Rugby Memoirs

Having a relationship in the spotlight is hard enough, but in Currently Between Husbands, Cathrine Mahoney details the unique experience of breaking up with one of Australia's highest profile sport stars. Even for a self-confessed over-sharer, the breakdown of her marriage to rugby league player Andrew Johns was more public than she was used to. In her first book, the writer, podcaster, and publicist provides a self-deprecating and hilarious look at her life.

Keith Earls started out in senior rugby as a teenage star and during the course of his long career has become one of the most admired and respected players of his generation. A British & Irish Lion at the age of 21, he is now closing in on his 34th birthday and still playing at the top of his game. A native of Limerick city, Earls grew up in one of its most socially disadvantaged housing estates. His natural sporting talent brought him into the privileged bastion of elite rugby union.

Sam Warburton OBE was not only a titan of Welsh rugby but an icon of the game. Having represented his country as a player and team captain at all junior levels, he propelled himself to international attention in 2011 when named as the youngest ever captain of Wales for the Rugby World Cup. Despite his tender age, Sam's immense displays for club and country were recognised still further in April 2013, when, at just 24, he was named the Lions' captain for the extraordinary 2013 tour to Australia.

Winner of the William Hill Sports Book of the Year award, this is a scorching and deeply personal autobiography that lifts the lid on the life and character of one of English rugby's most successful players. Brian Moore, or 'Pitbull' as he came to be known during nearly a decade at the heart of the England rugby team's pack, established himself as one of the game's original hard men at a time when rugby was still an amateur sport.

In the autumn of 2010, a little-known New Zealander called Joe Schmidt took over as head coach at Leinster. He had never been in charge of a professional team. After Leinster lost three of their first four games, a prominent Irish rugby pundit speculated that Schmidt had 'lost the dressing room'. Nine years on, Joe Schmidt has stepped down as Ireland coach having achieved success on a scale never before seen in Irish rugby.

Rugby league legend Rob Burrow’s memoir will be one of the most inspirational books you’ll ever listen to. It will move you to tears and make you laugh. It will make you angry at the unfairness and cruelty of life. It will make you marvel at the fortitude and limits of the human spirit. And, like all the best books, perhaps it will make you reassess your own approach to living.

Join Alex, Mike and Hask as they unlock the vault and tell the stories of their most treasured days in rugby. With almost 60 years in the game between them this book is about the days you’ve never heard about, the games that mean the most to them and the dramas they’d almost forgotten. It’s about the heroes who did things that are best forgotten let alone be told and the enduring love for the wonderful game of rugby.

Johnathan Thurston is widely regarded as rugby league's greatest player. This autobiography will follow Thurston's journey from a Brisbane kid who was written off as too skinny, too slow, and too wild to play professionally, to his debut with the Canterbury Bulldogs in 2003, to State of Origin star, to Dally M and Clive Churchill Medal winner, and the fairytale premierships.

Since taking over as head coach of England in 2015, Eddie Jones has orchestrated a complete revival of the national team. He has won the Six Nations Championship back-to-back, including England’s first Grand Slam in a generation and their first-ever whitewash of Australia in their own backyard, as well as taking them on their longest-ever winning streak, matching the world record held by the All Blacks.

Wrecking Ball is a captivating and humorous memoir by Billy Vunipola, one of the stars of England's recent rugby renaissance, and will be enjoyed by those who have read the recent autobiographies by Jonny Wilkinson, Brian O'Driscoll, Dan Carter and Paul O'Connell. Standing at 6 feet 2 inches and weighing almost 20 stone, Billy is a rampaging and unmissable presence on the rugby pitch, for both club and country.

Ben Youngs has had a dream career. He was born into rugby royalty and has achieved incredible success with both his family club, Leicester Tigers, and the English men's national team, for whom he is the most capped player of all time. His is an on-field legacy that any rugby player would envy. But there’s more to his story than meets the eye. In this deeply intimate memoir, the English rugby legend reveals how his remarkable record on the pitch masks what was, at times, a turbulent life off it.

In the 1950s and 1960s one man dominated rugby coaching like no other: Roy Francis. He led teams to championships and Wembley finals, revolutionised the art of coaching and inspired his players to incredible achievements. But even more amazingly for those times, he was a Black man in a white world. Through archives, family members’ accounts and former players’ memories, Roy Francis tells the story of a family’s journey from slavery to sporting success, and of a remarkable man who defied prejudice to reach the pinnacle of rugby as a player, coach and leader.

One of the most respected and revered names in the professional era, Kearney took the art of full-back play to new heights in the number 15 jersey and his longevity, durability and dedication mark him out as a special man – on and off the pitch. Now, in Rob Kearney: No Hiding: My Autobiography he brings to life the players, the coaches, the matches and the moments that helped define his career.

Eoin Madden’s having a busy term with friend issues, schoolwork and new rugby challenges; he’s been moved up to train with the Junior Cup team, which is hard work, plus there’s trouble in his dormitory as mobile phones start going missing! But as usual there are ghostly goings-on in Castlerock school - what’s the link between Eoin’s history lessons and the new spirit he’s spotted wearing a Belvedere rugby jersey?

A hugely entertaining career autobiography from a true legend of Welsh rugby, and a genuine cult figure. In rugby, there are the Flash Harrys and the Glory Boys: the fly-halves who run, kick and dazzle; the scrum-halves who nip and dart; the wingers who step and glide. These are the players who get the crowd on their feet, who set stadiums abuzz. But they only get to do these things because other, less glorified figures do all of the donkey work. Adam Jones is one such figure.

The Extra Mile is no ordinary sports memoir. But Kevin Sinfield is no ordinary sportsman. A one-club legend of Leeds Rhinos, who has now crossed codes as a defence coach for Leicester Tigers, Kevin Sinfield is a rugby icon. But in recent years has shown heroism of a very different kind through his selfless and extraordinary fundraising for Motor neurone disease (MND), the terminal illness that has affected his best mate and former teammate Rob Burrow.

Danny Cipriani has always been searching for something. On the pitch, it was a line-break or space. A chink of light to dart through. An angle that no one else could see. Off the pitch, it was seeking a path through the pressure, fame and chaos that came with being anointed the ‘Saviour of English Rugby’. Who Am I? is the raw and powerful memoir of a man of mercurial talent who, with the world at his feet, made his England rugby debut aged 20.

Ben Youngs has had a dream career. He was born into rugby royalty and has achieved incredible success with both his family club, Leicester Tigers, and the English national team, for whom he is the most capped player of all time. His is an on-field legacy that any rugby player would envy. But there’s more to his story than meets the eye. In this deeply intimate memoir, the English rugby legend writes about how his remarkable record on the pitch masks what was, at times, a turbulent life off it.

In 2003, England won the Rugby World Cup. Steve Thompson was there, in England's front row, at the heart of the match and at the heart of the scrum—one of sport's most destructive, repetitive impacts. But the triumphs came at a cost. When rugby union turned professional, Steve was plunged into a game where raw power meant everything. Today, he remembers nothing about playing in that final. In his words, watching the tape back is like watching a ghost.

Carl Hayman, All Black #1000, once the most highly prized player in world rugby and a giant of the game in every sense—someone who was always respected, even feared. But at the end of seventeen years as a professional rugby player, the last eight played with the sole aim of setting up his family's future, Hayman's life began to unravel in nightmarish fashion.