BOOK REVIEWS
Life’s A Pitch – The Groundsman’s Tale, by Ian Darler, published by G2 Entertainment, Price: £12.99
ON THE face of it, an autobiography by the Cambridge United groundsman doesn’t sound particularly appealing.
However, once you start reading Ian Darler’s account, the doubts soon fade away. It helps that he has been head groundsman at the Abbey Stadium for 40 years.
He’s seen so many board members, managers and players come and go in that time. He’s got on well with some… and not so well with others. There have been highs and lows on the pitch with promotions and relegations.
In addition to caring for the pitch, he has also fulfilled two other important roles for the U’s – stadium manager and matchday safety officer. The stories and anecdotes come thick and fast in his well-written and entertaining book.
There are some serious passages too, including the time he suffered a serious accident at work that left him with a number of injuries and led to him suffering from depression. It is to his credit that he doesn’t gloss over this tough time in his life but gives a detailed account of what it was like.
Overall, it is a book that offers a fascinating insight into what life is like on the inside of a football club.
One of the most interesting parts of the books covers the period when the U’s enjoyed success under controversial boss John Beck.
Whether it was rock-hard footballs for the visitors to warm up with or their tea being laced with vast amounts of sugar, Beck and his number two Gary Peters tried to give Cambridge an extra edge.
Darler writes: “The most bizarre occurrence in my 40 years at Cambridge United came when John called me into his office and reiterated that the pitch was too good for his style of play. His players would, he said, now train on the pitch each and every day and I was not to put right any damage incurred.
“I was dumbfounded. ‘In that case, John,’ I enquired, ‘what do you want me to do all day?’. ‘You like fishing,’ he replied. ‘Go fishing.’
“Naturally, I was worried that I would lose my job under this regime – groundsmen who spend all day on the riverbank tend to be unemployed groundsmen. I pointed this out to John who, to give him credit, signed a letter confirming his instructions and emphasising that the pitch was no longer my responsibility.”
It goes to show what a strange world football can sometimes be and award-winning groundsman Darler takes you into that bubble. Clearly, this is a book that will appeal to Cambridge fans, but it also merits a wider audience.
Rating out of 10: 9
