DUBLIN: The Chaos Years

For every Gaelic football fan here is a book offering fascinating insight into the egos, dressing room divides and bad habits from unwelcoming veterans to arseboxing and collapsing human pyramids, to marching to the Hill to startled earwigs and champions, Cotter has it all covered in his well written and insightful read. The raw and hardnosed nature of Gaelic football and the Dublin dressing room at the end of the 1990s jumps from the page. It was a time when Ireland's biggest, richest county went through such a barren period, from political squabbles to general mismanagement behind the scenes which kept the Dubs from taking Sam home for so long. There are also great snippets from interviews with former players and coaches from Bertie Ahern to a host of managers which add great colour to the stories. Dublin has become the dominant force in Gaelic football, setting new standards of skill and efficiency, but it was not very long ago that the county was a byword for underachievement and disorganisation. Every year from 1996 to 2010 the Dubs found new and creative ways of losing, of causing their fans to suffer, and of earning the scorn of the wider GAA public. The book is full of frank, witty and sometimes outrageous stories and analysis from those in the know. 256pp, paperback, colour photos.