Around the World in 80 Minutes

In Search of Rugby Greatness

Robert Kitson

$42.99

Hardback

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English

Bloomsbury Sport
28 November 2023

Biography: sport; Sports & outdoor recreation; Sporting events, tours & organisations; Rugby Union

A WATERSTONES BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR 2023 - SPORT

'A mesmerising, unforgettable journey around world rugby. '

Donald McRae – Twice Winner of the William Hill Sports Book of the Year

‘Magnificent… hugely intelligent and entertaining.’

Stuart Barnes, Sunday Times

‘Really enjoyed it.’ Will Carling

‘An absolutely marvellous book… Recommended heartily.’ Jonathan Drennan, Sydney Morning Herald

CONTRASTING CHARACTERS, COLLIDING CULTURES, THE SAME OVAL-SHAPED BALL. A JOURNEY TO FIND THE RUGBY’S MOST REMARKABLE PEOPLE, TEAMS AND PLACES.

What makes rugby special? Which individuals and teams have defined the modern game? Around the World in 80 Minutes charts the ‘golden era’ of global rugby union between 1973 and 2023 and goes in search of the sport’s most influential trailblazers.

Robert Kitson, the Guardian’s long-time rugby union correspondent, assesses the game’s current health, tracks down the battered gladiators of yesteryear and asks some pertinent questions. Does rugby retain its old rugged charm? What does its future look like? And what, ultimately, constitutes rugby ‘greatness’?

Observant, amusing and thought-provoking, the journey takes in some of the game's more prominent names – including David Campese, Brian O’Driscoll, Maggie Alphonsi, Sean Fitzpatrick, Eddie Jones and Sir Clive Woodward – to reflect on rugby’s intangible shared joy.

Millions of fans continue to find rugby maddeningly irresistible and endlessly compelling. This book is for them, and for anyone else wondering where the appeal lies.

By: Robert Kitson
Imprint: Bloomsbury Sport
Country of Publication: United Kingdom
Dimensions: Height: 234mm, Width: 153mm,
ISBN: 9781399403580
ISBN 10: 1399403583
Pages: 272
Publication Date: 28 November 2023
Audience: General/trade , ELT Advanced
Format: Hardback
Publisher's Status: Active

Preface 1. David Duckham and Other Animals 2. Great Southern Land 3. Sunshine on Leith 4. Take Me to the River 5. All Aboard the Chariot 6. The Great Divide 7. Queens of the Stone Age 8. The Lion Kings 9. Silver Ferns and Golden Eras 10. Bokke, Bokke! 11. 2003 and All That 12. The Brave and the Faithful 13. Distant Horizons 14. First Among Equals 15. Postcards from the Edge 16. Fighting the Good Fight 17. Pacific Warriors 18. Riding the Bullet Train 19. The Americas Dream 20. Allez les Bleus! Epilogue Acknowledgements Bibliography Index

Robert Kitson has been the Guardian’s rugby union correspondent since 1999. He has attended every Rugby World Cup since 1991 and has covered almost 400 Test matches worldwide. He has also worked at five Olympic Games and reported on numerous other sports, including cricket, football, golf and tennis. His first book, Exe Men, won the 2021 Telegraph Rugby Book of the Year award. He is married with three children and lives in Devon.@robkitson

Reviews for Around the World in 80 Minutes: In Search of Rugby Greatness

A mesmerising, unforgettable journey around world rugby. With a brilliant cast of great players, Rob Kitson’s riveting new book spans contrasting eras and countries with the depth and range, wit and grit, substance and style of the great sport it captures and celebrates. -- Donald McRae – Twice Winner of the William Hill Sports Book of the Year Hugely enjoyable. Full of a generosity that can’t help but rekindle those warm, fuzzy feelings of shared communion, but without avoiding the hard edges of injury, racism, sexism, the future. I can’t see how anyone who loves rugby – or who wants to love rugby – could fail to enjoy this book. -- Richard Beard, award-winning author of The Day That Went Missing and Muddied Oafs An adventure through the very heart and soul of rugby, guided beautifully by an author who has seen it all, from gleaming World Cup finals to the Forest of Dean. -- Michael Aylwin * The Observer * A glorious, warm, perceptive, eclectic exploration of the essence of rugby and rugby folk. Finishing it, I came within a whisker of dragging those 30-year-old boots out of retirement. * Paul Ackford, columnist and former Harlequins and England forward * Around the World in 80 Minutes takes us on a fascinating journey through the highways and byways of global rugby union, celebrating its past and exploring the issues confronting it today. It’s essential reading for serious fans of the game. * Professor Tony Collins, author of The Oval World: A Global History of Rugby * Magnificent … a hugely intelligent and entertaining interweaving series of tales that gets into the “how” of rugby. * Stuart Barnes, Sunday Times and Times columnist, former Bath and England fly-half *