Press Release
3rd December 2009
Dónal Óg Cusack's autobiography "Come What May", with Tom Humphries, has won the Williamhill.com Irish Sports book of the Year for 2009. Cusack's book beat off stiff competition from Damian Lawlor's "Working on a Dream" and Kieran Shannon's "Hanging from the Rafters", which came second and third respectively.
Cusack's book was one of the most anticipated publications of the year. Written with journalist Tom Humphries the book details Cusack's life from his upbringing in Cork through his three All-Ireland successes, his role in some of the most groundbreaking decisions in Gaelic Games history and his struggles to be true to himself. "Come What May" was also the public's choice for Williamhill.com Irish Sports Book of the Year with over 5,000 votes registered on the official website.
Donal Og Cusack said; "Taking the decision to write this book was a difficult one but once I decided, I knew it had to be an honest account of my life. An essential part of this process was Tom Humphries' skill and dedication to the project and his outrageous sense of humour which made the process less onerous, I would like to thank him sincerely. Since publication, I have been overwhelmed with the response the book has received both here and abroad. Winning this award is a great honour for me and I would like to thank the judges and the general public for choosing my book from such a strong shortlist. I would also like to take this opportunity to thank my family, friends, team-mates and work colleagues for their unwavering support in the last number of years."
Tom Humphries said; "To have been named in such a shortlist was a thrill and any prize for Come What May is a bonus and an honour in that company. For me though the enduring rewards are the privilege I feel at having been asked to walk a few steps of Dónal Óg's journey with him, the welcome and the kindness of his family and gaining the friendship of an extraordinary man."
Tony Kenny, PR Manager for William Hill, believes "Come What May" is a worthy winner of this year's award. "The quality of the award this year was outstanding, especially when you look at some of the books that didn't even make the shortlist. Donal Og's book is an excellently told story of a person with a huge dedication to their sport and someone who wasn't afraid to put themselves forward as a role model to many in sport and life not just in Ireland but across the world," Kenny said at the presentation.
This year's judging panel is made up of ten of Ireland's best sports commentators and experts. The panel includes RTE rugby pundit and Newstalk presenter George Hook, RTE's Eamon Dunphy, Today FM and TV3 presenter Matt Cooper and Setanta Sports' Paul Dempsey
The Williamhill.com Irish Sports Book of the Year was established in 2006 to celebrate the quality of Irish sports writing and the standard of sports books that are produced in Ireland every year. The winner of the inaugural award was Paul McGrath with his harrowing tale of the ups and downs of his professional football career in "Back from the Brink", which was written with Vincent Hogan.
In 2007, Trevor Brennan's autobiography with Gerry Thornley, "Heart and Soul" detailed Brennan's journey through the professional rugby ranks in Ireland and France and his infamous altercation with a fan, which led to the end of his successful career. In 2008 the award produced one of the greatest Irish sports story's never told. Tommy Byrne's "Crashed and Byrned" was the story of an Irish racing driver hailed as one of the world's greatest, even better than World champion Ayrton Senna, but was never given a chance by the key figures in the sport. More information on the award can be found at www.irishportsbookoftheyear.com
For further information:
Declan Lee - O'Herlihy Communications - 01 660 2744 / 087 695 7451
Tony Kenny - William Hill - 086 858 9276
Press Release
24th November 2009
The shortlist of six books for the 2009 Williamhill.com Irish Sports Book of the Year was announced today. The six books were selected by the judging panel from an original long list if 23 books entered for the award.
As the GAA celebrates its 125th anniversary this year there are three Gaelic Games themed books on the shortlist. Mickey Harte's autobiography, Harte: Presence is the Only Thing, written with Michael Foley has made the last six, as has Damian Lawlor's tale of a year with the Waterford footballers, Working on a Dream. Dónal Óg Cusack's autobiography, Come What May, with Tom Humphries, completes the GAA trio on the shortlist.
In what was a memorable year for Irish rugby, two books from this genre have also made the shortlist. Eddie O'Sullivan's autobiography, Never Die Wondering, with Vincent Hogan, was listed in the top six as was Alan English's detailing of Ireland's historic Grand Slam victory, Grand Slam: How Ireland Achieved Rugby Greatness. The final book in contention for this year's award is Kieran Shannon's detailed account of the golden age of basketball in Ireland in the 1980's, Hanging from the Rafters. The winner of the Williamhill.com Irish Sports Book of the Year will be announced on the 2nd / 3rd December.
Tony Kenny, PR Manager for William Hill, believes it was an excellent year for Irish sports books. "The standard of competition this year was particularly high. We had some really great books in contention for the award and our shortlist reflects that. Gaelic Games was always going to feature strongly as it does every year and in what was a huge year for rugby it is also well represented, while Kieran Shannon's book has looked at what was an amazing time for basketball in Ireland and one of the great untold stories in Irish sport," Kenny said.
The williamhill.com Irish Sports Book of the Year was established in 2006 to celebrate the quality of Irish sports writing and the standard of sports books that are produced in Ireland every year. The winner of the inaugural award was Paul McGrath with his harrowing tale of the ups and downs of his professional football career in "Back from the Brink", which was written with Vincent Hogan.
In 2007, Trevor Brennan's autobiography with Gerry Thornley, "Heart and Soul" detailed Brennan's journey through the professional rugby ranks in Ireland and France and his infamous altercation with a fan, which led to the end of his successful career. In 2008 the award produced one of the greatest Irish sports story's never told. Tommy Byrne's "Crashed and Byrned" was the story of an Irish racing driver hailed as one of the world's greatest, even better than World champion Ayrton Senna, but was never given the break in the sport.
Shortlist - Williamhill.com Irish Sports Book of the Year
For further information:
Declan Lee - O'Herlihy Communications - 01 660 2744 / 087 695 7451
Tony Kenny - William Hill - 086 858 9276
Press Release
10th November 2009
The longlist for the 2009 williamhill.com Irish Sports Book of the Year award was announced today. With a record number of entries for the award the judging panel selected 23 books on the long list for this year's competition.
With the 125th anniversary of the GAA being celebrated this year, the list is dominated by Gaelic Games themed books. Some of those competing for this year's award include Dónal Óg Cusack's "Come What May", with Tom Humphries, Billy Morgan's autobiography "Rebel Rebel" and the story of Brian Cody's remarkable life in hurling, "Cody", written with Martin Breheny. Mickey Harte's autobiography "Harte: Presence is the Only Thing" with Michael Foley is also included as is Tadgh Kennelly's "Unfinished Business" and Damian Lawlor's tale of a year with Waterford's footballers, "Working on a Dream".
Former Ireland rugby coach Eddie O''Sullivan is also in contention for the award with his book "Never Die Wondering" which was penned with Vincent Hogan. "Rags to Riches" by Barry Coughlan looks at the history of Munster rugby right up to their Heineken Cup loss to Leinster earlier this year.
Another book from the rugby genre is Alan English's "Grand Slam: How Ireland Achieved Rugby Greatness", which documents the Irish team winning their first grand slam in 61 years. In "Hanging from the Rafters", Kieran Shannon details the explosion of basketball in Ireland in the 1980's and the influx of new players it brought into the country.
This year's award also features "Bernard Dunne: A Legend in the Making" by Barry Flynn, which chronicles Dunne's career to date including his recent knockout defeat to Poonsawat Kratingdaenggym in September, while Tadgh De Brun's "Tunnel Vision" gives a unique look behind the scenes at Irish sports events from the last 40 years. "Vintage Crop" by Dermot Weld looks at the career of the legendary horse and how it became the first overseas horse to win the Melbourne Cup.
Tony Kenny, PR Manager for William Hill, is delighted with the response to this year's award. "This year we have seen unprecedented interest in the award and the standard again has been very high as always. There is no surprise seeing the amount of Gaelic Games books in contention with the year that is in it but there are also some excellent books across a variety of sports so we should have a winner as good if not better than those who have gone before," Kenny said.
The williamhill.com Irish Sports Book of the Year was established in 2006 to celebrate the quality of Irish sports writing and the standard of sports books that are produced in Ireland every year. The winner of the inaugural award was Paul McGrath with his harrowing tale of the ups and downs of his professional football career in "Back from the Brink", which was written with Vincent Hogan.
In 2007, Trevor Brennan's autobiography with Gerry Thornley, "Heart and Soul" detailed Brennan's journey through the professional rugby ranks in Ireland and France and his infamous altercation with a fan, which led to the end of his successful career. In 2008 the award produced one of the greatest Irish sports story's never told. Tommy Byrne's "Crashed and Byrned" was the story of an Irish racing driver hailed as one of the world's greatest, even better than World champion Ayrton Senna, but never made it to the top.
This year's judging panel is made up of ten of Ireland's best sports commentators and experts. The panel includes RTE rugby pundit and Newstalk presenter George Hook, RTE's Eamon Dunphy, Today FM and TV3 presenter Matt Cooper and Setanta Sports' Paul Dempsey.
Nominations for 2009 Williamhill.com Irish Sports Book of the Year
For further information:
Tony Kenny
William Hill
Telephone: 086 858 9276
E-Mail: tkenny@williamhill.ie
Website: www.williamhillmedia.com
