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The Second Half (2014)

by Roy Keane(Favorite Author)

2.73 of 5 Votes: 2

ISBN

0297608886 (ISBN13: 9780297608882)

languge

English

genre

History & Biography

publisher

Not Avail

review 1: I think before I review this I need to indicate a certain bias. Before financial circumstances dictated otherwise, I was the very proud owner of a season ticket on the Stretford End in Old Trafford. I felt privileged every time I saw Roy Keane play, and I'll openly admit that I worshipped the ground on which he walked.this book describes the latter stages of Keane's playing days at Manchester United. It picks up more or less where the first part (a dreadfully written tome incidentally) concluded. the book also describes Keane's forays into management at Sunderland and Ipswich. I wasn't expecting to enjoy this but, as a fan of Keane-the-player, I decided to read it. I was pleasantly surprised. Firstly, the impression given by the media is that of Keane as a thuggish... more lout. I think the book goes some way to softening this image. Rather, the ghost-writer depicts Keane as someone whose "midlife crisis has been going on for years". We see a man with a desperate fear of failure; a man who is too afraid to enjoy things when they are going well because he is sure he will mess things up somehow. We see a man who was desperately upset at the death of someone with whom he was going to work (Gary Ablett), and we see the respect he had and has for the other players with whom he played. For balance, we also see how scathing Keane can be for those whom he thinks do not try, or for those with whom he does not get along or with whom he has disagreed.The least interesting part of this book was the portion devoted to Keane's eventual separation from Manchester United and his spat with Ferguson. Having read Ferguson's piece of badly written propaganda-style tripe, I would say that the truth probably lies somewhere in the middle. Here's where my bias comes in: I think Keane had to be moved on and Ferguson took a course of action that took no account of Keane's long-time service to United, and shoved him out the door as quickly as he could. Nobody is bigger than any team, but if it weren't for players like Keane, Ferguson wouldn't have his stand, his statue, his knighthood or his trophies. Do I think Keane was badly treated? Do I think it could have been handled differently? Absolutely. Do I think it was all Ferguson's fault? Absolutely not. I simply have an opinion that Ferguson was forced to make a choice and he chose to take the side of his assistant Carlos Queiroz.That being said, I felt this book was about 50-100 pages longer than it needed to be. Was there really a need to describe each and every result in the various seasons of management? let's face it: Since Keane has finished as a player he hasn't done much. I'm left with the question: Was there really a need for this book in the first place? I should also say that I read this as an audiobook from Audible. The narrator was possibly one of the worst readers of an audiobook I have ever encountered. Roy Keane himself read the first chapter, and it is a shame he did not read the entire book. The remainder simply did not live up to the tone set in the first chapter. Finally, I feel the author often used profanity in a somewhat gratuitous fashion. Yes, he was trying to "voice" the book in Keane's vernacular, but there were times when this was overdone.Over all, I'd say this is worth a read. The material describing the immediate aftermath of a players' career, and the beginnings of the road to a career in football management are extremely interesting. Again, if one compares to Ferguson's effort, the benefits of having a ghost-writer who can actually string a sentence together, rather than a journalist seeking headlines and sound bites is patently obvious. I felt Keane's book was more fluently written, did not jump around as much and had the benefit of not being scrutinised to death by lord knows how many legal-eagles. For me, Keane's book smacked of more honesty and less glibness. It was a pleasure to see him play, it's just a shame that this book didn't quite live up to the heights of his glittering career.
review 2: Perhaps the most absorbing book I have read recently. Keano doesn't bullshit, he doesn't fuck around, he doesn't make excuses. He gives an honest account of what happened and the reason it happened. If he was to blame, he accepts it. But he doesn't pander to anyone or sensationalize any event. But the controversies are not even the most gripping part of the book. His account of his managerial career at Sunderland and his post football career is. I have never read a book which provides this much insight into the world of football management. How the backroom and administration works. It's rich in details, filled with humorous, highly interesting anecdotes. Roddy Doyle's writing style is brilliant, a joy to read and you expect nothing less from a Booker winner. Ultimately, The Second Half is a gripping, melancholy story of a man who was mostly misunderstood, often vilified and hated but who in reality is a flawed hero who suffered because he cared too much. For his country, for his club, for football. less

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