Back from the Brink: The Autobiography

I like this book it opens an insight to his life. I met Paul a few times in Manchester & Dublin a few times. He was a gent everytime, very pleasant. Great player with great vision

This book can be such good reading for a very wide variety of people.When I say this, I mean it. Is one an alcoholic? Read it. Are you a big fan of soccer? Read it. Are you interested in Ireland? Surely, this should be read as well. Yes, and I could go on.The first half of the book is especially quite a heartening read, Paul was the son of a Nigerian male and an Irish woman, however, Paul came to find himself in institutions, sort of being an orphan though he kept tabs with his Mother and at times, did seem to live with his family. There are really warm stories here, that of his sister especially.If one suffers from alcoholism, I don't know if there has ever been a better account on the destructive nature of the disease though I haven't read many other like accounts. He talks about blackouts, waking up and not knowing how he got somewhere and even accidents he experienced while driving, fortunately, none of them having grave consequences. McGrath even passed out on streets on occasion.Although at times, some of the information on the Irish National Soccer Team that Paul played for could be much more expanded upon, there's enough and he talks about the coach of the Irish Team, Jack Charlton, Gaffer for a decade (among other managers). Jack would set a sentry outside of McGrath's door at night when the Irish were off playing a game somewhere, to keep Paul from going on a bender. There is also good information on other figures in Paul's life such as Sir Alex Ferguson, long time successful coach of Manchester United, Peter Taylor, who coached McGrath at Aston Villa and other accounts of major figures who knew Paul.It's amazing that though Paul was on the wagon some, at other times, the drink dominated him but he was such a good player, some teams put up with the risks of an alcoholic even when it came down to the occasions where McGrath went absolutely missing during the time a big game might be played.I've long had some videos of the Ireland National Team games with Paul in it, in USA 1994, I can turn on one of the videos and McGrath is talked about, he was such a phenomenonally gifted player.I really wanted to bow out of writing a review on this book but I feel compelled to though it is hard to describe. Good read for around St. Patrick's day, I hope the best for Macca. McGrath really joins a legion of sports stars like George Best and others, who had problem with the drink.I will seek to scan the cover of my edition of this book, it is a picture likely from the same photo session but Paul has a bit of a warm grin on his face. In the cover of the one shown on the amazon page, it is a bit of a long face.

Still looking forward to reading this biography but I heard it's a great example of a biography of a former footballer.This came recommended by an Irish friend who also told me to ready Tony Cascarino's bio. Really looking forward to it.

Having watched Paul McGrath towards the end of his career at Derby County, I was intrigued to discover more about a footballer who apparently couldn't train during the week but performed better than any central defender I had ever seen on match days. I wasn't disappointed. This is a fascinating account of both the footballer and the man himself. His troubled early life and ongoing battle with alcoholism leave one wondering how he could possibly have achieved what he did. The book provides a warts and all insight into McGrath's life and career and is the best book of this genre I have ever read. One is left hoping that Paul can now put his demons behind him, almost made me wish I'd been a Villa fan!

Great read