31 July 2008

Ed Biggs, former general manager of the National Football League of Australia, will launch the book, 'A National Game, The History of Australian Rules Football' on Wednesday 6 August 2008, at Victoria University's City Flinders Campus.

Media are welcome to attend

Based on research mostly undertaken at Victoria University, this ground-breaking book, the first to consider the national development of the code in detail. Co-authors Robert Hess, Matthew Nicholson, Bob Stewart and Gregory de Moore draw upon their considerable research expertise and many never-before-published images to challenge popular conceptions about one of the country's best loved sports. The writers expose a number of myths about the origins of the game and provide a comprehensive narrative history up to its present-day controversies.

Without fear or favour, the book tackles a range of key issues, including:
myths surrounding the origin of the game;
the discord between fans and managers of the game;
the significant involvement of women in football;
the financial and legal minefields that characterise the code;
the immediate future of the game and its prospects for further expansion; and
the spread of the game throughout Australia and overseas.

Published to commemorate the 150th anniversary of what is commonly believed to be the genesis of the code in 1858, the book is a wide-ranging text spanning nearly 500 pages. It traces the fascinating evolution of this truly home-grown sport that traverses the divides of age, class, gender and ethnicity, through its turbulent and exciting beginning to the multi-million dollar industry that is now embedded in the culture of the nation.

With a forward by North Melbourne legend Dr Allen Aylett, the research for the book has been based on the remarkable upsurge of academic work on football in recent decades, and includes some 50 pages of carefully documented references to reports, correspondence, minutes, publications and statistics.

'A National Game, The History of Australian Rules Football' is a must-read for sports historians and footy lovers alike.

The book is published by Penguin Group (Australia).
Hardback
ISBN-13: 9780670070893
RRP: $49.95

BOOK LAUNCH
Where: The Gallery, Level 17, Victoria University, 300 Flinders Street, Melbourne.
Date: Wednesday 6 August 2008
Time: 6.00 - 7.30pm

The authors are available for interview after 4 August 2008
Copies of the book are available through Penguin Group (Australia).

Media Contacts:
Christine White, Media Manger,
Marketing & Communications Department, Victoria University