On Sport

Stoke Hill Press, Australia, 2020. Good secondhand condition.

Few if any Australian journalists have mastered the art of long-form sports writing better than Mike Colman. Trent Dalton, author of the mega-seller Boy Swallows Universe, knows this too well, having worked alongside Colman for years at the Brisbane Courier-Mail. Dalton jumped at the chance to introduce this book, because he knows the rare quality of his friend's work. Colman has seen it all: Ashes Tests, Bledisloe Cup, grand finals, Origin, golfing Majors, tennis Grand Slams, Olympic and Commonwealth Games. He has met champions such as Usain Bolt, Neymar, Eddie Jones, Kyle Chalmers, Darren Lockyer, Jason Day, Glen Boss and Makybe Diva, but also many less famous but equally intriguing characters. They all come together in this remarkable collection, which ends with poignant tributes to two heroes of Colman's youth - sports media giants Mike Gibson and Richie Benaud.