U is for unbalanced games

If you’ve never been involved in kids’ football, some of the scorelines in Foul and Fair might have caused some raised eyebrows. In my time coaching, I saw my team win by margins or nine or ten, as well as losing by a similar distance. I never personally encount...

I was aware of Lindisfarne for years without every properly checking them out. There was the single Run for Home in 1978 which the primary school aged me quite liked at the time, even if it now feels a bit more glossy and polished compared to their earlier stuff, and of course I knew Fog On The Tyne...

T is for Touchline.

Most grassroots games have the coaches and substitutes on one touchline, with the supporters (from both teams) on the opposite one. I’ve spent a lot of time on each side of that divide, variously as a parent or as a coach, and in both cases the atmosphere can vary widely.

T...

S is for Stoneleigh Swifts.

I wanted James’ team, the Stoneleigh Swifts, to be like a character in Foul and Fair. Like any other significant character, the team had to have its own narrative arc, something that would enable the reader to see how they change over the course of the book. Differe...