{"product_id":"irelands-game-liam-ocallaghan-9781844886616","title":"Ireland's Game","description":"\u003cb\u003eLiam O'Callaghan's revelatory \u003ci\u003eBlood and Thunder \u003c\/i\u003eshows that the rise of Irish rugby is inextricable from the tensions, debates and divisions - of politics, religion and class - that have defined modern Irish history.\u003c\/b\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eDespite the political partition of the island, Ireland competes at rugby internationally with an all-island team - and with a bespoke anthem that nobody loves but everyone tolerates. Ireland has become a leading rugby nation despite its tiny population and the fact that the sport is only the fourth most popular team game on the island by participation. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eIn \u003ci\u003eBlood and Thunder\u003c\/i\u003e, O'Callaghan traces the dramatic evolution whereby a rugby nation that was deeply attached to amateurism has made such a dramatic success of professionalism. From the sequence of events that led Ireland's private Catholic secondary schools to embrace rugby, to the controversies and crises that have shaken Irish rugby - including the Northern Troubles, the Belfast rape trial, and the rising toll of head injuries - \u003ci\u003eBlood and Thunder \u003c\/i\u003etells the rich and fascinating story of Irish rugby. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ci\u003eBlood and Thunder\u003c\/i\u003e is more than a social and political history of Irish rugby. It is also a shadow-history of modern Ireland, rooted in brilliant original research and packed with terrific stories. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e---\u003cbr\u003e'Excellent' \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eSunday Times\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e'Rigorously researched and incisively written ... \u003ci\u003eBlood and Thunder\u003c\/i\u003e should be on every team bus.' \u003cb\u003eJohn O'Donnell, \u003ci\u003eIrish Times\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e'The whole book is a delight.' \u003cb\u003eCiaran Murphy\u003c\/b\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e'Excellent ... O'Callaghan willingly challenges any hyperbole about the sport's appeal here just as he keenly seeks to identify and explain some of the wonders of that reach' \u003cb\u003eKieran Shannon, \u003ci\u003eIrish Examiner\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e'I really enjoyed it.' \u003cb\u003eKen Early\u003c\/b\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e'O'Callaghan's history of Irish rugby is a superb excavation of the place of that sport in Irish life.' \u003cb\u003ePaul Rouse, \u003ci\u003e Irish Examiner\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e'Entertaining and informative' \u003ci\u003e\u003cb\u003eMichael Taylor, TLS\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/b\u003e Liam O'Callaghan\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-10:\u003c\/b\u003e 1844886611\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-13:\u003c\/b\u003e 9781844886616\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e Sandycove\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eLanguage:\u003c\/b\u003e English\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 03\/04\/2025\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 288\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eFormat:\u003c\/b\u003e Hardcover\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 1.23lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 9.23h x 6.39w x 1.20d","brand":"Liam O'Callaghan","offers":[{"title":"Hardcover","offer_id":48623317876991,"sku":"9781844886616","price":38.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"url":"https:\/\/www.whiterainbookhouse.com\/products\/irelands-game-liam-ocallaghan-9781844886616","provider":"WR Book House","version":"1.0","type":"link"}