As an ex football mum and a teacher, what a gloriously nostalgic, fun read! Another triumph from Steve with a lead character who you sometimes want to shake with frustration but yet want to ultimately come out on top. James Hogan is, at times, the football coach we all want for our sons and yet flawed enough to be human. A few convenient tie ups make you remember it's fiction but the accounts of football matches and comments from the sidelines brought back many a memory of years of youth football. An enjoyable, feel-good read that serves as a reminder of what youth football is really all about.

Foul and Fair is the second book I've read by Steve Couch, he's quickly turning into my new favourite author. It's a fantastic tale that I couldn't put down and read across two days. I'd recommend this to anyone. Buy it. It's funny, makes you think and even makes me want to like football.

Foul and Fair absolutely captures the world of grassroots football. Anyone who has spent time on the touchline will recognise the characters and situations, as well as getting swept up in the unfolding story. I loved every page. It's fantastic.

If more coaches absorbed the lessons of the book, more kids would have a truly inspirational experience of grassroots football.

I loved this book. Many moments that made me laugh interspersed with incidents that we have all seen many times in real life. The author understands what grassroots football should be about, with the kids first and foremost.

I hope Foul and Fair helps to educate coaches about their responsibilities in working with children, through the many examples of both good and poor practice highlighted throughout the book.

Had me gripped from the first chapter I didn’t want to stop. Loved the story and the characters and it felt so realistic. Throughly recommend to any one

Another fantastic, gripping story. I found myself increasingly struggling to put the book down, something that seems to be a running theme through Couch's works.

It's easy to get lost in the story and question your own choices when examining those of James & Kieran. I loved the attention to detail, and the author's love of football and literature shone through in this must-read story of the battle we all face between doing what is right for us or right for others.

An entertaining read with plenty of plot changes. It will hopefully provide food for thought too for coaches and parents on the touchlines who tend to get too carried away.

C.S.Lewis once said 'Literature adds to reality, it does not simply describe it'. Steve Couch’s latest book Foul and Fair certainly does just that. It’s a fascinating tale of fragile morality, and anything that manages to squeeze in Billy Bragg and Malcolm Tucker references can’t be bad. I’d highly recommend this to anyone, whether you’re into your football or not.

Steve Couch is the new Irvine Welsh, a rising literary star.

If you have ever been in youth football as a coach, parent or referee you will find yourself reliving every moment in this book. Great book and a must read.

As a former Sunday League player and as someone who has watched one of his grandsons play in their local side on a number of occasions (and also working as a Deputy Head of House at a comprehensive school), I really enjoyed this book (350 pages in 1.5 days gives you a sense of how readable/page turning it is!). The story felt entirely authentic. I recognised many of the characters and situations… not to mention the overzealous team managers, embarrassing loud-mouthed parents, intimidating pupils and the career-obsessed teachers! Very enjoyable.

I really enjoyed Steve's first book (Dead Man Singing) so I was excited to get started on this one. It took me a little while to get into it as I'm not a football fan and have no experience of youth teams but I soon got sucked into the battle of a mostly decent man vs an extremely dodgy one.

Steve is very good at writing flawed characters, such as Dave in his first book, and James was definitely another character whose decisions I found hard to understand at times. Of course, I was rooting for him against the awful behaviour of Kieran, and I was rooting for James' gorgeous team of loveable kids who really are in it for the love of the game.

A really good read, thoroughly recommended (even if you don't like football!)