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MATTHEWS, STANLEY: : THE WAY IT WAS: MY AUTOBIOGRAPHY

LONDON.HEADLINE,2000.

ISBN 0747271089.

UK,8vo HB+dw/dj,1st edn,2nd imp.FINE/FINE. No owner inscrptn,but price-clipped dw/dj. Bright,crisp,clean,glossy laminated dw/dj, with small b/w contemporary subject photograph and gilt embossed letters to upper wrap and a small colour,subject portrait photograph with tributes to rear wrap; with minimal shelf-wear and negligible creasing to edges - no nicks or tears present.Minisculely bumped with reciprocal creasing to both head+foot of spine/backstrip.Top+fore-edges bright and clean,contents bright,tight and pristine. Clean,plain black paper-covered boards with bright,crisp,stamped gilt letters to spine/backstrip and colour facsimile football programme covers illustrated endpapers.UK,8vo HB+dw/dj,1st edn,1-440pp includes half-title+title pages,contents list,25 chapters,24pp contemporary b/w photographs and 8pp contemporary colour photographs interspersed between text, epilogue by Les Scott,career record and an index. Stanley Matthews is a legend,the first superstar of world football.In this,his long-awaited autobiography completed just before his death in February 2000,he vividly brings to life some of football's greatest ever matches,offering absorbing personal accounts of the game's legendary players.He relives his memorable performance in the FA Cup final of 1953, arguably the greatest of them all,as he inspired Blackpool's comeback.But he was also there when the England team had to give the Nazi salute in Berlin in 1938 and at the Burnden Park disaster in 1946 - events that have transcended football and become part of British history.Here are the untold stories behind many of football's greatest games and characters. The unguarded asides,the camaraderie,the drama and colour are all revealed in this remarkable memoir.Players of the past and present come under his expert scrutiny,and as he highlights the changes that have taken place over the decades,both on the pitch and off it,he sheds a unique and engrossing light on the sport he loves. 'The Way It Was' is the compelling and hugely entertaining portrait of a man who was loved and respected throughout the world.It is a unique look at football from one of its greatest players, and is also essential reading for anyone who wants to understand how football,and society,have changed over the last 70 years. [Stanley Matthews was born in Stoke-on-Trent,February 1915.At 15 he joined the groundstaff of Stoke City FC.He made his League debut for them in 1932 in the era of Dixie Dean,and played his last game at 50 in the age of George Best.He played for Stoke until 1947,when he moved to Blackpool.He reached three FA Cup finals in the next six seasons,eventually winning the competition in 1953.He returned to Stoke City in 1961 and finished his career in 1965.He won 54 caps for England between 1934 and 1957,as well as playing in 29 wartime internationals. The oldest player ever to appear in the top division of English football,Stanley Matthews made 697 League appearances, spanning a record 33 years,and played his last game in Brazil at the age of 70.In all he completed more than 1800 matches, never once being cautioned or sent off.He was the first ever Footballer of the Year (1948),and the first European Footballer of the Year (1956).He was the first footballer ever to be awarded the CBE and then the first to be knighted (1965),and remains the only one to receive the award while still playing.]He died peacefully on Feb 23,2000. Please contact seller,for correct shipping/P+p quotes - particularly ALL overseas buyers - BEFORE ordering through the order page! N.B. ALL buyers please note,stocks' actual shipping/P+p costs are adjusted and any difference is refunded,after order's receipt and before the order's despatch,especially if the item(s) are offered either P+p included/FREE. ** N.B. US/Canada customers please be aware: Standard AIRMAIL postage from UK to these destinations can now cost more than the price of the book! If speed is not of the essence, then Economy rate is recommended - at approx. anything from a 1/3rd to 1/2 of the standard US AIR quote/rate - sometimes arriving sooner than the 42 days - but not always. **

UK,8vo HB+dw/dj,1st edn,2nd imp.
Not SIGNED.

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