Jack Hobbs

The astonishing feats of Sir Jack Hobbs continue to resonate more than a century after he first played Test cricket. During his long career that stretched from the age of W.G. Grace to the era of Don Bradman, he scored more first-class runs and centuries than any player. Even today, he remains England's greatest run maker in Ashes Tests. He changed the art of batting with his elegant style, and transformed the status of professional cricketers through the strength of his personality. Born into poverty, Hobbs rose to have a central role in some of Test cricket's most explosive series, but not without controversy and dispute. At last here is a comprehensive biography of Hobbs, giving us fresh insights into every aspect of his story. SHORTLISTED FOR THE BRITISH SPORTS BOOK AWARDS 2012 CRICKET BOOK OF THE YEAR.

Did you know that cricket is the second most popular sport in the world and has been an established team sport for centuries, with more than 100 cricket-playing nations now recognised by the International Cricket Council? No doubt those questions haven't left cricket aficionados remotely stumped, but be prepared to be caught out by the 1,000 leg-breaking quiz questions in this book. Your innings will require you to recall facts and figures relating to every possible aspect of the game of cricket from players to umpires and national to international matches, together with all kinds of trivia, so you could very easily find yourself in a real spin and may need to enlist the help of friends to bail you out before a sneaky Chinaman bowls you over, slips you up or reduces you to a pile of ashes. Whether you find yourself top of the batting order or limping with a square leg, this book, with a fitting foreword by Dickie Bird, contains a wealth of knowledge about the sport that is guaranteed to enthral all cricket fans, and questions that will stimulate fond memories and friendly debates for many an entertaining hour.

Frankie Dettori is certainly one of the late twentieth and early twenty-first centuries’ truly great international jockeys. Italian by birth – he rode his first winner there – we have been lucky in England that he came to live in Newmarket aged fifteen and has ridden mainly here. A great and popular figure, quietly and privately he has done much for disabled people. In fact, he is a good example by any standards of a superb sportsman on and off the racecourse. Perhaps most famous for riding all seven winners at Ascot on 28 September 1996, his record in the English classics over 30 years gives a true indication of his ability and dedication. There is no doubt that England’s five classic races, the 1,000 and 2,000 Guineas which both run in late April/early May at Newmarket over a mile, the Oaks and Derby which run in early June at Epsom over a mile and a half, and the St Leger which runs nearly two miles in mid-September at Doncaster, are very, very important races on the international racing scene. Frankie Dettori's record in them is super – 23 wins. Since 1945, he and Lester Piggott are the only jockeys to ride at least two winners of each of the classics. To put Frankie’s record into perspective, Sir Gordon Richards, 26-time champion flat jockey between 1925 and 1953, rode only fourteen classic winners. This highly readable but erudite book devotes a double page spread to every winning ride, and there is a color section of photographs of him aboard his winning mounts by the famous racing journalist John Crofts. Dettori's first classic winner was in the 1994 Oaks at Epsom on Balanchine and his last in 2023, once again in the Oaks, on Soul Sister. This book is a superb record of greatness in the saddle over 30 years.

Few sporting records capture the imagination quite like that of the highest individual score in Test cricket. It is the blue riband record of batting achievement, the ultimate statement of stamina and skill. From Charles Bannerman, who scored 165 for Australia against England in the inaugural Test match in 1877, to Brian Lara, who made 400 not out for West Indies against England in 2004, the record has changed hands ten times. Chris Waters' The Men Who Raised the Bar charts the growth of the record through nearly one hundred and fifty years of Test cricket. It is a journey that takes in a legendary line of famous names including Sir Donald Bradman, Sir Leonard Hutton, Sir Garfield Sobers and Walter Hammond, along with less heralded players whose stories are brought back into the light. Drawing on the reflections of the record-holders, Waters profiles the men who raised the bar and their historic performances.

The unauthorized biography of John Elway, Hall of Fame Quarterback, two-time Super Bowl Champion, now President of Football Operations and General Manager of the Denver Broncos. John Elway's historic moments are known by two-word phrases. He was at the center of the wildest play in college football history, simply known as "The Play." Before he signed a pro contract, there was "The Trade." His NFL career included "The Drive" and "The Fumble," and, of course, "The Helicopter," one of the most iconic highlights in Super Bowl lore. There are so many memorable comeback victories and heroic plays that people have to make lists rather than consider Elway in the context of any singular event. Yet Elway's story is filled with one challenge after another. At Stanford, he never played in a Bowl game. He was ripped for being petulant after refusing to sign with the Baltimore Colts when he was drafted No. 1 overall, and later for his failure to get along with coach Dan Reeves. Over the first 10 years of his career, Elway led Denver to three Super Bowls, but lost in progressively worse fashion each time. Finally, after fifteen years of perseverance, Elway led the Broncos to back-to-back championships, including the biggest upset in Super Bowl history. Elway won the MVP award in his final Super Bowl and then walked away from the game. Within four years, Elway's father and twin sister both died, and he went through a difficult divorce. Reeling in his post-retirement, he returned to football . . . at the bottom, running the Colorado Crush of the Arena Football League. He waited more than a decade to return to his beloved Broncos. While many people doubted him initially, Elway navigated the Broncos through massive changes and to victory in Super Bowl 50, making Elway the rare Hall of Famer to win a title both on and off the field. Elway has put his passion for competition on display in a way that only a handful of other NFL greats have ever done, and Elway is the most complete look at one of the most accomplished legends in the history of American sports.

In the spring of 1917 the Arras offensive was begun to break the stalemate of the Western Front by piercing the formidable German defences of the Hindenburg Line. The village of Bullecourt lay at the southern end of the battle front, and the fighting there over a period of six weeks from 11 April until late May 1917, epitomised the awful trench warfare of World War I. In Bullecourt 1917, Paul Kendall tells the stories of the fierce battles fought by three British and three Australian divisions in an attempt to aid Allenby’s Third Army break out from Arras. Approximately 10,000 Australian and 7,000 British soldiers died, many of whom were listed as missing and have no known grave. The battle caused much consternation due to the failure of British tanks in supporting Australian infantry on 11 April, but despite the lack of tank and artillery support the Australian infantry valiantly fought their way into the German trenches. It took a further six weeks for British and Australian infantry to capture the village. This book tells the story of this bitter battle and pays tribute to the men who took part. Crucially, Paul Kendall has contacted as many of the surviving relatives of the combatants as he could, to gain new insight into those terrible events on the Hindenburg Line.