For forty years, the scourge of hooliganism has
blighted Britain's national game. Organised gangs from
almost every town and city in the nation have used
football as the arena for violent clashes in an
unofficial contest for supremacy. They have rioted,
wrecked, maimed and even killed. Yet they have remained
largely anonymous, a reviled yet intriguing sub-sect of
society. · Who are the hooligan gangs of Great Britain?
· Where do they come from and how do they organise? ·
Who are the principal players - past and present? These
questions and many more are answered in Hooligans, the
first volume of a unique and comprehensive two-part
reference guide to the most ingrained and active soccer
yob network in the world. Packed with photos and
informative profiles of the gangs both large and small,
Hooligans also documents the myths, the nicknames, the
victims, the localities, the battles and the police
operations. Combining hard fact with occasional touches
of black humour, and intense research with first-person
recollections, Hooligans covers the whole spectrum of
the gangs from Aberdeen to Luton ... the Barnsley Five-O
and their vicious slashing at the hands of Middlesbrough
... Paul Dodd, England's self-styled "Number One"
hooligan ... the combined force of the Dundee Utility
... the riots of the Leeds Service Crew ... Benny's Mob,
the Main Firm, the Lunatic Fringe, the Bastard Squad -
they're all here, together with numerous photos of mobs,
fights and riots. |
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