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White Hart Lane: The Spurs Glory Years 1899-2017

Other Title	The Spurs Glory Years 1899-2017
GMD	BOOK
Classification	796 LIP
Publisher	Hachette UK, 2017-10-05
Subject	Sports & Recreation / SoccerSports & Recreation / HistoryHistory / Social HistoryBiography & Autobiography / SportsSportLondonLondon (England)EnglandTottenham HotspurSpursFOOTBALLFootballFootball FactsFootball TacticsHistory - PeopleBiography & AutobiographySoccerJewish Interest
Description	For a football supporter, a real fan, there is nothing more evocative and emotional than the journey to their home ground, a place where they have experienced the highs and lows that the game brings - delight, despair, hope, pain and, occasionally, pure joy. But while those stadiums seem permanent and concrete, they are not. In May 2017, White Hart Lane, the backdrop to more than a century of Spurs history, staged its final game before the club was due to make the short - very short - journey to Tottenham's new home. With the active support and endorsement of the club, who have granted him exclusive access to senior figures, current employees at all levels and historical documents, Martin Lipton pays fitting tribute to the glory days at the Lane. He has talked to, among others, Jimmy Greaves, Martin Chivers, Pat Jennings, Glenn Hoddle, Ossie Ardiles, Chris Waddle, Teddy Sheringham, Jurgen Klinsmann, David Ginola, Gareth Bale and Harry Kane. And he has also interviewed fans, support staff, managers and board members in order to provide the complete and definitive story of White Hart Lane.
ISBN	9781409169284
Additional ISBN	1409169286
URL

Notes

So what makes a ground unique or special, despite changes and revamps? Martin Lipton tries to convey this in an engaging part-history, part-tribute, part-memoir to commemorate the end of White Hart Lane. He draws on interviews with players, managers, supporters and staff, his own experiences as a fan and football reporter, as well as a decent bibliography, to take us from  White Hart Lane's origins on a piece of land at the back of the White Hart pub to the emotional farewell.

The book covers a lot to make a Spurs supporter happy: Arthur Rowe's push and run side; the Bill Nicholson era; the European nights when the ground was at its pulsating best; the Keith Burkinshaw years; David Pleat's many roles during his long association with the club; Harry Redknapp winding his car window down for the last time; the club's tradition of creative players, often shining in a sea of averageness; former players who still clearly love the club. My own favourite, Steve Perryman, refers to White Hart Lane as "nitty-gritty… a non-glitzy working class place… where dreams are made true".

The book also reminds us of the unhappier themes in Tottenham's mixed history – managers and players treated badly, failure to invest at crucial moments, inexplicable boardroom decisions. Former owner Irving Scholar is given too many pages to justify himself, while the subsequent Alan Sugar years are summed up by journalist Gerry Cox lamenting the difficulty of writing five upbeat articles a month for the club newspaper. There were many, many times when White Hart Lane didn't feel special at all.

There are some nice anecdotes from the press box, and stewards and groundsmen also give their unique perspectives. Some supporters might remember Ian Walker's rueful expression when a weak shot from Steve McManaman hit a divot and bounced over his dive – groundsman Darren Baldwin reveals that he went home after the game fearing he’d be sacked.

The final words should be left to a supporter, though. Alan Fisher neatly sums up part of what makes a ground special, and why there was so much relief when Tottenham's interest in the Olympic Stadium site came to nothing: "For over a hundred years, every single Spurs fan has walked the same streets, walked down the High Road. That is such an important thread."