Andy_P Posted July 30, 2014 Report Share Posted July 30, 2014 Anybody else read wee Tam's autobiogrpahy? I got the paperback version for the old man at Christmas (he never ever did say whether he enjoyed it come to think of it) but saw it on a special recently and managed to pick it up for the Kindle for something like £1.50. It's actually pretty good. I've read a few books where the player in question has played with one of the Old Firm and Motherwell and whilst obviously they need to appeal to the Old Firm punters to get the sales, it can feel like the non-Old Firm chapters are almost an afterthought and tagged on. I read "Coop" recently where the author, whose name escapes, had Billy Davies - who didn't actually play with Cooper at Fir Park, Rangers fans bemoaning his sale, and some female stalker with a Cooper fascination making up the bulk of the contributions on the chapter of his time at 'Well. But don't be put off by the obligatory Rangers photo on the cover, McLean really does his time at Fir Park justice in this. I think there's a good 10 chapters detailing his time with us and various other references to his time at Motherwell across the book. There were a couple of interesting revelations too that I hadn't known about previously - like him being offered the Aberdeen job whilst at Motherwell and I really liked his comment that "I left Motherwell but Motherwell never left me". I think its back up towards something like full price again (around six quid) but well worth a read if anyone is looking for something Motherwell related to have a gander at. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
punk_in_drublic Posted July 30, 2014 Report Share Posted July 30, 2014 I was never a big fan of autobiographys but I picked up Ian St. John's a bit back when I was on holiday and I really enjoyed it (although the motherwell sections weren't too in depth, similar to what you note above but Liverpool focused rather than Old Firm obviously). I'll give the McLean autobiography a go. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ya Bezzer! Posted July 30, 2014 Report Share Posted July 30, 2014 Footballers autobiographies are generally anathema to me but I might try and track this down. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MelvinBragg Posted July 30, 2014 Report Share Posted July 30, 2014 Footballers autobiographies are generally anathema to me but I might try and track this down. Tony Adams' and Dennis Bergkamp's are pretty decent for different reasons... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steelboy Posted July 30, 2014 Report Share Posted July 30, 2014 what does he say about jumping ship to the jambos? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andy_P Posted July 30, 2014 Author Report Share Posted July 30, 2014 Without wanting to say too much, as a couple of posters, have said they intend to read the book it came down to money. He understood he was on a salary way below the rest of Premier League managers at that time and felt that should be redressed given his achievements. The club wouldn't move on their offer and he felt it was time to go. He says the Hearts gig wasn't pre-arranged and goes on to make a comment or two to make about his successor. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steelboy Posted July 30, 2014 Report Share Posted July 30, 2014 he was 47 when he left fir park (3 years younger than SMc is currently) and he only had another three seasons as a manager after that. he obviously ended up with a cushy number at ibrox but given the increased budget that was made available to mcleish he must have some regrets that he didn't stick around at fir park. litigating against hearts and then walking out of raith rovers after 6 days probably made him unemployable for any chairman other than his brother. alan curbishley has barely worked since taking west ham to court for selling their own players,he probably has some regrets as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andy_P Posted July 30, 2014 Author Report Share Posted July 30, 2014 Touches on both the Hearts and Raith Rovers situations and also about an offer to manage Kilmarnock that he knocked back after Jim Jefferies left them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yabba's Turd Posted July 30, 2014 Report Share Posted July 30, 2014 You got this for kindle? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mad Dog Posted July 31, 2014 Report Share Posted July 31, 2014 There's a hardback on ebay for £4.92, I'll be keeping an eye out for the paperback though; thanks for the recommendation Andy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Muzz Posted July 31, 2014 Report Share Posted July 31, 2014 Bought it last night and raced through the first few chapters ... great read so far. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MelvinBragg Posted July 31, 2014 Report Share Posted July 31, 2014 Read this book in a five hour sitting last night. Pretty interesting and he seems to hold strong opinions and still feels he has something to offer the game. I know his name has come up every time we need a new manager, and I've always dismissed him as yesterday's man. Having read how he's kept himself up to date, maybe I was being hasty... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
underboyleheating Posted July 31, 2014 Report Share Posted July 31, 2014 Read this book in a five hour sitting last night. Pretty interesting and he seems to hold strong opinions and still feels he has something to offer the game. I know his name has come up every time we need a new manager, and I've always dismissed him as yesterday's man. Having read how he's kept himself up to date, maybe I was being hasty... At age 67 he would be classed as one of the more mature managers, however, if you are still mentally fit I see no reason why you can't still manage a team in the top flight. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MelvinBragg Posted July 31, 2014 Report Share Posted July 31, 2014 At age 67 he would be classed as one of the more mature managers, however, if you are still mentally fit I see no reason why you can't still manage a team in the top flight. I think the reason that many (myself included) thought that his days were gone was that modern day football post-Bosman meant he couldn't rule with the iron fist he was perceived to. Having read his take on the modern game and young players, I may have been wrong... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dmacd1 Posted July 31, 2014 Report Share Posted July 31, 2014 Cheers for recommendation. Can be hard to find a decent football related read. Best Ive read in a while is The Secret Footballer. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ya Bezzer! Posted July 31, 2014 Report Share Posted July 31, 2014 he was 47 when he left fir park (3 years younger than SMc is currently) I would never have thought that. To me, Tommy McLean was always a wee old man with a tartan showl over his knees that would fly off when he got animated. Now I'm approaching that age! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Malky79 Posted July 31, 2014 Report Share Posted July 31, 2014 Just bought this for kindle, get started on it tonight. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
punk_in_drublic Posted July 31, 2014 Report Share Posted July 31, 2014 I would never have thought that. To me, Tommy McLean was always a wee old man with a tartan showl over his knees that would fly off when he got animated. Now I'm approaching that age! Same perception here. You always look at the pictures and videos and think he is the old guy we know now, but to have only been 47 when he left...that's quite young for a manager. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
punk_in_drublic Posted July 31, 2014 Report Share Posted July 31, 2014 Read this book in a five hour sitting last night. Pretty interesting and he seems to hold strong opinions and still feels he has something to offer the game. I know his name has come up every time we need a new manager, and I've always dismissed him as yesterday's man. Having read how he's kept himself up to date, maybe I was being hasty... That's too quick. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MelvinBragg Posted July 31, 2014 Report Share Posted July 31, 2014 That's too quick. I had nowt else to do. Easy reading, 50 pages an hour... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
foghorn Posted July 31, 2014 Report Share Posted July 31, 2014 Cheers for recommendation. Can be hard to find a decent football related read. Best Ive read in a while is The Secret Footballer. I am the Secret Footballer. Great read - very honest and informative. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fal_Dosser Posted June 14, 2015 Report Share Posted June 14, 2015 Just finished McLean's autobiography and found it (as a Dosser) a great read. He covers all his professional career, but a surprising amount of the book covers his time at the Well: shouldn't be surprising given the number of years with us, but he obviously has taken the club to heart. For what it's worth, I enjoyed the pre and post Well parts of the book as well. MON RA DOSSERS Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yabba's Turd Posted June 14, 2015 Report Share Posted June 14, 2015 Sounded like whoever he was talking to was a 'well fan given the obvious bias, not a bad thing if you're a fan reading it Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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