When Friday Comes: James Montague Q&A

When Friday Comes is a book by respected football journalist, James Montague, who has written for the New York Times, World Soccer, CNN and The Blizzard.  The book is a collection of Montague's travails around the Middle East from Egypt to Israel following football, and how in spite of political differences football appears to be a unifying item of personal pleasure for many people across the vast region.

 

To help support the release of the book in hardback, Mr. Montague in his very hectic schedule afforded me the opportunity to ask him some questions about the book and his time in the Gulf, the rise of football and the awarding of the World Cup to Qatar in 2022.

 

Where did the idea of the book come from?

 

The book idea came shortly after the first time I arrived in the Middle East. I moved to Dubai in 2004. It was quite a strange place when I got there. Blisteringly hot, all these clash of cultures and values. It was a booming totem to neo-liberalism wrapped in a strong Islamic culture. It was pretty disorientating at first. But football was something that very clearly permeated most strata of societies in the Middle East. So when I travelled to other countries in the region I'd watch the local league, watch the national teams, read about the intrigues and controversies of the game. It was fascinating but also gave me a window on the region that I think very few other areas of life can offer. I'd have never known about the schism, if that isn't too harsh a word, between the Jewish Ashkenaism and Mizrahim communities in Israel. Or the pronounced sectarian divisions in Lebanon if it wasn't by first looking at football in those countries. It was the perfect mirror in many ways. 

 

The book covers a period of eight nine years. A version came out in 2008 but I decided to essentially write a sequel as the region changed forever thanks to Arab Spring and also the economic explosion in the Gulf. On the one hand you had this incredible movement for change that swept away much of the old order in some countries, and football, especially in Egypt, played a part. So it wasn't just a mirror of understanding any more. It was actually an agent for change in itself. People don't like to see football in that way. But we look at art and culture in such terms. But why not football?  

Is the sport growing abundantly in that region?

It was huge when I got there. You have derbies in Egypt and Iran that pull 100,000 fans. Saudi Arabia too. In Israel you'll have ten per cent of a city's population turn out to see their team. What is changing now is that money from the region is changing the game in the West. Qatar and the UAE especially are reshaping the financial aspects of top flight European football. It will be an interesting few years to come. 

 

You seemed to encounter some really scary moments, did you ever fear for your safety?

 

The Middle East is seen as an alien planet. But I was met with kindness and compassion almost everywhere I went. You begin to see things as they are. The issue of Islam's influence on Western society is one that is gaining momentum. There is a fear of this alien concept sweeping the land. But when you spend time in the region you see something different. People aren't that different. They want jobs and a family, they want to get married, get laid, get wasted. We see a conservative, crazy place. But most of the places I've been to are no more conservative than Christian societies in the 20th century. These are ancient civilizations that had values of tolerance and multiculturalism whilst we in England were still building mud huts. The great game of competing empires has given rise to militant Islam and emasculated many countries in the region from having a functioning middle class and political class. We are surprised with the problems Egypt is experiencing in reconciling its new democratic order. But we propped up Mubarak, who liquidated any reasonable, liberal, left of centre opposition. Are we surprised that all is left is the Army and the Brotherhood?

 

Where you in Egypt around the time of the Arab Spring?

 

Much of the new book follows the exploits of the Ahlawy, the Al Ahly Ultras of Cairo's biggest club. They played quite a role in the revolution, and after it too. There was the incident at Port Said where 72 of their fans were killed after a game. I wasn't there but the aftermath was pretty dicey. The scariest was when the initial verdict that sentenced 21 Al Masry fans to death for their role in the killings. I was with the Ahlawy in Cairo and there was wild celebration. 15,000 fans were there, firing guns in the air. But the people of Port Said were livid. Police shot 30 people dead when they stormed the prison the AL Masry fans were being held. President Morsi announced a curfew and I went down to Port Said on the last bus before the curfew fell. The city was deserted. Empty. It was a ghost town. Except for one street where protesters were fighting with the police over burning barricades. I was cowering behind a Red Crescent ambulance, hearing gun fire wondering how I had got there. That night there was a march to break the curfew. It ended with a protester being shot dead and a gun battle followed. I remember having to get back to my hotel, hiding from car to car past the gun fire. That was pretty scary.  

 

Which country was the scariest? Which country was the safest in comparison?

 

It's not a country but Gaza was pretty malevolent. I went there in 2009, not long after the Israelis had bombed it even further back in to the dark ages. Journalists were being kidnapped but Hamas was in control so there was order laid atop chaos. I felt it was cursory. And it was also a dark, miserable place. It left its mark on me.   The safest? No question Oman. It is beautiful. In many Gulf countries, if you can call Oman strictly a Gulf country, it is difficult to meet the local population. But Omanis are warm and eager to meet you. I have a favourite pool bar I go to in Seeb where I would get hammered in almost every game, drink tins of lager with my Omani opponents and talk about life in the country.  Although sometimes they can be a little too warm. I have never been propositioned by so many men my life!

Where you surprised that FIFA awarded the 2022 World Cup to Qatar and that region in particular?

In a way, no. FIFA is about taking the power centre away from European football and I was not surprised at all. Qatar played the game better than anyone else. It remains to be seen whether FIFA's investigation into the bids will find anything. But I wasn't surprised at all.

 

Will the 2022 tournament be moved or taken away from them?
  

I suspect that it will. There's too much money at stake for FIFA. Moving it to Winter is a no no. Platini, UEFA and the top clubs want January-February but that can't take place because of the Winter Olympics. November December is Blatter's choice, but that clashes with the Champions League. That leaves having it in Qatar in July which, unless they can show vast improvements in the cooling tech they promised, won't happen, or moving it to May-June. Which is an option. But again you feel like there are some people who actually hope that Qatar will have been found to have done something bad so it makes it easier (ie, won't cause massive legal issues). It is being used as  pawn in the up and coming 2015 FIFA presidential vote. It will be clearer after that.

What country or continent are you covering next?

 

My next book is called Thirty One Nil. I've been following the underdogs as they try to qualify for the 2014 World Cup. It has been quite a journey that started in 2011. From Palestine, Tajikistan, Haiti, Rwanda, Samoa, the US. So, pretty much every continent is covered!

Are you the Michael Palin of football?

 

Well, I wouldn't say that although it is kind of you to say. I always wanted to write football books that appealed to people who loved the game but also those who have never seen the beauty in it before. I hope journey helps to show that in some small way. 

What advice would you give to young writers and bloggers of football to get more recognition and get noticed?

 

Get out there. Get into the smoke and the heat. There are so many people writing blogs and analysis. What journalist are doing less because of the financial restrictions on the trade is travelling to stories. Get your self there. See it with your own eyes. And you will have the stories no one else has.

 

When Friday Comes is out in hardback from DeCoubertin Books (@deCoubertin www.decoubertin.co.uk) at £16.99 RRP but £7.20 on Kindle through Amazon.co.uk
 

James Montague can be followed on twitter @JamesPiotr

 

Interview with Rob Hayles

Following on from my review of his autobiography Easy Rider, I was granted the chance to interview the man himself about the genesis of the book, his memories of riding professionally and why the British cyclists are experiencing such a purple patch:

- Why write an autobiography?  

To my knowledge, there has not yet been a book about the fantastic story of the rise of British cycling’s success. Plus I felt I had a great story to tell.

- What would be the characteristics/traits that set you apart from your contemporaries?  

I feel I probably had an eye for some of the detail involved that many other riders would not think about. Things like the evolution of technologies and the correct use of them. Plus I had such a long career that compared to many of the younger generation I was more self sufficient as at the start I needed to be. These days it’s not drummed into them so much.

- Reading the book, the period with Cofidis seems quite scary along with the dark times with David Millar.  Was it tough to recall such a dark period?  

Not really no. I just found the whole structure of such a high profile team so amateurish and counterproductive to the whole reason it existed in the first place. With regard to Dave. I don't have a problem looking back on those days either. I guess mainly because I feel it was ultimately to his benefit on a human side, and the benefit of cycling in general. Without admission and subsequent ban< I dread to think where Dave's life away from cycling would have led.

- If you had lottery funding from the start of your career, would you have won more major honours? 

Without doubt. But would possibly have had a shorter career. It would be easy to look back with a hint of bitterness as to what may or may not have been. I just feel proud of what I achieved when I did, plus the fact that due myself and others around me at the time, British cycling is now where it is today.

- How did the funding change your sport? 

It enabled the squad to reach out and bring in the experts in all fields to help the riders attain their goals. Also it means riders can now live year round in a better environment rather than just dip into it during very small parts of the year.

- You are an unsung member of the cycling fraternity. Who in your mind on or off the track does not get the right recognition? 

I think the ones who really deserve the recognition are the hard working staff members. They are the ones who put the hours weeks and months of work in, for us, the riders. Whereas we are the ones living our hobbies basically. We are the ones gaining the medals and the plaudits.

- Do you miss the thrill of competition? 

Without a doubt! the racing is the reason I rode a bike. The training was in the main, a means to that end. 

- What can we look forward to during the Tour de France?  And is it a blessing that Sir Bradley Wiggins is injured and missing Le Tour and so avoiding this leadership clash with Chris Froome? 

You've hit the nail on the head there regarding Brad. A great shame he is not in a position to defend his title, but with him in the team this year I feel it would have taken away important team work required for Froome's result. The Tour I feel is his to lose this year.

My thanks to Kate Green at Transworld Publishers for the opportunity to interview Rob Hayles

Easy Rider is out now on hardback and on kindle from Amazon.co.uk for £9.49

Beautiful Brutality Interview

With his new book released, I was granted the opportunity to ask Adam Smith a few questions about the genesis of the book and a few more in respect to his time in boxing covering it for Sky Television.  I found Mr. Smith to be enlightening and entertaining with his passion for the sport, which is mirrored in the book itself which I can heartily recommend:

1.      What was the idea for the book?

I am passionate about boxing and passionate about families. Always wanted to write a book – and this seemed like a different and interesting combination

2. Why did you focus on the family side mostly?

Those closest to the fighters go through so much – but are often forgotten. The relationships are fascinating…

3. Was it always your intention to make it part biographical?

I have been in the sport for 20 years, and I am also a family man. I felt that dovetailed nicely – and enabled me to tell some of the stories that I have been so fortunate to be involved in through my engrossing work at Sky

4. Where would you put the value of a good family in terms of a good boxer - along with conditioning, talent, skill?

So important. Obviously the fighter has to have talent, dedication and huge desire – but a family structure and support is, I believe, fairly crucial to success. Particularly love and guidance in those early years too.

5. Are boxers born or bred?

Both. Genes help – look at Floyd Mayweather – but talent can be honed – like Ricky Hatton, Carl Froch….

6. Who is the best boxer you have ever seen from ringside?

Floyd Mayweather. Dazzling. Brilliant.

7. What is the best contest you have ever seen from ringside?

The best fight in terms of pure drama was Naseem Hamed and Kevin Kelley’s 7 fight knockdown war at Madison Square Garden.

The greatest fight I have commentated on – Diego Corrales – Jose Luis Castillo 1.

8. Where do you sit in the Mayweather-Pacquiao debate? Will it ever happen?

Probably. But too late now. They could have had a trilogy. Always felt Mayweather would be too classy.

9. What is the current state of boxing?

Some exciting things going on as always – Froch, Khan, Brook, Price in UK and Ward, Broner, Alvarez, etc in US/Mexico.

Need more excitement in the heavyweight division. PED’s worrying, and have to be flushed out.

We are looking for bigger, deeper shows on Sky with real pick-em fights.

10. How well will Team GB do in boxing at the Olympics (male and female)?

Very well. 10 fabulous, healthy and talented athletes. All 7 men and all 3 women are primed and ready, and could each win a medal. Luck’s needed of course, but I think we are looking at at least 5 medals. Watch out for Anthony Joshua to be one of the stars of the Olympics.  This will produce another great cycle for boxing here…..

Just to clarify Adam's predictions he was spot on with the prediction of 5 medals and Anthony Joshua winning Gold - under the stewardship of Rob McCracken Great Britain won three Golds - Joshua (Super-heavy), Luke Campbell (Bantam) and Nicola Adams (Women's fly); one silver - Freddie Evans (Welter) and one bronze, Anthony Ogogo (Middle) at the 2012 Olympics.

Beautiful Brutality: The Family Ties at the Heart of Boxing is out now in hardback from Bantam Press.

Richard Moore Q&A

Out today (Thursday 7th) The Dirtiest Race in History on Bloomsbury Press and part of the Wisden Sports Writing - an imprint designed  to bring any and every sport the qualities that have made Widens Cricketers' Almanack famous since 1864, books not just about sport, but about life. Richard Moore is an award winning sports writer specialising in cycling and has written In Search of Robert Millar.  

Moore's new book focuses on one of the greatest and darkest Olympic moments - the Men's 100m final in the 1988 Seoul Olympics - when Ben Johnson won the gold for Canada in a World Record time of 9.79, denying Carl Lewis a second consecutive title as the fastest man on Earth.  Two days later, Johnson was disqualified and stripped of his gold medal.  Moore takes us into the narrative of the piece, how it was formed over years of training before by both men, their backgrounds, the need to win, the character building and why Johnson cheated and took drugs.

Moore is a great writer and is clever to not paint Johnson as the total villain of the piece, also bringing up the murky past of officials and administrators, most importantly Primo Niobolo of the IAAF, who would look the other way when there were positive drug tests.  Moore takes all the parties of the race, all 8 competitors and how 6 of them have been banned for drug cheating either during those Olympics or since.  Calvin Smith who finished fourth, feels he should have had the gold as he was clean and the three in front of him - Johnson, Lewis, Linford Christie - have all tested positive.

Luckily, I was granted the opportunity to interview Richard Moore before the book was released, and he was happy to answer my questions.

Jamie Garwood: You are known for your coverage of cycling, what drew you to this story in athletics?

Richard Moore: Actually it probably owes a lot to the fact I was 11 when the LA Games were on in 84, and at my most impressionable. I loved them, and loved Carl Lewis -- they were the Carl Lewis Olympics. When Ben Johnson emerged as a rival over 100m it only made the event more interesting; and the world champs in Rome in 87, where Johnson won in a new world record, set up the Seoul Games perfectly. You have to remember that athletics was huge in those days: the Rome world champs seemed as big a deal as the Mexico World Cup had been the previous year. That's how I remember it, anyway. When Seoul came along, the men's 100m was the race everyone was looking forward to. And yet it surpassed all expectations...
It took about a year to write the book, though I'd been thinking about it since the last Olympics. I was keen to do a non-cycling book, yes, just for a change, and for the challenge, and because this, for me, is one of the great sporting stories. 

JG: The story broke in 1988, what were your memories of it when it happened in Seoul?

RM: What I most remember is the sight of Johnson being bundled out of Seoul. He was jostled and manhandled as though he was guilty of an atrocity. I remember, at that moment, feeling sympathy for him. I thought: whatever he's done, he doesn't deserve to be treated like a murderer, does he? But I also felt sympathy for Lewis and the others who'd been cheated by him. I felt...conflicted. 

JG: Were you a fan of athletics growing up?

RM: It wasn't my main sport -- that was football, then cycling in my later teens. But you couldn't be a fan of sport in the UK in the 1980s without following athletics. Not really sprinting, though Allan Wells was a hero. I was just slightly too young to get really into the Ovett-Coe rivalry, but I really loved watching Steve Cram -- a beautiful runner. And, being Scottish, I was a big supporter of Tom McKean. He always seemed to be boxed in. And of course Liz McColgan. At school I ran 800s and 1500s myself, though preferred cross country -- the longer, the better. 

JG: Your tone of the book is very neutral. Where do you stand now, are you pro-Johnson and anti-Lewis or vice versa?

RM: I wouldn't say I'm pro- or anti- either of them, though I have sympathy for both for quite different reasons. But I really wanted to research the story, meet the key players, describe those people and events, and then let the reader make up their own mind -- or not as the case may be. 

JG: The Johnson ban changed athletics doping policy due to the high profile nature of the crime.  How did it change athletics?

RM: I'm not sure if it changed athletics very much at all. It's always been a hard sport to police. I think things have got better, in all sports, since the formation of WADA, which was the IOC's response to the Festina scandal at the 1998 Tour de France. Really, though, such a body should have been set up after Seoul. The fact it wasn't meant things continued as before, I suspect. 

JG: Why is cycling still caught out?

RM: Because riders still cheat...

JG: Where is Athletics now in terms of drug cheating?

RM: I wouldn't pretend to have a really detailed knowledge of doping in athletics now. But, as I said earlier, it is a hard sport to police. I think cycling's slightly easier in that respect -- it's organised in teams and most riders race on a regular basis. Compare that to athletics and you can see some of the challenges. I'm sure people still cheat in all sports. There's stricter testing but, as one drugs tester told me last year, if there's still a gap between the testers and the athletes, and if there are still ways to beat the tests (and there is a gap, and there are ways to beat the tests through micro-dosing, undetectable drugs, etc), then people will still be cheating -- impossible to say how many. 

JG: If Johnson and Lewis were around today, would they be able to compete? Or has Usain Bolt taken it to the next level?

RM: It's an interesting question. Why is Bolt running faster? Is it -- as Johnson claims -- because the tracks are faster? Have training methods improved? Or is Bolt a physiological freak? If he is then perhaps he would beat Johnson and Lewis easily. But if he isn't then I suspect that Johnson and Lewis would be very close.  

JG: And as for cycling? Should David Millar be allowed to compete for Britain?

RM: I don't think there was any choice about whether or not Millar competed, and couldn't understand why the BOA went to the trouble and expense of taking on WADA. I think the only way to tackle doping is to take a global approach and have agreed, worldwide rules. Otherwise the anti-doping effort will become fractured and the rules will become impossible to enforce. I think now the time has come for four-year bans for a serious first offence, which would keep athletes out of the next Olympics. I'd have preferred to see the BOA put their efforts into lobbying for four-year bans rather than going out on a limb to preserve their bylaw banning British offenders. If rules aren't global there doesn't seem much point to them. 

JG: Will you be covering the Olympics? And what is next for you?

RM: I'm covering the Olympics. It seems to me that several athletes are close to medals but it could go either way. Perhaps home advantage could make a difference. I would enjoy seeing Mo Farah win a gold medal. I'm working on a photographic book for next year's 100th Tour de France... out next June. 

Kind regards and thanks for the opportunity to ask you some questions.

Next Wednesday 13th June, Richard Moore will be in discussion with John Inverdale at Bloomsbury Publishing about the book, drugs and the forthcoming Olympics, tickets cost £8 each and would be a great evening.

My thanks to Richard Moore for his time and to Bloomsbury for giving me the chance to review the book.
Follow Richard on twitter @RichardMoore73 and his website www.richardmoore.co

The Dirtiest Race in History: Ben Johnson, Carl Lewis and the 1988 Olympic 100m Final is out from Bloomsbury (www.bloomsbury.com) for £18.99RRP

Rikki Clarke - Blast from the Past

Rikki Clarke is enjoying what can only be described as a  renaissance season, into his 4th season with the Warwickshire Bears he is enjoying a great start to the season as we near the end of May. Warwickshire stand atop the first Division after four wins from 6 games, and Clarke has been integral to this run of form - he along with Tim Ambrose saw the side home on Saturday morning as they defeated Surrey by 5 wkts at the Oval.  Clarke finished on 40 not out, continuing his impressive form with the bat. After 9 innings he is averaging 81, compared to last season where he finished the season with an average of 26.57 from a total of 558 runs, already he has amassed 486 runs in less than half the time.

Taking a rare day off from his gruelling summer of playing and travelling, I ask him why has there been such a good start to the season by both the Bears and himself, 'I feel after coming so close at the Rose Bowl last season, we sat there and were committed to take that disappoint and go one better this time.  We all work hard on our game, there is a great team spirit and enjoy our success with each other.  In terms of batting, I have worked on my balance more because I am a tall guy, so I've worked on getting to face the bowler which allows me to get better positions and see the ball more.'

Is it tough being an all-rounder in terms of work-load, 'I dont want to say its not difficult, but it is nice to do a bit of this and that, yeah the runs have come a bit easier this year, but the wickets may have dried up but I still am bowling a 2.5 economy and taking catches, yet we do work very hard on all parts of the game.'

Last year, Clarke took a world-record equalling 7 catches against Liverpool which garnered some special press attention, so does catching come naturally or is it hard work? 'In the team we all work very hard, myself, Chops [opener Varun Chopra], Madds [veteran Darren Maddy] and Wills [William Porterfield] all work very hard as a group so even when the runs might not be there we can take an important catch for the team.  In the pre-season I sat down with Ashley Giles [director of cricket at Warwickshire and England selector] about doing better with my time management so I do enough bowling and batting in the nets  without neglecting any of the other three main components of the game and I have definitely benefited from that talk.'

Following on from the criticism aimed at Jonny Bairstow's poor showing against fast bowling in the 2nd Test match at Trent Bridge, Sir Ian Botham stated that Bairstow would not have seen bowling like Kemar Roach at county level, Clarke took issue with this statement, 'There are definitely, quick bowlers out there, okay not loads like we want but there are enough and the overseas stars who come over also help.  Yet county cricket is still a decent platform for test cricket, look at Jonathan Trott who scored runs straight away and has fitted in, but he made a name for himself in the county game.  You cannot win county games without hard work, so it is still a good springboard for the Test arena.'

When talking about test cricket, I sense Clarke yearning for something else this season, is there an ambition to play in that arena yourself? 'I am getting on now, I am the other side of 30 but I would like to play again for England and to do that I just have to be consistent and hopefully people will recognise the work I put in.' I asked tentatively, if he thinks he let himself down when he did play for England, judging by the averages, 'I think in the two tests I played in Bangladesh, I did do myself justice. I averaged 32 with the bat and 15 with the ball (traditional indicators of all-rounder status is your batting average should be higher than your bowling average) and in the 21 one-dayers I played I only batted 13 times and in some instances I batted in four or five different positions so due to that I was not afforded the time to get a mental base, yet I remain hopeful and optimistic about a call-up.' Has he thought about asking the aforementioned Giles about that possibility? 'I should do [he sniggers] but all I can do is make sure my name stays out there, I am sure there are plenty of others out there doing the same thing hoping for that call but all I can do is foucs on my own performance.'

Being a team player is there anyone in the Warwickshire line-up he feels is due a look at Test or one day level, if he is bypassed for the call-up? 'Varun Chopra is the best county batsmen in the game at the moment.  He had a good year last year, and is backing it up with more runs this season, he gives himself a lot of time at the crease, has all the shots and is a good lad to.'

So the ambition for the season remains the title? 'It is but we are aware of taking each day as it comes, one day at a time, we are aware of the hype that is around us in the press and media but we came close yet are wary that there is a lot of cricket left to play.  I still love playing in the county game.' 

It can be a grind though can't it? 'When you are in a winning team, it is different, we have a great camaraderie in the dressing room, we enjoy each others company and want to take that next step towards getting the title, and we know we can only do that together'.

Clarke who is enjoying the benefits of stability, and like he said himself balance in play and life, is now a model of consistency and someone who would not let the team down, either by taking a vital catch or run out or grabbing a cameo 30-40 runs to help set or chase a target.  When he last played for England, Clarke was a victim of selectorial circumstance, you get the sense he would relish the challenge, England could do a lot worse than picking this blast from the past.

An Interview with Steve James

In anticipation of Steve James' forthcoming book The Plan: How Fletcher and Flower Transformed English Cricket, available from all good bookshops on Monday 24th May, I was granted the opportunity to ask him some questions about the book and his analysis.

As we know from the book's outline you discuss at length the transformation of England from the worst test team to the Number 1 team in the world.  You base the transformation on the work of two individuals - Duncan Fletcher and Andy Flower; what have these two men done to change the English game?
It's not just about them but they obviously played huge roles. Both of them brought clarity when there was darkness.  

Yet these two men have different traits how can they both take credit?

They're different but very similar if that makes sense! Fletcher is the technical expert, Flower the man manager.

So how did someone like Peter Moores become a failure?

In fairness to Peter, a lot of what he put in place is still there.  He employed Flower firstly. It was the way he conveyed his messages that was wrong, and he is quite honest about this in the book.

Why was the change necessary, what was wrong with England when they lost at home to New Zealand in that fateful summer of 1999 at the Oval?
Everything! No coach, no direction, poor selection. The introduction of central contracts coming in was huge in terms of consistent selection, and the most influential change resulting in England's success.  Fletcher couldn't have done what he did without them. Nor Flower.

Does the influence of Captains deserve to be acknowleged?

[Nasser] Hussain was the most important, his determination helped to toughen England up.  [Michael] Vaughan and [Andrew] Strauss have obviously been very good in different ways.

It seems the most pivotal point of this transformation was the Ashes success of 2005, itself a formulation of a plan to implement certain bowlers?

Yes it had been coming together for a while.  The tragedy was that that attack - Steve Harmison, Simon Jones, Matthew Hoggard, Andrew Flintoff, Ashley Giles - never played together again in a test match.

What are your memories of that 2005 Ashes summer?
My favourite memory is arriving at Old Trafford on the last day and being convinced there had been a  bomb scare with so many people without tickets streaming away from the ground.  On the field it was the reverse swing of Flintoff and Jones- the Australians simply had no answer to that bowling with Flintoff always taking wickets on vital occasions.

What has greater significance, the 2005 Ashes or winning the Ashes in Australia in 2010?
2005. It was against one of the greatest sides ever...

What does the future hold for the English test side? A big test awaits this year at home and abroad.
They'll still be No 1 by the end of the summer I reckon in a 3 test series against South Africa. India will be very tricky, just like last winter [in a four test series]

Is there anything you would change with the current England set-up?
Not particularly, however there are lots I would change in the County game though.

Can 'The Plan' continue to reap rewards beyond the next two Ashes series in 2013/14?
I hope so but a lot of course will depend on how Australia change themselves.  It looks like they have started to copy our plans which is what we did to them.  Nothing lasts forever though.

Many thanks to Steve James for giving me the chance to interview him before the release of his fourth book, The Plan:How Fletcher and Flower Transformed English Cricket, published by Bantam Press on Thursday 24th May for £20.00RRP

www.transworld-publishers.co.uk
www.randomhouse.co.uk

Steve James is cricket columnist for the Sunday Telegraph and a sports writer for the Daily Telegraph.  He won two caps for England.
Follow him on twitter @sjamesjourno

The Last Champions - Interview with Dave Simpson

Released on 12th May in Hardback by Bantam Press, Dave Simpson - music journalist for The Guardian - has written an ode to his hometown team Leeds United about the 1992 League Champions managed by Howard Wilkinson.  Whilst more memorable for prolonging the agony of Manchester United, and thwarting their attempts at a league title for the first time in 25 years; the team consisting of the late Gary Speed, Gary McAllister, Gordon Strachan, Tony Dorigo, David Batty and Lee Chapman finished four points clear of their  more expensively-assembled rivals across the Pennines.


Simpson takes it upon himself to track down all the squad members of the 1991/92 winning side as well as members of the team that gained the side promotion from the old Division 2 in 1989/90.  Written with genuine enthusiasm and pleasure, Simpson's novel is part love letter, travelogue of the length and breadth of Britain but also a memoir about the end of English football.  Leeds were the last team to win the First Divsion, as that summer saw the dawn of the Sky TV bankrolled Premier League - this fresh injection of money and finance changed football forever.  It made it more and more unlikely that a team such as Leeds would win the league title having two season previously been a league below. The idea that a Reading, Southampton or West Ham (all promoted from the Championship) can compete for the title is both a wild fancy and totally unrealistic.


Dave Simpson was kind enough to grant me a brief interview about the gestation of the book and his thoughts on football now:


Jamie Garwood: What made you want to write a book about Leeds in 1992? Was it an attempt to write down memories, or show people how football used to be?
avid Simpson: Initially, in May 2011, I was sat in my expensive blue plastic seat at the end of another disappointing season and started pining for the old days. The 1991-2 season was my favourite as a supporter and the Howard Wilkinson years were  my 'glory years.' I started to wonder what had happened to all those players. Strachan, McAllister and Kamara were still high profile. Others had completely disappeared. So I started tracking them down. The more players - and staff - I talked to I realised i was sitting on not just a sporting story but a human one - of tremendous sacrifice, endeavour, the courage to believe and the end of an era in English football.


JG: What do you think is wrong with football at the moment?

DS: It's quicker to list what's right with it: the pitches are good and some of the football is exciting. But on many other levels money has distorted the game, in the Premiership at least, to the point where it's no longer a sport. In the Championship, clubs' power relates more or less to the size of their fanbase. In the Premier League, it is now down to the financial might of the owner. Everything else is secondary. In struggling to keep up, some of them risk going out of business. Ticket prices are unaffordable, those involved in the game life lives so far removed from the supporters they may as well be on another planet. The national team and FA Cup are now sideshows to the Premiership circus. I'm actually surprised a billionaire owner hasn't yet picked himself in the team. Surely this will be a matter of time.

JG:Do you consider sport too much of a business-oriented venture nowadays?

DS: As above really. Football has always been in league with money but it's got to the point now where there is little meaningful competition. This season may be a watershed - for the first time Manchester Utd.'s global power and Sir Alex Ferguson's managerial skills are not enough: the league was won by extraordinary financial power. The incoming FIFA financial rules may change the situation, but I'm not hopeful. 

JG: You state the importance of 'Sergeant Wilko' in the success of the team - should he be spoken of more highly in terms of good managers.  Was the way he left Leeds detrimental to his legacy.  (I only say more highly because the last manager to take a club from the old 2nd division to the 1st Division championship was Brian Clough with Notts Forest. Clough is thought of as a better manager.)

DS: Absolutely. Wilko was - and is  the most successful Leeds manager since Revie, and his achievement in taking a team from the bottom of Div 2 to the English League Championship in three and a half years is just astonishing. He was years ahead of his time in nutrition, fitness, tracking player's statistics (an early form of ProZone) and the detail of his planning. Clough's achievements in winning the league with unfashionable Derby and Forest and then winning the European Cup are probably unsurpassable now. Some common ground between them, but chalk and cheese in many ways. For me, both great managers. Clough wasn't a great Leeds manager, obviously, his reign famously lasting 44 days. 

JG: Out of the squad, who was the most eager and easy to talk to? And how long did it take do do all the interviews?

DS: I found Micky Whitlow via Google, pegged down the M1 to Burton Albion, he bought me dinner and I barely got a word in for the next two hours!  About six months in all. It was a mad, demented, Herculean rollercoaster which took me everywhere from a cafe at Morrison's in Sheffield to a golf course in Beverly Hills.

JG: After the reclusive Batty, which interview was like getting blood from a stone?

DS: Well some players didn't want to talk and you have to respect that. Chris Kamara took some pinning down because he's very busy and in the end I had half an hour's notice and leapt in the car and dashed to his house! Lee Chapman wanted to be the last interview and he was but we had a cocktail-fuelled chat some months before the interview, then spoke for two hours during the interview, and I've really warmed to Lee.

JG: Do you think Neil Warnock is the man to return Leeds to the Premier League?

DS: I hope so. He certainly has the track record. As ever with Leeds it will depend whether he has the players he needs.

JG: Do you still go to Elland Road? 
DS: Yes. I've been there twice in the last week and it's not even the season yet.

JG: How important is Leeds FC to the fabric of the city?
DS: Crucial. It's a one club city and the club potentially at least is a massive part of the local economy. A successful Leeds United and a successful city go hand in hand, and vice versa.

JG: You are known for your music writing, was it a risk to write a book outside of your comfort zone away from your specialised subject?
DS: Well I wrote for the LeedsLeeds Leeds club magazine for 13 years, so was used to interviewing players. Music and football (and writing about them) are similar: it's about research and application, obsession, passion and pain. I learned a lot about book writing doing my previous book The Fallen and definitely enjoyed the whole process more the second time.

JG: You dedicate the book to Gary Andrew Speed (1969-2011), what were your feelings about his untimely death?

DS: Like most people on that Sunday morning, there was shock, sadness and confusion.  It seemed right to dedicate the book to Gary - and especially poignant.  Gary epitomised so much of the innocence that has been lost from English football.

JG: What is next for you?
DS: A baby, imminently. I have been banned from calling it Howard Wilkinson Simpson but it will be given a Leeds United babygro and taught to kick a football as soon as it can walk.

Many thanks for your time David, I wish you all the best with the book


Dave Simpson's book is a joyous pageturner of a read full of wonderful anecdotes and memories from players whose careers hit the highest of heights, when winning the domestic league title was the pinnacle of any career in contrast to that of John Terry, Frank Lampard et all and the pursuit of European club glory.


The biggest compliment to be given to the book, is that you do not have to be a Leeds United fan to appreciate the journey these players went on and the emotional rush and release it must have been to become the Last Champions of England.


THE LAST CHAMPIONS is out now in Hardback by Bantam Press for £16.99RRP


http://lastchampions.blogspot.co.uk/ for up-to-date posts by Dave himself on the book and its release. Or alternatively follow him on twitter @davesimps0n


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