Search results for ""author davida"

The Player From 'Ponty' is the biography of Glamorgan cricketer Bernard Hedges, the talented sportsman from the valleys of south Wales who played rugby for Pontypridd and Swansea, represented a Great Britain side at football and became a widely respected cricketer with Glamorgan between 1950 and 1967, who: Scored 17, 773 first-class runs - Glamorgan's 7th all-time top run scorer. Hit Glamorgan's first one-day century, v Somerset in the Gillette Cup in 1963. Was one of only six Glamorgan players to score 2,000 runs in a season (2,026 in 1961). Bernard's journey from his early days in Rhydyfelin - the eldest of eight children raised in a small council house - to the local grammar school, his National Service days, and to his professional career with Glamorgan is lovingly revealed by his son Stephen, who tells the story of the sporting life of a man who epitomised the 'unsung hero' by showing great grit and determination to make the most of the sporting talent he had.

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A stroll around Merthyr town centre demonstrates the importance of the fight game in the borough's history. Where else on the planet can you find no fewer than three statues of boxers? A must-buy for all fight fans this book tells the stories of some 50 fighters who have made their mark to varying degrees over the past century and a half. Some are known world-wide, such as the occupants of those plinths - Howard Winstone, Johnny Owen and Eddie Thomas - others were local legends, such as the king of the cobbles, Redmond Coleman, and the man whose skin colour robbed him of the chance of greatness, Cuthbert Taylor. The neighbouring Taff Valley towns of Aberdare and Pontypridd also contribute their heroes including little Dai Dower, who won British, Empire and European titles in less than five months, while Pontypridd folk are justly proud of their world champion, Freddie Welsh, and the three Moody brothers, who all won belts. With several dozen illustrations, some never before published, this is recommended reading for all fight fans, whether or not they have the good fortune to hail from the Taff Valley.

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Jim Pleass is the last surviving member of Glamorgan's County Championship winning team of 1948, the first time the Welsh team won the highest honour in county cricket. The Cardiff-born multi-talented sportsman, who was also an exceptional footballer and offered trial games for Cardiff City as a schoolboy, built a reputation as a solid and reliable team player at a time when Glamorgan was establishing itself on the first class cricket scene after the Second World War. In stark contrast to contemporary sport which is too often dominated by money and celebrity, Jim was a hard-working professional sportsman typical of his era, who simply enjoyed the camaraderie and of the game he loved. Yet the man who was born in Cardiff in 1923 achieved something that only a handful of the five hundred or so people who have proudly worn the daffodil-sweater since the Club's formation in 1888, can claim to have also matched, winning some sixty summers after the Club's creation their first-ever County Championship title. Jim was a very lucky man, as the book explains his narrow escape from certain death when he stormed the Normandy beaches on D day in 1944. If it wasn't for the over-exuberance of a driver on another landing craft, Jim would never have graced the cricket field wearing the daffodil of Glamorgan County Cricket Club.

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Profiles 50 Cardiff boxers, from the days of the prize ring. This book includes stars of both professional and amateur codes, world champions and Commonwealth Games medal winners.

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This is the most comprehensive guide ever compiled and comprises over 2,000 Welsh first names. This third edition contains over 100 additional names. Welsh is a Celtic language and is spoken by over a million people world-wide. It is the oldest living language in Europe and has a rich, diverse and distinctive collection of personal names, of which several, such as Dylan, Megan, Arthur and Sian, are internationally recognised. More and more parents are making a positive choice and giving a Welsh name to their children and in doing so handing down their Welsh heritage to the next generation. This book is the complete guide to making that choice. Names are arranged according to the English alphabet and, in many instances, an explanation of the name's meaning and a brief word about illustrious bearers of the name are also provided. For those not familiar with the Welsh language, the book also has a section on pronunciation.

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Widely regarded as the greatest footballer of all time, seven-time Ballon d’Or and six-time Golden Shoe winner, Lionel Messi, enjoyed a record-breaking 17-year career at FC Barcelona during which time he scored more goals, played more games, won more titles and provided more assists than any other player in the Catalan club’s history. Adored by Barça fans, Messi reigned supreme until August 2021, when he made a tearful farewell to a stunned global audience. Messi: The King of Camp Nou is the definitive story of Lionel Messi’s entire Barça career, written by Jason Pettigrove, a football journalist who worked for FC Barcelona during Messi’s final years in Catalonia. Charting Messi’s rise as a hopeful 13-year-old Argentinian boy from Rosario to becoming the best footballer in the world, Pettigrove’s comprehensively researched book features exclusive interviews with key individuals in Messi’s story - team-mates, opponents, managers, agents and fellow journalists - including: Joan Laporta, Lionel Scaloni, Victor Font, Sir Kenny Dalglish, Jamie Carragher, Mike Phelan, Josep Maria Minguella, Horacio Gaggioli, Tony Watt, Santi Padro and Jorge Barraza. From being signed by Barça on a napkin to Champions League glory and becoming FC Barcelona captain, Messi: The King of Camp Nou reveals the inside story of Leo’s remarkable reign at Barça including breaking Pelé's incredible record for most goals scored at one club, how the longed for Copa América title was won and how he, season-on-season, mesmerised the football world.

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Little Wonder is the story of Brian Flynn, the stylish yet tenacious midfielder from Port Talbot who, in the 1970s and '80s, enjoyed a successful top flight playing career with Burnley and Leeds United - where is still held in great affection by fans of both clubs - before moving on to Cardiff City, Doncaster Rovers, Bury, Limerick and finally to Wrexham as player manager. Flynn also won 66 caps for Wales and played a pivotal role when the rejuvenated national team reached the quarter-finals of the 1976 European Championships and were denied a place at the 1978 World Cup by Joe Jordan's infamous 'hand of god' at Anfield. Lovingly crafted by Leon Barton, Little Wonder is also the story of Flynn's 12 years as a club manager with Wrexham where, with solid team-building and cup heroics, he left a legacy that was subsequently squandered, and his two-year spell at Swansea City when he saved the club from relegation from the Football League and whose immense contribution was subsequently built upon to stunning effect. It is Brian Flynn's managerial legacy to Welsh international football, however, that has won him the plaudits of fellow managers, former teammates, the players themselves, and the Welsh nation when, as intermediate team manager under John Toshack, Flynn identified, nurtured and developed the 'golden generation', a group of talented teenagers and Welsh 'Anglos' who went on to become, at Euro 2016, most successful Welsh team in 140 years. Brian Flynn may only stand at 5 foot and 4 inches, but this small man from the town of steel has made a giant contribution to football and Little Wonder is his story.

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There has always been a great boxing tradition in Newport and the valleys of Monmouthshire, but recently the area has excelled itself. Over the last two decades, no fewer than four world champions have been groomed in local gyms. Robbie Regan, Gavin Rees, Nathan Cleverly and the incomparable Joe Calzaghe may be the stand-out achievers featured in this book, but they are far from the only stars remembered here. Johnny Basham and the `Maesglas Marciano’, Dick Richardson, lead the way for the city on the Usk, while there are many others who have worn the Lonsdale Belt or claimed Commonwealth Games medals. And the changing face of boxing is epitomised by Ebbw Vale girl Ashley Brace, the first woman to top a professional bill in Wales – and the first to win an international title. Some 70 boxers are pictured and profiled. Any fight fan, whether a `Gwentie’ or not, will enjoy this book.

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Horse racing may be famously known as the 'sport of kings' but, in the pursuit of prize money and getting one over the bookies, it also has attained a notoriety for some underhand, corrupt and downright illegal practices. Horse racing in Wales is not exempt from these dodgy dealings and on many occasions has led the way in it's ingenuity to devise jaw-dropping cons and cunning deceptions. In The Scams, Scandals and Gambles of Horseracing in Wales, Brian Lee, the veteran and highly regarded Welsh racing correspondent has, for the first time, compiled a comprehensive collection of true stories that reveals Welsh racing's most notorious crooks, loveable rouges and most infamous scams, including: The Oyster Maid affair, when a great gambling coup engineered at Tenby in 1927 nearly put paid to horse racing in Wales and was said by the Queen Mother's jockey, Dick Francis, to have been "the most bitterly resented betting coup National Hunt racing has ever known". The astounding story of Am I Blue's when, in 2010, a four-year-old filly, owned and trained by Aberkenfig's Delyth Thomas, romped home at Hereford after being backed from 25-1 to 5-1, despite having woeful form.As one reporter put it: 'There was outrage in some quarters and amusement in others. ' The elaborate switching of horses and the cutting of the telegraph wires at Bath races in 1953 which saw well-know Cardiff bookie Gomer Charles jailed for 2 years for fraud after his syndicate place GBP100k worth of bets on a 'ringer' racehorse that won at 20-1. The Scandals and Gambles of Horseracing in Wales includes stories both from racing 'under rules' but also from point-to-point, known as racing 'between-the-flags', as well as flapping (unlicensed racing). The stories in this enthralling book, in which the reader will meet many of the rogues of the turf, are informative as well as fascinating and will appeal to not only horse racing fans but also readers of true crime.

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The historic county of Glamorgan has a proud and successful boxing heritage, as can be seen by the 50-plus boxers featured in this, the sixth volume of Gareth Jones' renowned Boxers of Wales series. Having already profiled the boxers of Cardiff, Merthyr and Pontypridd, as well as the Cynon and Rhondda valleys, in previous volumes, Gareth Jones now completes his impressive journey around the old county by focusing his attention on: Glamorgan's coastal towns, which have produced dozens of top fighters, not least the Selby brothers from Barry and one of the first Welshmen to wear a Lonsdale Belt, Port Talbot's Bill Beynon. The old mining valleys, from the Neath to the Ogmore, which have nurtured many ring warriors over the years, including the fistic hotbeds of Maesteg and nearby Caerau: home to a string of champions and contenders. Packed with more than 100 photos and illustrations, as well as decades of unrivalled boxing knowledge, The Boxers of South, West & Mid Glamorgan is essential reading for all followers of the noble art.

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On 25 March 1876, the Football Association of Wales played its inaugural match, against Scotland in Glasgow. On that day 11 intrepid footballers became the first of over 700 players to proudly represent the senior men’s team of the world’s third oldest football nation. Sons of Cambria is the first volume of a landmark three-part collection that will feature every footballer capped for Wales’ senior men’s team since 1876 and is the essential reference guide for all followers of Welsh international football. Listed in the order in which they won their caps, every player has for the first time been assigned their unique player number, with Volume I containing biographical listings of the 374 players capped between 1876 and 1939 (as well as the 30 players who represented Wales in uncapped war-time matches) including photographs of almost all the players. In addition to the players, Sons of Cambria also lists every international match (capped and uncapped) played between 1876 and 1946, and includes team photographs from 38 of those games. Packed with incredible stories, fascinating facts and hundreds of photos, Sons of Cambria is a book all Welsh football fans will treasure.

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Casual observers of the Welsh boxing scene might well think that the best practitioners of the sport have all hailed from the valleys and coastal cities of the south. But the rural counties have contributed their share to the nation's fistic history. In the high-profile heavyweight division alone, the area covered by this book has produced two British champions and another who contested the title. Others have worn and challenged for Lonsdale Belts at lower weights. The first British boxer ever to win a medal at the world amateur championships can be found between these covers, along with the incredible youngster who was ranked in the world's top 10 by the American Ring magazine when he was just 16 years old. This volume, packed with photographs - many published for the first time - profiles more than 50 boxers from the bare-knuckle era to stars of the present and future. It is a must-read for any fight fan, whether from Wales or further afield.

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The Great Escape: Newport County 2016-17 tells the amazing story of how local boy Michael Flynn and his team beat the bookies' odds and confounded their critics to secure their place in the English Football League. On March 4, 2017, Newport County AFC were bottom of League Two and a massive 11 points from safety - with just 12 games left to play - after a 4-0 thrashing at home to closest rivals Leyton Orient. Five days later, experienced manager Graham Westley was sacked with the club seemingly doomed to return to the non-league wilderness where they had spent 25 years before winning promotion in 2013. `The Exiles' looked dead and buried before hometown hero Michael Flynn was appointed caretaker manager and tasked with the `mission impossible' of salvaging their season. Written by South Wales Argus football reporter Andrew Penman and featuring all-new interviews with those at the heart of the story, it is essential reading for all County supporters and Welsh football lovers. A remarkable six wins in the next 11 games saw the Exiles climb out of the bottom two ahead of a final-day showdown with Notts County at Newport's Rodney Parade on May 6. With the match level and relegation rivals Hartlepool United winning, County were destined for the drop with just 90 seconds of the season remaining. But there was one more twist worthy of Hollywood itself as defender Mark O'Brien volleyed in a spectacular 89th-minute winner and Newport's biggest football crowd since 1983 poured onto the pitch to celebrate an incredible end to an incredible story.

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Frank Whitcombe, described as 'one of the greatest Welsh rugby league forwards of all time', played for Bradford Northern, Wales, and Great Britain. Adored by Bradford supporters and admired by the rugby league fraternity, such was his prowess that he was named in the Bradford Northern all-time greats team. The Indomitable Frank Whitcombe, lovingly tells the incredible story of a rugby league legend who was born and raised, as one of ten children in Grangetown, the heart of working-class Cardiff. Frank's rugby career, after a brief and successful spell as a boxer, began in rugby union, when he played for the British Army and London Welsh, as a deceptively nimble and skilful 18 stone forward. His talents were quickly spotted by rugby league scouts, and Frank was persuaded to 'go north' for GBP100 and two new suits, although the cost of buying himself out of the Army left him just GBP10, and the suits! Frank was made for rugby league and he enjoyed a glittering career in professional rugby, winning the RL Challenge Cup three times, the RL Championship three times and was capped 14 times by Wales.He quickly created a big impression on the Great Britain selectors and he was chosen for the famous 1946 'Indomitables' tour of Australia. Frank excelled as the tourists made history and won plaudits from antipodean fans and media alike as the team became the first, and to date only GB tourists, to win a rugby league Test Series, undefeated, 'down under'. After 331 games, Frank bowed-out of rugby with Bradford Northern, four days after playing in a Challenge Cup final at Wembley, in his last match at Odsal; a game which attracted 19,000 fans. He then turned to life as an RL administrator and publican before his life was tragically cut short by pneumonia at the age of only 44. Frank was a true giant of rugby league and this is the first book to tell his remarkable story.

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This volume highlights the importance of the Bay Ports of both Cardiff and Penarth docks during the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Volume One illustrated Bay Maidens and vessels that visited the ports and which can still be seen and visited. Now, in this second volume, Alan Thorne provides details of vessels and voyages of mixed fortunes, and lists further Bay Maidens, including many built in the Bay Ports, some of which are still sailing and that includes one launched as long ago as 1879. "The Sail of Cardiff Bay: Volume Two" describes 120 commercial vessels and provides details of the shipbuilders and shipyards, plus dimensions, rigs and tonnages. The book also contains an Afterword on Andrew Andersen, the Master Boat Builder from Penarth.

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Using tiny hatches and dots derived from gridlike knitting patterns--a self-described "found language"--British artist Ewan Gibbs (born 1973) makes astounding pointillistic drawings whose imagery dissolves into abstraction when viewed at close range. Ewan Gibbs: America is bound in a gorgeous hardback linen cover with a slipcase.

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This delightful book examines the graphics found on all kinds of children's alphabet ware, along with fascinating histories of the firms that produced it. Primarily made in nineteenth century Britain, America, and Germany, these ceramic plates, metal table and flatware, glass dishes, and mugs are considered a reflection of the technologies, values, and styles of the Victorian era. Alphabetically arranged, the twenty-six lettered chapters each tell part of the story: A begins the tale with a bit of American history, B tells of the early bonfires and nineteenth century bottle ovens, C discusses commercialism, D displays deep dishes, E reviews the role of the ware in educating the young … and so on, all the way to Z. The extensively researched text is accompanied by over 1000 stunning photographs of these historic pieces, with detailed captions providing measurements, information on manufacturers and marks, circa dates, and current values. A must for every enthusiast's library, this unique and comprehensive text guides readers through every aspect of collecting alphabet ware.

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Children and adolescents with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) require specialized teaching strategies when learning about puberty, sexuality and relationships. This professional resource offers practical teaching advice geared towards the needs of young people on the autism spectrum.Beginning with information on good practice, policy, teaching methods and recent research, the book then divides into key sex education topics that assist professionals in developing their own individualized and developmentally appropriate curricula. Covering issues of gender, public and private, puberty, hygiene, emotions, sex and more, each topic provides an overview of the difficulties that children with autism might experience, discussion and activity ideas and photocopiable resources including instructional stories, checklists and illustrations. The final section demonstrates how to respond to ongoing patterns of inappropriate behaviour and put together a behaviour plan.Aiming to explain and support the child's developing sexuality while also addressing crucial issues of safety, this book is a much-needed teaching manual for all professionals working with children and young adults with autism including educators in mainstream and special education, psychologists, therapists and social workers.

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The Growing Up Book for Boys explains the facts behind the growth spurts, body changes and mood swings of adolescence for boys aged 9-14 on the autism spectrum.The pre-teen and teenage years are a confusing time when bodies start acting with a will of their own, friendships change and crushes start to develop. Using direct literal language and cool colour illustrations, this book tells boys all they need to know about growing hair in new places, shaving, wet dreams and unexpected erections. It's full of great advice on what makes a real friend, how to keep spots away, and how to stay safe online. Most importantly, it explains that every body is amazing and unique and encourages young boys with autism to celebrate difference!

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Many young people on the autism spectrum struggle with anxiety, but did you know there are lots of simple things you can do to tackle it? This illustrated book will help you to identify what makes you anxious, and contains heaps of activities to calm your body and mind, stop unhealthy anxiety building up and head off anxious feelings in the future. Did you know that giving your anxiety a silly name (like Dr Dread!) will give you power over it? That pretending you are a jellyfish can make your body feel better? That writing your worries down and jumping on them as hard as you can will help to squash them? Ideal for children and young people aged 8 to 14, the ideas in this book will help you feel less stressed at home, at school and with friends, and give you healthy habits and coping techniques to last a lifetime.

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The Growing Up Guide for Girls is a one-stop guide for young girls on the autism spectrum explaining all they need to know about puberty and adolescence. The pre-teen and teenage years are a bumpy time when bodies change, emotions are high and peers are developing at different paces. Using simple, literal language and delightful colour illustrations, this book explains the facts about body changes such as growing hair in new places, periods, wearing a bra and keeping spots away! It gives cool tips on what makes a real friend, what it means to have a crush on somebody, and how to stay safe online. Most importantly, it explains that every body is beautiful and unique and encourages young girls with autism to celebrate difference! Perfect preparation for the teenage years for girls aged 9-14.

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Empowering and practical, this guide is the perfect companion for parents who are finding it difficult to tell their children about their autism diagnosis. It provides a realistic yet uplifting approach to autism, treating it not as a disability but as a difference.Not telling children about their autism diagnosis can have a significant negative impact on their mental health; by equipping parents with a language of positivity around autism, the book will make a difference to many children on the spectrum. It advises on how and when to talk to autistic children with both high and low care needs, and provides guidance on supporting children's relationships with peers at school, as well as how to broach the conversation with the child's siblings.Concise and easy to read, The Little Book of Autism FAQs answers parents' questions with accessible language, preparing them to approach this difficult conversation in a constructive manner.

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