Beyond 300� the first of a few books Roosevelt�s has written. The nice thing about this one is that is very much about his playing career at a time that was acutely Sydney.

    Kevin Taylor�s (not our player of the same name) �The Sydney Swans� it gives a bit of early South history, but also a lot about the Swans from the move to Sydney up until its time of publication (late 80s?)

    Sally Freud & Mark Cutler�s �The Story of the Swans� is another account of Sydney�s early days leading to the 1996 Grand Final with plenty of interviews with Swans players and administrators.

    Ben Collins biography of Norm Smith �The Red Fox� has a wonderful chapter at the back about his career as South�s coach. Enlightening as it was the first of many attempts to lure legends to coach us to try to turn our fortunes around (think Ian Stewart, Des Tudennham, Ron Barassi).

    Adam McNicol�s �The Danihers� understandably spends a lot of time discussing The Football Royalty of Essendon. But it al started at South! Worth a read about some of the most unassuming and highly achieving players from a single family in the VFL/AFL.

    Kevin Hillier� �Rocket Science� biographies Rodney Eade�s playing and coaching career with a goodly amount spend on his stint at the Swans which was arguably he launchpad for our current successful era.
    Last edited by goswannies; 23rd February 2018 at 08:31 PM.

  3. #3
    Thanks goswannies for the reading list! I have finished the Ablett book and am now reading Here it is by Paul Roos. I have also borrowed the Martin Blake Rise of the Swans one you refer to. So far Here it is is not the most colourful or well written book but contains authoritative and illuminating insights by Roosy into his time as coach and the various personnel at the club around that time and so definitely worth the read.

  4. #4
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    Quote Originally Posted by bloodspirit View Post
    Thanks goswannies for the reading list! I have finished the Ablett book and am now reading Here it is by Paul Roos. I have also borrowed the Martin Blake Rise of the Swans one you refer to. So far Here it is is not the most colourful or well written book but contains authoritative and illuminating insights by Roosy into his time as coach and the various personnel at the club around that time and so definitely worth the read.
    Wasn't Rooseys book supposed to be a blueprint of the creation of the 'Bloods Culture'? While it may be intriguing to Swans fans, it doesn't sound too exciting......

  5. #5
    Quote Originally Posted by goswannies View Post
    I have a number of books on Swans and I�d recommend almost all of them.

    For a Helium light read, Capper�s �Fool Forward�. It gives you a bit of an insight in to how his mind ticks.

    Tasha Kennelly�s �Unfinished Business� is pretty good and gives an understanding about how difficult his transition was.

    Brett Kirk�s �Brave Hart� is more about inspiring (especially young people).

    Austin Roberton�s �The Fastest Man Alive� is intriguing regarding a period when VFL foorballer could excell at other sports and details one of our early stars.

    Michael O�Loughlin�s �Micky O� is akin to Tadhg�s book, detailing the upheaval of an indigenous talent from SA to Sydney.

    Darren Creswell�s �Crezza� is interesting. His football exploits have been forgotten by many, so this book is a wonderful refresher. But it�s his turmultuous life post-Swans (including his prison stint) that really opens eyes.

    Tony Lockett has a few �My Life� and �Ironbark Legends Tony Lockett� mostly a chronology of his youth and career, with a bit of an interesting detail about his transition to the Swans.

    David Rhys-Jones �Rhys� was interesting about his South Melbourne days and his overall career. Reminded me of Barry Hall in how he, rightly or wrongly, feels misunderstood.

    Laurie Nash had a biography �The Great Laurie Nash� by Ned Wallish, an incredible account about the almost unbelievable life of a larger than life individual from Tassie who was the lynchpin of one of our greatest football eras. If VFL/AFL was as popular as NFL bootball in the US, Nash�s life would be recounted in a movie already!

    Ian Shaw�s �The Bloodbath: The 1945 VFL Grand Final� is a great account of our last Grand Final appreance for 51 years.

    Geoffrey Edelsten �Enigma� to be read with a grain of salt (ok a whole dry lake salt pan of it) but it�s an interesting read about his account of events that led to the Swans privatisation in the mid-80s.

    Mark Branagan & Mark Lefebvre�s �The Bloodstained Angets� - ok, I love this period of the Swans history and this is a wonderful account of our Golden Era. It details how the side was assembled, the Swans success and then ultimate demise. Very enlightening.

    Mark Fiddian�s �Days by the Lake: A History of the South Melbourne Football Club� is quite a broad (ie relatively sparsely detailed) account of the history of South Melbourne. Good for the novice Swans supporter want to know more about the Club�s origins.

    Mark Fiddian�s �The Swanlake Spectacular� is a detailed (if a little dry) account of Soutrh Melbourne�s 1933 premiership. You get to know the incredible stars of an almost unbelievable period.

    Jeff Patterson only played a short time with South after joining from the Tigers. In �What a Life� you get a bit about his Swans career, but it�s his post football life that reads like a Hollywood script.

    Barry Hall�s �Pulling No Punches� details his careers with the Saints, Swans and Dogs. Plenty of reading to entertain Swans fans here and it�s nice that he takes ownership of some of his indiscretions.

    Greg Williams� �Diesel� is interesting in learning about a youth, abundant with talent, but not blessed with the physical attributes of an elite footballer who struggles to make it but when he does has a stellar career (a very significant period of which was in red and white). An enjoyable read that gives a players account of what could have been another golden era for the Swans.

    Geoff Craighead another South player who post playing days moved to the US. In his autobiography �TurnAround� there is a little bit about his playing days, but much more about his life beyond football. Not as intesting as the other books here.

    Martin Blake�s �The Rise of the Swans: A Decade of Success� the time bookending the Swans 2005 and 2012 premierships.

    Jim Main�s �Shake Down The Thunder� details the events that led to the Swans 2005 Premiership.

    Jim Main�s �Plugger and the Might Swans�, details the period leading to the Swans first Grand Final appearance in 51 years, in 1996.

    Paul Roos �Beyond 300� the first of a few books Roosevelt�s has written. The nice thing about this one is that is very much about his playing career at a time that was acutely Sydney.

    Kevin Taylor�s (not our player of the same name) �The Sydney Swans� it gives a bit of early South history, but also a lot about the Swans from the move to Sydney up until its time of publication (late 80s?)

    Sally Freud & Mark Cutler�s �The Story of the Swans� is another account of Sydney�s early days leading to the 1996 Grand Final with plenty of interviews with Swans players and administrators.

    Ben Collins biography of Norm Smith �The Red Fox� has a wonderful chapter at the back about his career as South�s coach. Enlightening as it was the first of many attempts to lure legends to coach us to try to turn our fortunes around (think Ian Stewart, Des Tudennham, Ron Barassi).

    Adam McNicol�s �The Danihers� understandably spends a lot of time discussing The Football Royalty of Essendon. But it al started at South! Worth a read about some of the most unassuming and highly achieving players from a single family in the VFL/AFL.

    Kevin Hillier� �Rocket Science� biographies Rodney Eade�s playing and coaching career with a goodly amount spend on his stint at the Swans which was arguably he launchpad for our current successful era.
    Thanks goswannies. That's a real who's who of Swans books right there. I got "Here It Is" for Christmas which can be added to that list too.

    Maybe we should have a separate thread for Swans books and video's.

  6. #6
    Quote Originally Posted by S.S. Bleeder View Post
    Thanks goswannies. That's a real who's who of Swans books right there. I got "Here It Is" for Christmas which can be added to that list too.

    Maybe we should have a separate thread for Swans books and video's.
    No problems S.S. B

    I�ve got all of those (plus a few more) & would recommend most of them. I�ve enjoyed reading all of them.

    I thought there was some Wiki entry about Swans books (as I posted many of those books at the time)

    �Here it is� is one of the few books I don�t have - yet.

    I�m also yet to get Len Thompson�s book

    I have copies of the Encyclopaedia of League Footballers (the mini-Swans edition & an older complete edition).

    I�m really surprised that no one has done one on Bob Skelton or Bob Pratt.

    And a book I�d love to see written is �Swans One Game Wonders� (detailing the careers of players who only played a single game in the Red and White). This thought stems from Noel Rohleder - the youngest player to ever played for the Swans (16 years, 251 days) when he played the final match of the 1950 season (he actually explained to me why he never played again). Or Nick Daffy who was traded to Sydney at age 28, which is typically the prime of a footballers career. Nick Daffy, at the peak of his powers, had been a damaging player for Richmond, both as a goalkicking forward and ball-magnet midfielder. Traded to Sydney for Greg Stafford and pick #17 which would be traded 5 times and ended up going to Geelong for James Kelly. To know how or why after round 2, 2002, Daffy never earned another appearance would be interesting to me. Probably not one of our better trades.

  7. #7
    I've finished Here it is now and have started reading Rise of the Swans. Overall Here it is doesn't seem to add much at all that wasn't already in Rise of the Swans which overall seems the better book with heaps of great pictures that Here it is doesn't have. They even have a lot of the same little anecdotes. Roos must have been a major source for Martin Blake's book. While I haven't read that much of Rise of the Swans yet, it seems both books authoritatively cover what Bloods' culture is all about. One of the things I'm liking about Rise of the Swans so far is that it extends beyond Roos' period in charge. I guess Here it is has the fact that it straight from Roos' (not the Horse's) mouth, which gives it greater credibility.

  8. #8
    It's Goodes to cheer!! ScottH's Avatar
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    Sydney Swans/South Melbourne books
    Compiled with much help from goswannies

  9. #9
    Quote Originally Posted by ScottH View Post
    Sydney Swans/South Melbourne books
    Compiled with much help from goswannies
    Ah that�s the one! Might have to add my new ones to that list. Thanks ScottH

  10. #10
    Ahh I see I forgot to include Paul Kelly�s �Swan Song� which was a nice read about the career of a very humble Swan great. And Jim Main�s �Honour the Names� a limited edition book detailing the careers of the Swans Team of the Century players. From memory, there were only 1000 copies? Sorry, I�ve taken 2 out of circulation (a reading copy and a �will always remain as new� copy).
    I also have Ben Collins� �The Champions� which features interviews with former Swans players & coaches Ron Barassi, Dennis Pagan, Bob Skilton, Greg Williams. The great Bob Skilton adorns the cover.

  11. #11
    It's a surprise such thing exist

  12. #12
    Hi folks, I'm after a copy of the following titles:

    Branagan / Lefebvre - Blood Stained Angels: the Rise & Fall of the Foreign Legion

    And

    Shaw - Bloodbath

    Would anyone be willing to sell a copy if they have one and no longer need it?

    Thanks Mark

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