‘Outside of a dog, a book is man’s best friend’

The chances are that the majority perusing these words have an interest in sport and/or reading, though of course there may be a few masochists in the audience too.

To aid what we assume is the majority though, we have decided to take a look at the Irish sports books on offer this Christmas. As ever, it’s a packed market but any publisher will tell you that the volume of sports books purchased in the final quarter of the year heavily outweighs the other three. The majority are bought as presents, but you can always drop hints as to what you want and this guide will hopefully be of assistance in that regard.

Club histories can often be dry accounts of wins and losses, long on detail but short on character, however Something in The Water by Kieran McCarthy (Mercier Press) certainly avoids such accusations. While the author is a friend and colleague, there is no bias here – if the book wasn’t up to scratch, we simply wouldn’t mention it.

To enjoy the story of Skibbereen Rowing Club, one doesn’t need to be from west Cork or have an interest in rowing. The easy thing for McCarthy to do would have been to centre it fully around the O’Donovan brothers, Gary and Paul, and their silver medal at the 2016 Olympic Games, but they are only one facet of an absorbing tale that continues to be told.

The real star is coach Dominic Casey, the man behind all of the club’s great rowers, and while his dislike for interviews means that his trade secrets remain intact, his presence looms large throughout. In any case, as is proven time and again, the ‘secret’ is hard work.

As a club, Skibb has almost prided itself on its lack of airs or graces – there have been times when singlets weren’t available for everybody and red insulating tape was strung across a vest to provide a makeshift kit – and that earthiness and appetite for hard work shines through and is replicated in the quality of the telling of the story.

Rugby offerings

In terms of rugby, the big hitters are Ordinary Joe by Joe Schmidt (Penguin), and All In by Jamie Heaslip with Matt Cooper (Gill). We deleved into Schmidt’s autobiography and its shortcomings here a couple of weeks ago and it would be unfair to repeat those. In any case, it’s likely that rugby fans will find something of interest in the New Zealander’s recounting of his early life and introduction to coaching.

Heaslip had the Ireland captaincy taken off him by Schmidt, but his least-favourite coach remains Eddie O’Sullivan and he isn’t afraid to put forward a case for the prosecution. There is perhaps a little too much about Heaslip the brand rather than the man who became one of the best number 8s in the world. The fact that questioning by Paul Kimmage in the Sunday Independent has forced Heaslip to row back on claims of a failed drugs test back in 2006 doesn’t instil huge confidence in its authenticity.

Gaelic life

The GAA sector can be heaving some years, but it does appear to be fairly quiet this time around. One staple is A Season of Sundays, an annual pictorial review of the year by Sportsfile. It always finds its way to our breakfast table on Christmas Day and twice – in 2008 (on the back of a lorry) and 2016 – the Hurleys have been lucky enough to feature. From cold January days in January with a few tough souls watching an O’Byrne Cup match all the way through to the glamour of the All-Ireland finals, all facets of Gaelic life are present and captured for posterity.

In terms of players’ autobiographies, Eoin Larkin’s Camouflage (Reach plc) would appear to be the market leader. Written in conjunction with Pat Nolan of the Irish Daily Mirror, the former Kilkenny man elaborates on his time in the Defence Forces as well as his experiences of depression, alongside a glittering career on the field.

While Cats manager – and Larkin’s James Stephens clubmate – Brian Cody has a reputation for being a hard taskmaster, he deserves credit for noticing that Larkin wasn’t himself and his phone call enquiring about the attacker’s wellbeing set in motion the events which helped progress to be made.

There is so much mystique around the Kilkenny of Cody’s tenure that any book by a player is going to generate interest as people look to find out what’s behind the curtain. Like Jackie Tyrrell’s two years ago, this may not reveal too many trade secrets but that doesn’t mean it’s not worth reading.

Two other personal tales are Royal Blood by former Meath player Martin O’Connell and former Roscommon manager Kevin McStay’s The Pressure Game (both Hero Books). McStay’s has attracted attention for revelations that he had to pay for team expenses out of his own pocket (which were reimbursed), but there is a lot more to consume. We are given an insight into just what it is like for an inter-county manager and it’s easy to see why it can break so many.

The Double, by Adrian Russell (Mercier) is the reliving of Cork’s never-to-be-forgotten 1990 All Ireland football and hurling double.

Russell speaks to a wide cast of players and management to paint a living image of the time. Even those unfortunate souls not from Cork will find it fascinating.

And finally, former Republic of Ireland striker Richie Sadlier leads the way with Recovering (Gill), the kind of book to stop you in your tracks. While professional footballers look like they have it all, Sadlier’s story shows what can go on beneath the surface as he battled to forget childhood sexual abuse, though often in a self-medicating fashion. Early retirement brought yet more issues to deal with, though thankfully there is a somewhat happy ending as he proves that trauma can be faced, if not forgotten.