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The Rocky Road
The Rocky Road is the autobiography of Eamon Dunphy - the man the Guardian called 'the most entertaining, blindingly brilliant pundit of all time'.
For more than thirty years, no commentator on Irish sport, politics and culture has been the object of so much love, hatred and fascination as Eamon Dunphy. Now, in The Rocky Road - one of the most hotly anticipated Irish autobiographies of recent times - Dunphy takes us behind the scenes of a passionate life - from childhood poverty in Dublin to the Football League to the forefront of journalism and debate in Ireland.
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'An absolute cracker ... provocative, endlessly entertaining, occasionally over the top but brimming with passion and heart. A memoir worthy of the life and times it describes' Irish Times
'Outstanding ... To paraphrase the great man himself, it's not a good book, it's a great book' Irish Independent
'Absorbing and heartfelt' Sunday Business Post
'Excellent ... a exceptionally engaging read' Irish Mail on Sunday
'A cut above the typical 4-4-2 sporting autobiography ... full of delicious anecdotes' Sunday Times
'Warm, passionate, angry and funny' Irish Daily Mail
'Doesn't pull any punches' Hot Press
For more than thirty years, no commentator on Irish sport, politics and culture has been the object of so much love, hatred and fascination as Eamon Dunphy. Now, in The Rocky Road - one of the most hotly anticipated Irish autobiographies of recent times - Dunphy takes us behind the scenes of a passionate life - from childhood poverty in Dublin to the Football League to the forefront of journalism and debate in Ireland.
_____________
'An absolute cracker ... provocative, endlessly entertaining, occasionally over the top but brimming with passion and heart. A memoir worthy of the life and times it describes' Irish Times
'Outstanding ... To paraphrase the great man himself, it's not a good book, it's a great book' Irish Independent
'Absorbing and heartfelt' Sunday Business Post
'Excellent ... a exceptionally engaging read' Irish Mail on Sunday
'A cut above the typical 4-4-2 sporting autobiography ... full of delicious anecdotes' Sunday Times
'Warm, passionate, angry and funny' Irish Daily Mail
'Doesn't pull any punches' Hot Press
376 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2013
8 people are currently reading
77 people want to read
About the author
Eamon Dunphy
11 books10 followersEamon Martin Dunphy is an Irish media personality, broadcaster, author, sports pundit and former professional footballer. Since retiring from the sport, he has become recognisable to Irish television audiences as a football analyst during coverage of the Premier League, UEFA Champions League and international football on Raidió Teilifís Éireann (RTÉ).
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
December 15, 2021
I have an interest in Irish history and football, although not particularly journalism, so an interesting read!
March 10, 2014
From http://www.freeburner.wordpress.com
There can’t be many people in Ireland that don’t have an opinion of some sort about Eamon Dunphy. His football punditry is a breath of fresh air from the banal nonsense we’re used to seeing on televised coverage of sport. The only thing about such forthright honesty is that you’re almost certainly going to rub people up the wrong way.
He’s probably most deeply embedded in the national consciousness for his performance on RTE’s coverage of the 1990 Word Cup. The nation was riding on a wave of euphoria with the joy of holding their own in the tournament but Eamon was critical of the Route One football Jack Charlton was favouring.
The price for this honesty was his ten-year-old daughter being chased indoors while trying to celebrate David O’Leary’s winning penalty against Romania and his son being roughed up in a disco on the night of the homecoming. Such incidents involving the people he loved weighed heavily on Eamon and he himself faced incidents with people shaking his car and refusing to take him in taxis.
He’s a man that expresses deep gratitude for small incidents of kindness from people that sought to protect him from such things. He comes from humble beginnings, raised in a single room for four people with no hot water or electricity. He describes a time when people were living in fear and poverty while traders and those in power ripped them off before trying to wash away their sins by receiving Holy Communion of a Sunday.
He’s full of stories about his early experiences playing football in the local field and in the Dump and the wise youths that took Eamon under their wing. Summer proved to be lonely time with Eamon wandering around with little more than a ball for company, the other lads having made for the seaside or the cinema. Such things weren’t affordable to Eamon but the Drumcondra area is the source of a lot of joy with a good school, a local library and people to kick ball with.
He’s got a real distaste for Official Ireland and when he moves to England to play for Manchester United he’s more content in England than he was back in Ireland, delighted that he never bought into any of the anti-English beliefs.
His career takes him to clubs like Millwall and Reading and he proves to be a voice of dissent in most of them. He ruffles a fair few feathers when he expresses his views against apartheid and wears a black armband in the aftermath of Bloody Sunday. There’s a soap opera over a beef and pay suring his time at Reading.
When his football career comes to an end he’s fast-tracked into journalism with work at the Sunday Independent and Tribune. He proves to be every bit as honest in this role with the Blazers at the FAI and lauded politicians like John Hume being heavily criticised. He wants to lift the lid on the clowns that were running Irish soccer but also say his piece about the person in the manager’s seat. This sees him earning himself a glass of wine in the face from Eoin Hand and Jack Charlton exploding at him at his very first press conference.
He puts the account of his life forward beautifully and resists getting involved in any long rants. It makes for a very entertaining read and an invaluable insight into the mind of a unique figure. Whether you love him or hate him I think you could find much to enjoy in this.
There can’t be many people in Ireland that don’t have an opinion of some sort about Eamon Dunphy. His football punditry is a breath of fresh air from the banal nonsense we’re used to seeing on televised coverage of sport. The only thing about such forthright honesty is that you’re almost certainly going to rub people up the wrong way.
He’s probably most deeply embedded in the national consciousness for his performance on RTE’s coverage of the 1990 Word Cup. The nation was riding on a wave of euphoria with the joy of holding their own in the tournament but Eamon was critical of the Route One football Jack Charlton was favouring.
The price for this honesty was his ten-year-old daughter being chased indoors while trying to celebrate David O’Leary’s winning penalty against Romania and his son being roughed up in a disco on the night of the homecoming. Such incidents involving the people he loved weighed heavily on Eamon and he himself faced incidents with people shaking his car and refusing to take him in taxis.
He’s a man that expresses deep gratitude for small incidents of kindness from people that sought to protect him from such things. He comes from humble beginnings, raised in a single room for four people with no hot water or electricity. He describes a time when people were living in fear and poverty while traders and those in power ripped them off before trying to wash away their sins by receiving Holy Communion of a Sunday.
He’s full of stories about his early experiences playing football in the local field and in the Dump and the wise youths that took Eamon under their wing. Summer proved to be lonely time with Eamon wandering around with little more than a ball for company, the other lads having made for the seaside or the cinema. Such things weren’t affordable to Eamon but the Drumcondra area is the source of a lot of joy with a good school, a local library and people to kick ball with.
He’s got a real distaste for Official Ireland and when he moves to England to play for Manchester United he’s more content in England than he was back in Ireland, delighted that he never bought into any of the anti-English beliefs.
His career takes him to clubs like Millwall and Reading and he proves to be a voice of dissent in most of them. He ruffles a fair few feathers when he expresses his views against apartheid and wears a black armband in the aftermath of Bloody Sunday. There’s a soap opera over a beef and pay suring his time at Reading.
When his football career comes to an end he’s fast-tracked into journalism with work at the Sunday Independent and Tribune. He proves to be every bit as honest in this role with the Blazers at the FAI and lauded politicians like John Hume being heavily criticised. He wants to lift the lid on the clowns that were running Irish soccer but also say his piece about the person in the manager’s seat. This sees him earning himself a glass of wine in the face from Eoin Hand and Jack Charlton exploding at him at his very first press conference.
He puts the account of his life forward beautifully and resists getting involved in any long rants. It makes for a very entertaining read and an invaluable insight into the mind of a unique figure. Whether you love him or hate him I think you could find much to enjoy in this.
July 2, 2014
Really enjoyed this book when I started reading it and it was talking about his early days as a footballer as I could relate to this. But unfortunately by the end of the book he rambles on about issues he had with various editors, politicians.... these chapters could be skipped in large parts as they are incohesive. He also gives too little time to his more recent spats. A disappointing end to a promising book.
I have heard him mention that there is probably another book on the way and that may explain some glaring absences.... not sure I will bother though. He gives far too much weight to his political beliefs.....
I have heard him mention that there is probably another book on the way and that may explain some glaring absences.... not sure I will bother though. He gives far too much weight to his political beliefs.....
February 5, 2014
Excellent book. As well written as you would expect and a great insight into Dublin Society in the fifties and the eighties especially. He is never afraid to admit his mistakes and weaknesses and that is why people relate to him so much. I grew up listening to his views on soccer and while he is not always right, the level of debate that he brings to soccer analysis is beyond anything any other sport can offer.
February 22, 2014
For two-thirds of this book, it's a brilliant, insightful and honest account of life and football in Dublin and later England. It loses its way a bit when it wallows with the spoofers and chancers of the Horseshoe Bar, but nonetheless it whets the appetite for the next volume from Dunphy.
May 28, 2015
Dunphy is a hypocrite of the highest order but he did live in interesting times and tells the stories well.
August 8, 2019
If you read the book, you're likely in the 'like-Dunphy' column and it won't disappoint. Dunphy's a story-teller, mostly straight-shooting, sometimes arrogant, often erudite. This book is a nice commentary on the path more-often traveled in soccer, where, as Dunphy suggests, 85 percent of the youngsters signed by the big clubs never make it and are ultimately cast out into the world without education or prospects. It's also an interesting take on Irish culture - at least, Dunphy's version of it - in the 1950's and the 1980's (he was plying his trade on the pitches of mostly lower-division teams for much of the '60's and '70's.). All told, I really enjoyed the book, with the exception of a perplexing ending.
January 6, 2022
I wasn't expecting much from this book, but it provides a very engaging commentary on the social and political history of Ireland from the 1950s onwards. Eamon Dunphy is a man who is prone to contradictions and I've not been a fan of some of his previous books, but I thoroughly enjoyed this one. It's well worth the read.
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October 7, 2025Interesting book about one of the Irish greats and the story behind his growth into the world of football
May 25, 2014
Honesty as a policy didn't always seem best for Eamon. I love his take on politics and the writing style has a wonderful flow. Did the ending seem like a "to be continued ..,"
December 9, 2014
Enjoyable read, interesting perspectives on football, irish society & politics. Though you may not always agree, Dunphy's passion keeps you enthralled.
August 14, 2016
A good read. Covers only up to the Charlton era and I was disappointed it ended there.
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews