GAA star's tale of gambling up for book award

The story of a GAA star's battle against his gambling addiction was today announced as a contender for a major book award.

Mon, 22 Oct, 2007 - 17:22

The story of a GAA star's battle against his gambling addiction was today announced as a contender for a major book award.

Oisin McConville's 'The Gambler' is up against competition from 17 other sporting titles for the William Hill Irish Sports Book of the Year.

It is expected to be announced in December when a judging panel of top names from the world of sport, including Eamon Dunphy and George Hook, will select a title from a shortlist of the 18.

'The Gambler' tells the autobiographical story of Mr McConville's addiction, which left the Armagh footballer with debts of more than £100,000.

Tony Kenny of William Hill said: "There is a formidable line-up of books for this year's award and this shows the depth and quality of sports writing that is being produced in this country.

"Whoever wins this year's William Hill Irish Sports Book of the Year Award will be a very worthy recipient," he said.

Mr McConville battled his addiction for years and eventually turned the corner thanks to the support of family, friends and Gamblers Anonymous.

He said his addiction spiralled out of control around late 2002.

Of the 18 books on the long list, 11 focus on the world of GAA.

These include Jack O'Connor's 'Keys to the Kingdom', which details O'Connor's three years in charge of the Kerry Football team where he delivered two All-Ireland Championships, and Mick O'Dwyer's autobiography 'Blessed and Obsessed'.

All three books have been tipped as strong contenders in the competition.

Other titles in this year's line-up are Trevor Brennan's and Gerry Thornley's 'Heart and Soul', which details Brennan's career from one of Ireland's most talented forwards to his five-year ban from professional rugby.

Another rugby favourite is Brendan Fanning's 'From There To Here', which gives an account of Irish rugby in the professional era.

The original International William Hill Sports Book of the Year was established in 1989 and this year will be its 19th year. Previous winners include Lance Armstrong's 'It's Not About The Bike' and Nick Hornby's 'Fever Pitch'.

Last year's winner was Geoffrey Ward's book 'Unforgivable Blackness' detailing the rise and fall of Jack Johnson, the worlds first African-American heavyweight boxing champion.

The longlist for the 2007 William Hill Irish Sports Book of the Year:

'GAA Confidential' by Darragh McManus - Hodder Headline

'An Independent Man' by Eddie Jordan with Maurice Hamilton - Orion Books

'From There to Here' by Brendan Fanning - Gill and Macmillan

'Kings of September' by Michael Foley - O'Brien Press

'Keys to the Kingdom' by Jack O'Connor - Penguin Ireland

'From the Eye of the Hurricane' by Alex Higgins - Headline Hodder

'Determined' by Norman Whiteside with Rob Bagchi - Headline Hodder

'Dr Eamonn O'Sullivan' by Weeshie Fogarty - Merlin Publishing

'Every Single Ball' by Brian Corcoran with Kieran Shannon - Mainstream Publishing

'Summertime Blues' by Roland Tormey - Mainstrean Publishing

'Heart and Soul' by Trevor Brennan with Gerry Thornley - Red Rock Press