Rucking and Rolling: 60 Years of Rugby Union

Since the Second World War the sport has burgeoned into a multi-million euro business and this book follows the rise of the sport, from the first and only Irish Grand Slam in 1948 to the great English teams of the 1950s, the legendary Welsh teams of the 1960s and 1970s, the exciting French teams of the 1980s and 1990s, the growth of Australian rugby, the Lions and Barbarians tours and the traditional power houses of South Africa and of course, the awesome All Blacks. From its origins as an amateur sport, to its modern-day professionalism, rugby union has undergone immense changes.

Like all other major sports, rugby union has had more than its fair share of controversy and politics, and this book, like the game itself, has met the conflict head on.

Features interviews with the game's greatest names including Tony O'Reilly, Colin Meads, Gareth Edwards, Jean-Pierre Rives, David Campese, Francois Pienaar and Martin Johnson

Foreword by George Hook

A former editor of Rugby World, Peter Bills has worked with some of the greatest names in the sport on writing their life stories, including Willie John McBride, David Campese, Jean-Pierre Rives, Gareth Edwards.

Currently writing on rugby for the Independent Group of newspapers, his by-line appears regularly in the Irish Independent, the [UK] Independent and a host of other countries, including the New Zealand Herald, Johannesburg Star, Cape Times, Durban Daily News, Queensland Star and in Rugby News magazine.