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A CASUALS GAME
Book One of the A CASUALS GAME Series.
SOUTH LONDON, THE 1980s, FOOTBALL, FASHION, LOYALTY AND A FIRM THAT LIVES BY ITS OWN RULES.
Welcome to the world of the football casuals, where what you wear matters, who you stand beside matters more and reputation is everything. At the heart of it is The Londoners Arms pub, home territory for Buster and his firm. Buster is the top boy, experienced in terrace warfare and fiercely protective of his patch.
Johnny is different. A close-knit member of the firm, he’s stuck in a dead-end, poorly paid call-centre job, struggling to fund the casual lifestyle while watching his best mate, Russell the printer, enjoy the rewards of his lucrative fiddles.
Word reaches Buster that a rival firm is planning to turn over their pub. It’s an insult that can’t go unanswered. Buster rallies the troops, leading them towards brutal confrontation at Waterloo. As the public scatters and police sirens close in, the battle for reputation and territory begins.
What starts on the terraces is about to become something much bigger.
At work Johnny discovers a loophole that opens the door to international credit card fraud on a massive scale. Suddenly there’s serious money on the table and with it comes a route into a criminal underworld far more dangerous than anything Johnny has encountered on match day. As the stakes rise, Johnny is about to discover that some games don’t finish when the whistle blows.
A CASUALS GAME is a gritty British crime novel steeped in the football casual culture of the 1980s London. Combining real-life experience of friendship, rivalry, ambition, loyalty & authentic storytelling to bring A CASUALS GAME to life.
ABOUT THE AUTHORS
Dean Rinaldi, an author and ghostwriter from Lewisham, South London, is the author of 38 published books spanning crime, subculture and biography, with several titles optioned for film.
Roy Larner, born in Peckham, South London, is a lifelong Millwall F.C. supporter. He is known worldwide as “The Lion of London Bridge”, for his extraordinary bravery during the 2017 terrorist attack that made him a symbol of courage and resilience.
SOUTH LONDON, THE 1980s, FOOTBALL, FASHION, LOYALTY AND A FIRM THAT LIVES BY ITS OWN RULES.
Welcome to the world of the football casuals, where what you wear matters, who you stand beside matters more and reputation is everything. At the heart of it is The Londoners Arms pub, home territory for Buster and his firm. Buster is the top boy, experienced in terrace warfare and fiercely protective of his patch.
Johnny is different. A close-knit member of the firm, he’s stuck in a dead-end, poorly paid call-centre job, struggling to fund the casual lifestyle while watching his best mate, Russell the printer, enjoy the rewards of his lucrative fiddles.
Word reaches Buster that a rival firm is planning to turn over their pub. It’s an insult that can’t go unanswered. Buster rallies the troops, leading them towards brutal confrontation at Waterloo. As the public scatters and police sirens close in, the battle for reputation and territory begins.
What starts on the terraces is about to become something much bigger.
At work Johnny discovers a loophole that opens the door to international credit card fraud on a massive scale. Suddenly there’s serious money on the table and with it comes a route into a criminal underworld far more dangerous than anything Johnny has encountered on match day. As the stakes rise, Johnny is about to discover that some games don’t finish when the whistle blows.
A CASUALS GAME is a gritty British crime novel steeped in the football casual culture of the 1980s London. Combining real-life experience of friendship, rivalry, ambition, loyalty & authentic storytelling to bring A CASUALS GAME to life.
ABOUT THE AUTHORS
Dean Rinaldi, an author and ghostwriter from Lewisham, South London, is the author of 38 published books spanning crime, subculture and biography, with several titles optioned for film.
Roy Larner, born in Peckham, South London, is a lifelong Millwall F.C. supporter. He is known worldwide as “The Lion of London Bridge”, for his extraordinary bravery during the 2017 terrorist attack that made him a symbol of courage and resilience.
340 pages, Kindle Edition
Published September 1, 2026
About the author
Dean Rinaldi
14 books2 followersBorn in Lewisham, South London, Dean Rinaldi discovered his passion for storytelling at an early age, writing his first novel at just fourteen.
Although his professional journey led him into the corporate world, where he spent more than three decades managing multimillion-pound businesses for major organisations, his love of writing never faded.
Eventually returning to his true calling, Dean has established himself as a prolific author, with 38 published books spanning crime fiction, British subculture and biography.
His writing explores the complexities of human nature, the realities of life and the often-unseen stories behind extraordinary people and events. Drawing on his South London roots and a lifetime of experience, Dean brings authenticity, character and a distinctive voice to his work.
His storytelling has also attracted significant interest from the entertainment industry, with five of his books optioned for film development.
Although his professional journey led him into the corporate world, where he spent more than three decades managing multimillion-pound businesses for major organisations, his love of writing never faded.
Eventually returning to his true calling, Dean has established himself as a prolific author, with 38 published books spanning crime fiction, British subculture and biography.
His writing explores the complexities of human nature, the realities of life and the often-unseen stories behind extraordinary people and events. Drawing on his South London roots and a lifetime of experience, Dean brings authenticity, character and a distinctive voice to his work.
His storytelling has also attracted significant interest from the entertainment industry, with five of his books optioned for film development.
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
September 23, 2026
Loved it. Had my doubts when I read the back of the book to see what it was about as some previous football culture books has been poor but this was different and a real page turner. First of 3, can’t wait for the other 2 books.
October 21, 2026
I’m not a football fan, but I love novels set in the eighties, and this one is a football crime drama set in South East London in the 80s.
The MC, Johnny Goulding, is a member of the Firm run by top boy, Buster, in the Londoners Arms pub. Johnny and his mates protect the firm’s reputation at all costs, while supporting their beloved football team, Millwall.
But Johnny is fed up of his shitty job in a call-centre. He’s stuck on a hamster wheel of work, sleep, repeat with little to show for it. He’s jealous of his mate, Russell, and dreams of something more. This dream leads him to an idea to fraudulently obtain ‘free’ cash, and his life changes drastically. He’s loving the cash, the clothes, the gear, but he’s soon dragged into a criminal underworld, which threatens his life.
This book brought me back to the eighties and showed me a glimpse of London’s football culture and crime that I had only read about in sensationalised newspaper articles as a teenager. It’s gritty, raw, and buzzes with the camaraderie of football fans that will risk everything to protect their team and their firm’s reputation.
The storyline, dialogue, and characterisation was great, and I got drawn into Johnny’s world even though I have no experience of football culture. Very well done.
Now the bad bit. Sadly, the narrative in my copy was littered with typos (Hopefully, those typos have now been banished in later versions, but it did spoil my reading experience.) Also, there were way too many eighties song title references for my liking. The storyline was already fully grounded in the eighties, so I think the writers could have eased back a bit on the song playlist.
If you love gritty crime drama, believable characters, and an eighties setting, then this is the book for you. It’s also book one of a trilogy, so there’s much more to come. A highly recommended read.
TL;DR
A gritty, raw, and believable football crime drama set in eighties London. A highly recommended read.
The MC, Johnny Goulding, is a member of the Firm run by top boy, Buster, in the Londoners Arms pub. Johnny and his mates protect the firm’s reputation at all costs, while supporting their beloved football team, Millwall.
But Johnny is fed up of his shitty job in a call-centre. He’s stuck on a hamster wheel of work, sleep, repeat with little to show for it. He’s jealous of his mate, Russell, and dreams of something more. This dream leads him to an idea to fraudulently obtain ‘free’ cash, and his life changes drastically. He’s loving the cash, the clothes, the gear, but he’s soon dragged into a criminal underworld, which threatens his life.
This book brought me back to the eighties and showed me a glimpse of London’s football culture and crime that I had only read about in sensationalised newspaper articles as a teenager. It’s gritty, raw, and buzzes with the camaraderie of football fans that will risk everything to protect their team and their firm’s reputation.
The storyline, dialogue, and characterisation was great, and I got drawn into Johnny’s world even though I have no experience of football culture. Very well done.
Now the bad bit. Sadly, the narrative in my copy was littered with typos (Hopefully, those typos have now been banished in later versions, but it did spoil my reading experience.) Also, there were way too many eighties song title references for my liking. The storyline was already fully grounded in the eighties, so I think the writers could have eased back a bit on the song playlist.
If you love gritty crime drama, believable characters, and an eighties setting, then this is the book for you. It’s also book one of a trilogy, so there’s much more to come. A highly recommended read.
TL;DR
A gritty, raw, and believable football crime drama set in eighties London. A highly recommended read.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews