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Home and Away: Round Britain in Search of Non-League Football Nirvana
Dave Roberts was, for once, almost lost for words as the news sank in. Perennial underachievers Bromley, in the vertigo-inducing fifth tier of English football? It was the greatest achievement in the club's 130-year history and, by extraordinary coincidence, Dave had decided to spend the next 12 months in the UK, after an absence of 35 years, deciding whether he and his wife Liz could live there. And what better way to explore modern day Blighty than by following a roadmap based on the fixtures in the Vanarama National League? It was like the ultimate package holiday; well, for Dave at least.Home and Away takes Dave - and occasionally Liz too - the length and breadth of the land on a journey of discovery, with Bromley games thrown in. So from the White Cliffs of Dover and the English Riviera (Torquay) through the timeless charm of the Cotswolds (Forest Green, Cheltenham) to towns steeped in history (Lincoln, Chester), faded seaside resorts (Southport, Barrow) and fallen giants of the game (Grimsby, Wrexham, Tranmere - OK, pushing it there), the season unfolds, and the ultimate 'home or away' decision approaches.Against the odds, the season also proves not to be full of the endless disappointments football fans are conditioned to expect. Unfancied Bromley are on a mission, they have a man called Moses up front, and the promised land of the Football League might not be beyond their capabilities...
- GenresFootballNonfictionSports
320 pages, Kindle Edition
Published August 25, 2016
3 people are currently reading
46 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 12 reviews
January 8, 2022
Makes me feel like there are other people just as mental about non league football as me. Brilliant book.
January 9, 2022
This was a light-hearted book about following a non-League team for a season, quite similar in nature to an Adrian Chiles book written 10 years earlier. Both lived away from their home ground but were obsessed with their team, both found the matches themselves a stressful experience, and both ended up being the mascot for a home game. This was a touch more authentic, with no accompanying social commentary, but this also meant that I ended up reading quite familiar experiences multiple times.
Roberts doesn't go to every game, so over the course of a season he follows matches by Twitter, radio, TV and in person, both home games and away matches. Unfortunately for fans of narrative, the good results come earlier in the season so there is no redemption arc, but instead some faintly ridiculous wins including those at bigger clubs such as a 7-3 thrashing away to Torquay. Coming across as quite an amiable person, as a reader you do feel pleased for Roberts that he is enjoying the season, especially as he has had to budget relatively carefully for the season (relatively, because he kept referring to M&S or Waitrose food).
However, there is a finite number of times you can find struggling to walk up a short hill endearing, or care about a fellow fan whose tea is lukewalm, or read about the referee's 'bias' even if it's delivered with a knowing wink. These are real experiences of a non-league fan, but not very unique ones, and don't make for great subject matter. I think every fan reckons the refs are against them and that they are the worst for conceding last minute goals. The book is very readable but I don't know how many details I could commit to memory, and his fellow fans mean a lot more to the author than this reader.
Fever Pitch was so good because the details didn't need to be Arsenal, but they gave you an insight as to how someone could be so obsessed with a football club. This could have been any club as it recounts a particular season rather than a broader concept, and without an affinity to Bromley, I wasn't gripped by it even if it was still a pleasant read.
Roberts doesn't go to every game, so over the course of a season he follows matches by Twitter, radio, TV and in person, both home games and away matches. Unfortunately for fans of narrative, the good results come earlier in the season so there is no redemption arc, but instead some faintly ridiculous wins including those at bigger clubs such as a 7-3 thrashing away to Torquay. Coming across as quite an amiable person, as a reader you do feel pleased for Roberts that he is enjoying the season, especially as he has had to budget relatively carefully for the season (relatively, because he kept referring to M&S or Waitrose food).
However, there is a finite number of times you can find struggling to walk up a short hill endearing, or care about a fellow fan whose tea is lukewalm, or read about the referee's 'bias' even if it's delivered with a knowing wink. These are real experiences of a non-league fan, but not very unique ones, and don't make for great subject matter. I think every fan reckons the refs are against them and that they are the worst for conceding last minute goals. The book is very readable but I don't know how many details I could commit to memory, and his fellow fans mean a lot more to the author than this reader.
Fever Pitch was so good because the details didn't need to be Arsenal, but they gave you an insight as to how someone could be so obsessed with a football club. This could have been any club as it recounts a particular season rather than a broader concept, and without an affinity to Bromley, I wasn't gripped by it even if it was still a pleasant read.
November 9, 2021
I absolutely loved this book. Dave captures perfectly the trials and tribulations of being a proper football fan who follows home and away - as a Watford fan, I have been spoilt in recent years with some great football against high level opposition, but I have seen my fair share of lower division football over the years too. Dave's utter adulation for Bromley and the game itself bleeds onto every page, filing the book with miniscule details which some may find pointless or trivial, but are the types of things I love to hear about as they are relatable to the obsessed football fan, such as extensive reviews of the matchday food and updates of the regular characters you get to know and love while watching consecutively. Dave's constant ironic and witty exaggeration of tiny things also represents how passionate he is about what he's writing, such as the injustice of the yellow tape "segregation" and just how much of a life or death situation buying a matchday programme is.
This is a book I would recommend to football fans everywhere: Dave is very funny, spares no detail, creates a fantastic setting with his writing and kept me engaged throughout. Big 5 stars and one of the best books I have read this year.
This is a book I would recommend to football fans everywhere: Dave is very funny, spares no detail, creates a fantastic setting with his writing and kept me engaged throughout. Big 5 stars and one of the best books I have read this year.
October 30, 2020
Muy malo. Un fan de un equipo de 5a inglesa nos cuenta cómo es seguirlo una temp. Podría transmitir el ambiente, qué significa seguir a estos equipos, lo q los rodea, campos, fans, historia... Y acaba divagando y hablando de su vida. Oportunidad perdida
April 29, 2020
Entertaining read from the always readable Dave Roberts regarding his obsession with watching Bromley in the dizzy heights of England’s top non league division.
October 17, 2020
A very entertaining and funny book, as a football fan I enjoyed the humour and football banter in this book.
May 24, 2021
Lovely journey through a season of wilfully mediocre non league and all that it brings
October 24, 2022
Just read it for a second time. I find Dave‘s books so enjoyable. So sad that he is no longer with us.
November 1, 2024
A very thoughtful and interesting read. Looked forward to reading it and it didn't disappoint. Will definitely check out some of his other books. Nice style and pacing. Enjoyed.
December 30, 2018
This was my second Dave Roberts' book, after reading "Bromley Boys" which was an easy 5-star read. The premise of "Home and Away" is similar to the first book, with the author relentlessly following his childhood team throughout the season. Several things have now changed - for a start the author has returned to England after a long absence and the his country is not what it was like 20-odd years ago. Bromley are now also a much better side and they are playing in a higher division (although they are still firmly outside the Football League).
As football fan, I enjoyed reading about Roberts' continued passion for his team, which is something I can totally relate to. The book lacks some of that nostalgia and sense of wonderment which permeated Bromley Boys and made it a must read.
However, Home and Away made for an enjoyable few days' reading and has many parallels and references to Bromley boys. Names like Phil D'Amato, Alan Soper and the awesome "Grubby" all make an appearance at some stage, so if you loved Bromley Boys, you won't want to miss this book!
As football fan, I enjoyed reading about Roberts' continued passion for his team, which is something I can totally relate to. The book lacks some of that nostalgia and sense of wonderment which permeated Bromley Boys and made it a must read.
However, Home and Away made for an enjoyable few days' reading and has many parallels and references to Bromley boys. Names like Phil D'Amato, Alan Soper and the awesome "Grubby" all make an appearance at some stage, so if you loved Bromley Boys, you won't want to miss this book!
January 30, 2019
Having just read, and loved, The Bromley Boys: The True Story of Supporting the Worst Football Team in Britain (2008), I was keen for more of Dave Roberts's work. In The Bromley Boys: The True Story of Supporting the Worst Football Team in Britain, Dave looks back on the 1969-1970 football season for non-league Bromley Football Club when he was a fanatical 14 year old fan. Fast forward to 2016 and Dave was writing about Bromley FC's 2015/16 season in Home and Away: Round Britain in Search of Non-League Football Nirvana. I was in and read it immediately upon finishing The Bromley Boys.
Much had changed since the 1969/70 season both on and off the pitch. Dave had lived in both New Zealand and the USA and returned to the UK for the first time in years in 2015 to decide whether to move back permanently. On the pitch Bromley FC had been promoted to the dizzy heights of the Vanarama National League, the fifth tier of English football.
Any doubts that the years away, and Bromley FC playing at their highest level, would have resulted in a less entertaining book were quickly assuaged. Home and Away: Round Britain in Search of Non-League Football Nirvana is every bit as good as The Bromley Boys, maybe even slightly better. Dave travels from his Leeds base to as many Bromley home and away games as he can afford, often with his extremely tolerant, and only sporadically interested, wife Liz.
The only downside to Home and Away: Round Britain in Search of Non-League Football Nirvana is that it has increased my addiction to Dave's work. I have now purchased two more books by him: 32 Programmes and Sad Men, and pledged £25 to help fund his next book The Long, Long Road to Wembley. You should do the same...
https://unbound.com/books/bromleyfc/
You can read more about Dave here...
http://www.daverobertsbooks.com
4/5
Much had changed since the 1969/70 season both on and off the pitch. Dave had lived in both New Zealand and the USA and returned to the UK for the first time in years in 2015 to decide whether to move back permanently. On the pitch Bromley FC had been promoted to the dizzy heights of the Vanarama National League, the fifth tier of English football.
Any doubts that the years away, and Bromley FC playing at their highest level, would have resulted in a less entertaining book were quickly assuaged. Home and Away: Round Britain in Search of Non-League Football Nirvana is every bit as good as The Bromley Boys, maybe even slightly better. Dave travels from his Leeds base to as many Bromley home and away games as he can afford, often with his extremely tolerant, and only sporadically interested, wife Liz.
The only downside to Home and Away: Round Britain in Search of Non-League Football Nirvana is that it has increased my addiction to Dave's work. I have now purchased two more books by him: 32 Programmes and Sad Men, and pledged £25 to help fund his next book The Long, Long Road to Wembley. You should do the same...
https://unbound.com/books/bromleyfc/
You can read more about Dave here...
http://www.daverobertsbooks.com
4/5
Displaying 1 - 11 of 12 reviews