by Bill Gardner, Cass Pennant
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Product Description
He arrived to rally the troops, the main man in the Inter City Firm and his greeting passed into football fan history. 'Afternoon, gentlemen, the name's Bill Gardner.' That introduction alone was often enough to provoke sheer terror in his opponents. He is a genuine legend to anyone who's ever stood proud on a football terrace. No serious book on the culture would be complete without at least one mention of him. And now at last, he's telling his own, long-awaited story. For the first time, Gardner himself reveals what made him the top man, including his innermost thoughts and his memories of the classic years for football fans. And many familiar faces have queued up to add their comments in this book which shows just what it is that makes Bill Gardner unique among the toughest and the greatest of them all.
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Average Customer Review:
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful:
 Better than the majority of the hoolifan genre, 2008-10-24
Though Gardner does indulge in some whining and some defensive CYA rhetoric, his book exceeds the genre's standards because he actually speaks about the game and its players as much as the aggro that occurred off the pitch. Most of these books have very little to say about the game at all.
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful:
 surprising, 2008-09-27
this gives a great account of the infamous bill gardiner from HIMSELF, not from many of the others who have included him in their hooligan literary works. surprisingly, he comes across as an easy going, loner type, who points out on several occasions he was never part of any firm, he always went alone. this is true to an extent, but from other readings youy can see people formed a firm around this guy knowing that when it hit the fan, this bloke was always the last man standing. so in effect he went alone, but others woudl follow... he is very passionate west ham fan, who would do anything for the club, including organising tours with fans and coaching and scouting for juniors. he shows his human side and how he got caught up in it, and then his perspective of west ham football club and where they are headed. i was expecting a series of violent bloody encounters but it let me down there, but it was good to hear about the feller from himself. he wasnt random in his violence, he did it because he wanted to watch west ham and wouldnt let anyone stand in his way.
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful:
 The Names Bill Gardner, 2008-04-06
A little disappointed. Gardner spent more time trying to disprove that he was a thug than providing the reader with real action. He was a true Hammer fan and I would love to share a pint with Bill and get the real story.
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful:
A real look into UK football terrace wars, 2008-01-08
Bill Gardner was a top member of the ICF, the firm that supported (supports) West Ham United in London's East End. What that means is, he kicked butt in the many battles between firms that were huge in the 60s, 70's, and 80s. These are not minor fisticuffs, people. These are full-on wars between hundreds of experienced fighting men. He made a name for himself as a fearless leader. His telling of those battles comes across as honest and, believe it or not, humble. He doesn't want to talk himself up, he isn't looking to crown himself the baddest of the "hooligan" element. (And Gardner didn't go around trashing chippys or doing random hooligan vandalism, he was looking for the lads of the opposing firms, just for the record.) He just remembers the crazy years on the terraces and on the streets after matches, where it all kicks off and it could be a serious, dangerous battle to get back to your tube station. He gives a straight forward and entertaining tale about many, many classic battles between Chelsea, Arsenal, Manchester United, Tottenham, and of course Millwall, amongst many others,
Gardner is famous for not using weapons (unlike the Everton mob, for example), just his fists and cojones, and his presence was enough to put opponent firms on the retreat. His story telling is great, and there is even a great section on when he worked the door at some gnarly clubs that saw equally fierce action. The book is great and comes from a man who never was looking for the limelight, just a winning West Ham football game and a good steaming in afterwards!
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful:
Man of honour, 2007-07-28
The book is a GREAT read.
I have many WHU friends - some of whom are top flight.
Gardner's writting is very self-effacing.
He brings to life the banter. Banter that can only be heard down Millwall or West Ham and maybe the Orient. A unique humour. Scousers and Mancs don't have it. The north London clubs don't possess it. The west London clubs wouldn't understand it.
There's a sibling rivalry between WHU and MFC, whether you're from Bethnal Green or Bermondsey - maybe it's a docks thing? Hard times are always coupled with humour.
Football violence of the late 60s. 70s and 80s can never be replicated, because of how stadiums are built now and security and the onus of bad behavier being ultimately with the club.
This is a social history book. A good book.
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