What do you think?
Rate this book
Tom Wills: First wild man of Australian sport
This is the story of Tom Wills - flawed genius, sporting libertine, fearless leader and agitator, and the man most often credited with creating the game we now know as Australian Rules football.
Sent to the strict British Rugby School in 1850 at fourteen, Tom returned as a worldly young man whose cricket prowess quickly captured the hearts of Melburnians. But away from the adoring crowds, in the desolation of the Queensland outback, he experienced first-hand the devastating effects of racial tension when his father was murdered in the biggest massacre of Europeans by Aboriginal people. Yet five years later, Tom coached the first Aboriginal cricket team.
Tom Wills lived hard and fast, challenging authority on and off the field. But when his physical talents began to fade, the psychological demons that alcohol and adrenaline had kept at bay surged to the fore, driving him to commit the most brutal of suicides. He was forty-four and destitute.
Greg de Moore has carefully pieced together Tom's life, giving us an extraordinary portrait of the life and times of one of our first sporting heroes, a man who lived by his own rules and whose contribution to Australian history has endured for more than 150 years.
Sent to the strict British Rugby School in 1850 at fourteen, Tom returned as a worldly young man whose cricket prowess quickly captured the hearts of Melburnians. But away from the adoring crowds, in the desolation of the Queensland outback, he experienced first-hand the devastating effects of racial tension when his father was murdered in the biggest massacre of Europeans by Aboriginal people. Yet five years later, Tom coached the first Aboriginal cricket team.
Tom Wills lived hard and fast, challenging authority on and off the field. But when his physical talents began to fade, the psychological demons that alcohol and adrenaline had kept at bay surged to the fore, driving him to commit the most brutal of suicides. He was forty-four and destitute.
Greg de Moore has carefully pieced together Tom's life, giving us an extraordinary portrait of the life and times of one of our first sporting heroes, a man who lived by his own rules and whose contribution to Australian history has endured for more than 150 years.
398 pages, Kindle Edition
First published July 27, 2011
1 person is currently reading
6 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
November 17, 2021
I always knew that Tom Wills was an important figure in Australian, and primarily Victorian, sport. His name is prominent in the members' area at the MCG. Knowing what he achieved and how he grew up to become the man that he was fascinated me. I've glad to have found this gem.
March 13, 2018
About one third of the way through it got so plodding I had to give up. Maybe a better person than me could stick it out.
Read
April 8, 2015SIMEON READINGAPE SAYS: This is one of those books where you could do worse than repeat the blurb on the back cover.
THIS IS THE STORY OF TOM WILLS - FLAWED GENIUS, SPORTING LIBERTINE, FEARLESS LEADER AND AGITATOR, AND THE MAN MOST OFTEN CREDITED WITH CREATING THE GAME WE KNOW AS AUSTRALIAN LEAGUE FOOTBALL
Sent to the strict British Rugby school in 1850 at fourteen, Tom returned as a worldly young man whose cricket prowess quickly captured the hearts of Melburnians. But away from the adoring crowds, in the desolation of the Queensland outback, he experienced first-hand the devastating effects of racial tension when his father was murdered in the biggest massacre of Europeans by Aboriginal people. Yet five years later, Tom coached the first Aboriginal team.
Tom Wills lived hard and fast, challenging authority on and off the field. But when his physical talents began to fade, the psychological demons that alcohol and adrenaline had kept at bay surged to the fore, driving him to commit the most brutal of suicides. He was forty-four and destitute.
THIS IS THE STORY OF TOM WILLS - FLAWED GENIUS, SPORTING LIBERTINE, FEARLESS LEADER AND AGITATOR, AND THE MAN MOST OFTEN CREDITED WITH CREATING THE GAME WE KNOW AS AUSTRALIAN LEAGUE FOOTBALL
Sent to the strict British Rugby school in 1850 at fourteen, Tom returned as a worldly young man whose cricket prowess quickly captured the hearts of Melburnians. But away from the adoring crowds, in the desolation of the Queensland outback, he experienced first-hand the devastating effects of racial tension when his father was murdered in the biggest massacre of Europeans by Aboriginal people. Yet five years later, Tom coached the first Aboriginal team.
Tom Wills lived hard and fast, challenging authority on and off the field. But when his physical talents began to fade, the psychological demons that alcohol and adrenaline had kept at bay surged to the fore, driving him to commit the most brutal of suicides. He was forty-four and destitute.
February 1, 2016
Another one of those books that as a Victorian you just have to read. Just great to get a bit of history about the AFL it's origins and how such an amazing athlete was treated. A must for any footy fan.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews