The Toon - Roger Hutchinson

This lively, hard-hitting book portrays the brilliant management of such as Frank Watt - an early giant of the game - and takes us down through the thrilling decades with his successors, right up to the reign of King Kenny Dalglish. In its pages we see the educated play of Andy Aitken and Colin Veitch; we watch as the fast and furious centre-forward play of Jock Peddie paves the way for the era of the great Hughie Gallacher and the unique Jackie Milburn. It assesses the merits of all of their heirs, from Keegan to Cole, from Macdonald to Shearer, from Moncur to Beardsley, Ginola and Lee. Exploring and explaining the lean years as well as the successful decades, The Toon exposes the bad managers, incompetent directors and players who were unworthy of the black and white stripes. It takes an unflinching look at the lost opportunities and the Geordie footballers who went missing. But it also offers us the geniuses, the household names, the men who have lit up Tyneside and the world beyond in a hundred-year sequence of unforgettable League and Cup campaigns. Most of all, The Toon looks from the past towards a glorious future.