Among the Fans, by Patrick Collins
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.A new sporting imprint is always welcome, and Wisden Sports Writing have made a very promising start with Among the Fans.
Pat Collins is the sportswriters' sportswriter – his peers have voted him sportswriter of the year on no fewer than five occasions – and has long stood out as a beacon of good-humoured fair-mindedness and memorable phrasemaking. After 40-odd years, Collins still feels privileged to be paid for watching the world's biggest sporting occasions, but decided to step down from the press box temporarily to visit a mixed bag of events as a spectator.
Some are predictable – the 2010 World Cup, a rugby international at Twickenham, an Ashes Test, Wimbledon – but others are more eclectic. He starts with a point-to-point in Sussex, where he mingles with "men with brick-red faces and the kind of flat caps that confer an air of mysterious authority", before moving on to speedway at Eastbourne and Crayford dogs, all of which he enjoys while admiring the dedication of the supporters of these less-than-mainstream pursuits.
He is never condescending, but isn't slow to criticise when appropriate; he finds the "artless self-promotion" of England cricket's Barmy Army "pompous beyond parody", describes David Mellor presenting the radio football phone-in 606 as "beyond satire, a rural dean attempting to rap", and is distinctly underwhelmed by the preening posturings of past champions and the boorish baying of the crowd at the World Darts Championship at Alexandra Palace.
Yet mostly his enjoyment of time spent with the paying public is buoyantly evident, and his prose is always pitch-perfect. The result is a deeply enjoyable and often very funny book which should persuade those who didn't know it already just how brilliantly readable Collins is.
Published in hardback by Wisden Sports Writing, £18.99
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments