Beastly Fury : The Strange Birth of British Football
Beastly Fury : The Strange Birth of British Football
Click to enlarge
Author(s): Sanders, Richard
ISBN No.: 9780553819359
Pages: 336
Year: 201003
Format: Trade Paper
Price: $ 27.40
Dispatch delay: Dispatched between 7 to 15 days
Status: Available

The myth is that football is a British game. The truth is that football has existed wherever people have eaten animals and discovered that, at the end of their meal, they were left with a bladder which, useless as it seemed, was great fun to blow up and kick around. What was invented in Britain was the modern, professional, spectator sport. Beastly Fury is the story of how it happened. From the chaos and violence of early folk football, killed off by the twin forces of puritanism and the industrial revolution, to the remarkably similar public school football that kept the sport alive, Richard Sanders traces the history and the colourful personalities that abounded in the game as it moved from riot to a system of rules. He charts how the changing social fabric of Britain resulted in a shift of power from the south to the north, and how the working classes took control again of football. 31 March 1883 was the turning point for modern football. It was the last time a team of former public schoolboys would take part in an FA Cup final.


Against the favourites, the Old Etonians, were Blackburn Olympic, a team of working men who employed some of the new-fangled ideas such as pre-match training (how ungentlemanly) and passing between team-mates. Following a heroic struggle, Blackburn used their superior fitness to carry off the trophy in a historic 2-1 win. A fascinating social history, Beastly Fury is a must for football fans and anyone who ever wondered how the beautiful game became the people's game and went on to take over the world.


To be able to view the table of contents for this publication then please subscribe by clicking the button below...
To be able to view the full description for this publication then please subscribe by clicking the button below...