New Martin Flanagan Book on 2016

[josie]

Hi Mods-feel free to relocate and rename this post....

To woofers-I just read excerpt of Martin Flanagan’s new book in the age. Going to purchase a copy from readings this arvo. I love martin’s articles and am sure his book will be a beauty. He had inner sanctum access in 2016 and it is patently apparent from excerpt. Woofers go buy a copy and support an ethical bloke who is a really good writer and who has a big soft spot for our team. Go Dogs!!

[Murphy'sLore]

The extract in The Age this morning made me tear up. I imagine the whole book will destroy me. Love love love Martin Flanagan's writing, I cna't think of anyone better to write this book!

[josie]

Yeah-with you on the tearing up ML.

Just in Carlton Readings. The book is in stock 26 feb. They have 40 in order however it will be publicised in their regular magazine so I reckon they’ll sell out first lot pronto. Hence placed an order-just in time for hubby’s birthday (might sneak read a bit first though...)

[I'm Not Bitter Anymore!]

Also teary after reading that. I have pre-ordered the book from Book Depository

[Murphy'sLore]

Preordered two copies from Readings -- mother in law's birthday coming up!

[bornadog]

I have pre-ordered on Booktopia.com.au

[BornInDroopSt'54]

"A Wink from The Universe" by Martin Flanagan, published by Penguin Random House on sale this week RRP $34.99.

https://www.theage.com.au/sport/afl/book-extract-waiting-for-the-big-dance-with-the-western-bulldogs-20180214-p4z08y.html

[Twodogs]

What is this bloody book called anyway? is it Waiting for the big Dance or A Wink from The Universe or Twodogs book of footy supporting or firstdogonthemoon's "i love the bulldogs" or what?

Im confused but that's normal.

[bornadog]

"A Wink from The Universe" by Martin Flanagan, published by Penguin Random House on sale this week RRP $34.99.




What is this bloody book called anyway? is it Waiting for the big Dance or A Wink from The Universe or Twodogs book of footy supporting or firstdogonthemoon's "i love the bulldogs" or what?

Im confused but that's normal.

See above

[craigsahibee]

Always thought Wil Anderson was from Heyfield not "Haywood".

[Eastdog]

Always thought Wil Anderson was from Heyfield not "Haywood".

Yep Heyfield, Victoria in Gippsland in the correct one.

[The bulldog tragician]

I hope it is not inappropriate to post this and if so I’m sure a mod will take it down. I also wrote a book about the Doggies’ premiership which was published last year. It was very much a from-the-heart story of our journey as fans, I’d been blogging about the experience of being a fan since 2013.

Though I get lots of great feedback from people who read the book, and Tim Lane paid me a wonderful compliment that it was in his view ‘the best footy book he’d read’, I also hear from many ardent Bulldogs’ fans that they have never heard of it and are really surprised and then very keen to track it down. I’m glad to say that when they do so, they often get back in touch to say that they also passed on the news to other Dogs fans who then enjoyed it too.

The club sadly did not support the book, they would not stock it in the Bulldogs shop though like any retailer they would have made a profit, and only did one tweet .... this was disappointing as I’d allowed them to reproduce my blog for free during the 2016 finals.

Martin Flanagan’s book will be heavily promoted and I’m looking forward to reading it as much as the next person, but just in case anyone who’s reading this has never heard of my book, I thought I’d write this post.

[josie]

Bulldog Tragician book a beauty- I highly recommend it. Very heartfelt and some good laughs too.

[SonofScray]

I hope it is not inappropriate to post this and if so I’m sure a mod will take it down. I also wrote a book about the Doggies’ premiership which was published last year. It was very much a from-the-heart story of our journey as fans, I’d been blogging about the experience of being a fan since 2013.

Though I get lots of great feedback from people who read the book, and Tim Lane paid me a wonderful compliment that it was in his view ‘the best footy book he’d read’, I also hear from many ardent Bulldogs’ fans that they have never heard of it and are really surprised and then very keen to track it down. I’m glad to say that when they do so, they often get back in touch to say that they also passed on the news to other Dogs fans who then enjoyed it too.

The club sadly did not support the book, they would not stock it in the Bulldogs shop though like any retailer they would have made a profit, and only did one tweet .... this was disappointing as I’d allowed them to reproduce my blog for free during the 2016 finals.

Martin Flanagan’s book will be heavily promoted and I’m looking forward to reading it as much as the next person, but just in case anyone who’s reading this has never heard of my book, I thought I’d write this post.

Both 'The Mighty West' and 'Too Tough To Die' are very important pieces in the history of our Club and must read/own books. That's a little bit underwhelming, that the back of house dealing didn't end with with the club supporting the book more etc (though not surprising, professional sports clubs are odd like that).

I read 'Too Tough to Die' not long after my nan died. She was in the Taskforce. I noticed it in a box when we were cleaning out the house and claimed for my own. My daughter is two years old, I suspect at some point in her life she'll find a dog eared copy of 'The Mighty West,' and read it & it'll affirm much of her understanding why her family is the way it is, just as I did.

Flanagan is my favourite writer when it comes to footy. He has this dogged belief that the game exists outside of the industry and celebrates the absolute core elements of why Aussie Rules is important and why our Club matters. I despise the homogenous, fake macho, group think of the AFL. I suspect he does too. Looking forward to this one.

[Pickenitup]

Got my copy today and I'm loving it think this will be the best footy book I'll ever read.

[Twodogs]

I hope it is not inappropriate to post this and if so I’m sure a mod will take it down. I also wrote a book about the Doggies’ premiership which was published last year. It was very much a from-the-heart story of our journey as fans, I’d been blogging about the experience of being a fan since 2013.

Though I get lots of great feedback from people who read the book, and Tim Lane paid me a wonderful compliment that it was in his view ‘the best footy book he’d read’, I also hear from many ardent Bulldogs’ fans that they have never heard of it and are really surprised and then very keen to track it down. I’m glad to say that when they do so, they often get back in touch to say that they also passed on the news to other Dogs fans who then enjoyed it too.

The club sadly did not support the book, they would not stock it in the Bulldogs shop though like any retailer they would have made a profit, and only did one tweet .... this was disappointing as I’d allowed them to reproduce my blog for free during the 2016 finals.

Martin Flanagan’s book will be heavily promoted and I’m looking forward to reading it as much as the next person, but just in case anyone who’s reading this has never heard of my book, I thought I’d write this post.

I was standing with my son right in front of you at the release at the pub in Yarraville. John Harms did a great job. William McInnes and Firstdog were there. It was a great night. I'm sorry to hear that the club blanked you, did they say why?

[Throughandthrough]

I hope it is not inappropriate to post this and if so I’m sure a mod will take it down. I also wrote a book about the Doggies’ premiership which was published last year. It was very much a from-the-heart story of our journey as fans, I’d been blogging about the experience of being a fan since 2013.

Though I get lots of great feedback from people who read the book, and Tim Lane paid me a wonderful compliment that it was in his view ‘the best footy book he’d read’, I also hear from many ardent Bulldogs’ fans that they have never heard of it and are really surprised and then very keen to track it down. I’m glad to say that when they do so, they often get back in touch to say that they also passed on the news to other Dogs fans who then enjoyed it too.

The club sadly did not support the book, they would not stock it in the Bulldogs shop though like any retailer they would have made a profit, and only did one tweet .... this was disappointing as I’d allowed them to reproduce my blog for free during the 2016 finals.

Martin Flanagan’s book will be heavily promoted and I’m looking forward to reading it as much as the next person, but just in case anyone who’s reading this has never heard of my book, I thought I’d write this post.

Your book is perfect. I read it when my life was at an absolute low six months ago and it made me smile again

[Eastdog]

I have some reading to do :)

Sounds like a great book along with those other ones SonofScray mentioned.

[Twodogs]

Anyway Tradge you wouldn't have made those factual errors Martin makes in the first couple of pages of this.

[The bulldog tragician]

I was standing with my son right in front of you at the release at the pub in Yarraville. John Harms did a great job. William McInnes and Firstdog were there. It was a great night. I'm sorry to hear that the club blanked you, did they say why?

Yes, it was so lovely to meet you all.

I am not sure what happened with the club. As I mentioned, they asked to publish my blog during the finals, which of course I was thrilled to do. They then asked if they could keep publishing it the following year (again, for no payment, but with the offer of some other “match day experience.” I didn’t have any real ambitions for that type of thing, I couldn’t really see myself acting cool in the coaches box �� but when the book became a reality, I hoped they could assist. They promised to, and my publisherthen contacted them directly. I thought at the least it would be available at the Shop, or in one of those deals: first 50 members get a book or something like that. Just as Big W or Readings make money out of every book sold, so too would the club, so I was stunned that they made it clear the shop wouldn’t sell it, and the offer of promotion became one tweet.

There is little money in being an author, and I have blogged for years just for the fun of knowing people felt I was capturing parts of their story ( it’s cheaper than seeing a shrink too). But I thought the blog and book were very much in line with everything the club says they are about - community and family and western suburbs. I know lots of people bought and enjoyed it, but I know there were some who just never came across it. As a storyteller that disappoints me, and I don’t really get why they backed away. I had assumed it might be the Flanagan book, but given they’re published a year apart, and completely different - he’s got inside access, I was a starry eyed fan who’s seen all the heartaches - there should have been room for both.

Enough said! Thanks to those who’ve said they enjoyed it, all any writer secretly wants is to hear those words.

[bornadog]

Enough said! Thanks to those who’ve said they enjoyed it, all any writer secretly wants is to hear those words.

I enjoy reading all your pieces as well as your book. Keep up the good work.

[bornadog]

Dear Bulldogs through and through,

I've written a book about the Bulldogs' 2016 premiership. Initially, I met Bevo to tell him I couldn't do it. Five minutes later the book was happening and I was writing it.

Because we were late getting started, I told him the book wouldn't be out until early 2018. His reply is my all-time favourite Bevo quote: "A good story's a good story whenever it appears, isn't it?". Basically, what we agreed on was that the Bulldogs 2016 premiership was good news. A happy story in a not always happy world.

I met Bevo when I wrote my first book on the Dogs, "Southern Sky, Western Oval", in 1993. He was playing for the Dogs back then and we've had a respectful relationship ever since. Bob Murphy I know because his parents knew mine before Bob was ever conceived or glimpsed a Sherrin.

Doing this book, I met some interesting young men – Easton Wood, Marcus Bontempelli, Jordan Roughead, Tom Liberatore, to name a few. I also met trainer Paul Maher, and Liz Phillips and Kath Oliver from the footy department, Gaz from the cheer squad, Danny McGinlay who wrote the messages on the Bulldog banners, and Ace Arthur, the Bones McGhie of AFL club historians.

Then there were supporters like Carmen Petropulo, who gave the book its title, and Rhys Clements, who followed the grand final from his apartment in the Chinese city of Shenyang before exploding forth to give expression to his inner Bulldog before a bemused audience in a local bar….

The book is written as a crowd scene with lots of different voices and perspectives that builds to the epic finals series - against West Coast in Perth, starting at 67-1 outsiders, Hawthorn at the MCG, the Hawks playing for four flags in a row, GWS in Sydney, a match that stands with the all-time classics. And grand final day at the MCG, the place brimming with people and beating like a bass drum.

I hope this book makes people happy like the 2016 premiership did. I hope it brings memories rushing back, not just now, but in 10 or 15 years’ time, or, like “Southern Sky, Western Oval”, 25 years’ time.

On Saturday, I’ll be at the Family Day at VU Whitten Oval at 11am signing copies.

Martin Flanagan

A Wink from the Universe will be available to purchase from the Bulldogs Shop atFamily Day (http://click.tmclient.ticketmaster.com/?qs=d2dcb6243edfdd8e62e8d8097a27f97dae366e27ab92d2a8198857b9 8a9b87dfd38b801f68e4ada9a90f15c40ad17bc757896d2cfcb5bfc580cc c857371c8ed2) on Saturday, February 24.

Bob Murphy: “Those of us who were lucky enough to live through the 2016 football season want to hear Martin Flanagan tell it back to us in his poetic way”.

[Twodogs]

I love a good story. I can understand your frustration about not being able to share it. It's like you did all the difficult bits (or the passionate bits) and when it came time for the club to do their one bit they couldn't go ahead and they couldn't tell you why. Not being told why would be the straw for mine.

[Axe Man]

I hope it is not inappropriate to post this and if so I’m sure a mod will take it down. I also wrote a book about the Doggies’ premiership which was published last year. It was very much a from-the-heart story of our journey as fans, I’d been blogging about the experience of being a fan since 2013.

Though I get lots of great feedback from people who read the book, and Tim Lane paid me a wonderful compliment that it was in his view ‘the best footy book he’d read’, I also hear from many ardent Bulldogs’ fans that they have never heard of it and are really surprised and then very keen to track it down. I’m glad to say that when they do so, they often get back in touch to say that they also passed on the news to other Dogs fans who then enjoyed it too.

The club sadly did not support the book, they would not stock it in the Bulldogs shop though like any retailer they would have made a profit, and only did one tweet .... this was disappointing as I’d allowed them to reproduce my blog for free during the 2016 finals.

Martin Flanagan’s book will be heavily promoted and I’m looking forward to reading it as much as the next person, but just in case anyone who’s reading this has never heard of my book, I thought I’d write this post.

I've got your book TBT, I just have to find the time to read it!

[I'm Not Bitter Anymore!]

I have it too - really enjoyed it thank you

[merantau]

Bulldog Tragician book a beauty- I highly recommend it. Very heartfelt and some good laughs too.

I'll second that. It is a great read. AND, while I'm at it there is another fabulous book that is a great read:
"How the West was Won: Memoirs of Melbourne's Western Suburbs" edited by Karyn Howie and Sue O'Brien
All proceeds from the book go to Western Chances to provide scholarship for young people in the West to help them fulfill their potential

Bulldogtrajician contributes, as does Tony Leonard, Kevin Harrington, Michael Leunig, Lina Caneva, Josephine Cafagna, Wendy Stapleton and many more.
The book is worth reading alone for just one fantastic anecdote that concerns our greatest ever player.
A really great book about growing up in the West in the 50s, 60s and 70s. The West and its people are special. No other part of Melbourne has that tribal identity. It is unique

[Twodogs]

I'll second that. It is a great read. AND, while I'm at it there is another fabulous book that is a great read:
"How the West was Won: Memoirs of Melbourne's Western Suburbs" edited by Karyn Howie and Sue O'Brien
All proceeds from the book go to Western Chances to provide scholarship for young people in the West to help them fulfill their potential

Bulldogtrajician contributes, as does Tony Leonard, Kevin Harrington, Michael Leunig, Lina Caneva, Josephine Cafagna, Wendy Stapleton and many more.
The book is worth reading alone for just one fantastic anecdote that concerns our greatest ever player.
A really great book about growing up in the West in the 50s, 60s and 70s. The West and its people are special. No other part of Melbourne has that tribal identity. It is unique

Hang on. How long has Moonee Ponds been in the west?

[Bulldog Revolution]

I've got your book TBT, I just have to find the time to read it!

Id been meaning to buy a copy and then did so in January - I read it on a plane and loved it - I re-read it on the return flight and it brought me joy and happiness each time.

Can someone please organise another Bulldogs premiership?

[merantau]

Hang on. How long has Moonee Ponds been in the west?

Yeah, I must say I baulked at that one too. Bit of a stretch for me. Once you pass over the bridge opposite the Angler's that's it for me.

[The bulldog tragician]

Hang on. How long has Moonee Ponds been in the west?

A friend of mine used to claim that Moonee Ponds and Essendon were only western suburbs when funding got handed out. To be honest I've always disliked those 'nearly' western suburbs that were posh enough to look down on us from just across the other side of the Maribyrnong.

Apart from that fairly significant flaw, 'How the west was one' is a beautiful and nostalgic read and going to an excellent cause. It is funny now seeing the west is a hip destination. This book reminds us that it was far from the case until around 20 years ago. My own story is called 'The land of the purple thistle' about growing up in Deer Park, a suburb that I suspect will never ever be hip.

[Murphy'sLore]

My copy of A Wink From the Universe arrived this morning -- about a third of the way through now. Still picking up the odd mistake -- names misspelled etc. It's annoying because it would have been so easy to fix.

But it's a beautiful read, he's done Pen Pics of the players, just a couple of pages each, but it sums them up wonderfully.

[Twodogs]

Yeah, I must say I baulked at that one too. Bit of a stretch for me. Once you pass over the bridge opposite the Angler's that's it for me.

That's the boundary. Well the river is really but the Anglers is so close to the river that they combine after a decent shower of rain.


A friend of mine used to claim that Moonee Ponds and Essendon were only western suburbs when funding got handed out. To be honest I've always disliked those 'nearly' western suburbs that were posh enough to look down on us from just across the other side of the Maribyrnong.

Apart from that fairly significant flaw, 'How the west was one' is a beautiful and nostalgic read and going to an excellent cause. It is funny now seeing the west is a hip destination. This book reminds us that it was far from the case until around 20 years ago. My own story is called 'The land of the purple thistle' about growing up in Deer Park, a suburb that I suspect will never ever be hip.

I don't like our neighbours very much at all. I'm guessing they have a redeeming feature but I can't see it.


My copy of A Wink From the Universe arrived this morning -- about a third of the way through now. Still picking up the odd mistake -- names misspelled etc. It's annoying because it would have been so easy to fix.

But it's a beautiful read, he's done Pen Pics of the players, just a couple of pages each, but it sums them up wonderfully.

I have found all the books very easy to read. I just sit down and engulf them. I'm reading more about footy as a rule since the premiership.

[Eastdog]

Yeah, I must say I baulked at that one too. Bit of a stretch for me. Once you pass over the bridge opposite the Angler's that's it for me.

This might help with that. According to wiki it's in the Northern category.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Melbourne_suburbs

[Murphy'sLore]

Glad to see that Martin Flanagan gives the Bulldog Tragician and her book a lovely shout out towards the end.

[bornadog]

Glad to see that Martin Flanagan gives the Bulldog Tragician and her book a lovely shout out towards the end.

I haven't got that far yet - I wonder if TBT knows that.

[Murphy'sLore]

That was why I mentioned it -- I wasn't sure either.

[HOSE B ROMERO]

I'll second that. It is a great read. AND, while I'm at it there is another fabulous book that is a great read:
"How the West was Won: Memoirs of Melbourne's Western Suburbs" edited by Karyn Howie and Sue O'Brien
All proceeds from the book go to Western Chances to provide scholarship for young people in the West to help them fulfill their potential

Bulldogtrajician contributes, as does Tony Leonard, Kevin Harrington, Michael Leunig, Lina Caneva, Josephine Cafagna, Wendy Stapleton and many more.
The book is worth reading alone for just one fantastic anecdote that concerns our greatest ever player.
A really great book about growing up in the West in the 50s, 60s and 70s. The West and its people are special. No other part of Melbourne has that tribal identity. It is unique

Oh i don't know. Haven't you heard of the famous 'Tales from T'rak - enhancing community with 9 foot fortresses'.

[HOSE B ROMERO]

Yeah, I must say I baulked at that one too. Bit of a stretch for me. Once you pass over the bridge opposite the Angler's that's it for me.

Hmm but what about Willy? Strictly speaking, Willy is as much south/west as Moonee Ponds is north/west:confused:

[Twodogs]

Hmm but what about Willy? Strictly speaking, Willy is as much south/west as Moonee Ponds is north/west:confused:


its certainly beginning to align that way isn't it? It's more of a bayside suburb than a western suburb.

[Eastdog]

its certainly beginning to align that way isn't it? It's more of a bayside suburb than a western suburb.

The suburb of West Melbourne I still believe we can claim as our own. There will be a West Melbourne train station once the metro tunnel is completed. West Melbourne has Footscray Road :)

[bornadog]

Can we discuss the book and not get off track. Thank you

[Twodogs]

The suburb of West Melbourne I still believe we can claim as our own. There will be a West Melbourne train station once the metro tunnel is completed. West Melbourne has Footscray Road :)

Back in the 1890s the locals in Footscray were becoming aware that Footscray was getting a bad name. So they put their heads together and decided that the best course of action was to to rename the suburb. So they sent a delegation in to see the premier. The premier says fair enough come up with a new name and we will see what we can do.

The delegation comes back a little while later and the premier asks what name they have decided on.


"We like the name 'West Melbourne'"

"Well you can't have it"

"Why can't we have it."

"Because we already have a suburb called West Melbourne!"

So they decided to stick with Footscray after all...

[Mantis]

I grabbed a copy at the airport this morning as I head north for a business & pleasure trip.. Looks a good read.

[Throughandthrough]

I love the section on Libba, really interesting analysis.

[Ozza]

Picked it up from the Bulldogs shop today. Looking fwd to it.

[bornadog]

How my book - A Wink from the Universe - got its title ...

Link (http://tasmaniantimes.com/index.php?/weblog/article/how-my-book-got-its-title-/)

This is the story of how my book on the Bulldogs’ 2016 AFL premiership got its title.


The story actually starts in 1993 when I wrote my first book on the Dogs, “Southern Sky, Western Oval”. Back then, the Dogs’ home ground was called the Western Oval – now it’s called Whitten Oval.


Back then the club was the Footscray Football Club – now it’s the Western Bulldogs Football Club. That both changes were deemed necessary for the club’s survival tells you something of its battling history.


What surprised me when I arrived at the club in 1993 was how quiet the place was. There are a number of possible explanations for this. For well over 100 years, the western suburbs of Melbourne was the city of Melbourne’s “other” and its residents were looked down upon. Bulldogs club historian Darren “Ace” Arthur says from early times the western suburbs had an “introverted” character. I was also advised by historian Robert Pascoe that early Footscray had a strong Scottish presence. Having lived in Scotland during the 1970s, I fancied that I could hear that same taut silence I’d heard in pubs and workplaces in Glasgow and Edinburgh.


All the old AFL/VFL clubs have religious components to their early histories. The Dogs were different in this regard. After the terrible depressions of the 1890s and 1930s that were felt cruelly in working class areas like the western suburbs of Melbourne, Footscray became a trade union town, the Bulldogs a trade union football club. With that came the old Australian working class maxim: “Actions speaks louder than words”. The Dogs were football stoics, proud and uncomplaining. But their culture was introverted. To add to my difficulties, there was no history up around the walls which stared at me like blank pages.


With the Dogs having a seriously anti-climactic season on the field, I seriously wondered if there was a book there to be written. I began reading every book I could find on the western suburbs of Melbourne and stumbled upon “A Bunch of Ratbags”, a novel by William Dick about growing up in Footscray in the 1950s and early ‘60s.


It seems that “A Bunch of Ratbags” was first published in England, in 1965. Working class writers like Alan Sillitoe were big there. He’d written iconic stories like “Saturday Night, Sunday Morning” and “The Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner”. “A Bunch of Ratbags” belongs identifiably to that genre. It’s a tough working class novel. It has a character called the Mad Russian. Kids were wary of kicking their footballs into the Mad Russian’s yard. He’d been known to plunge a knife through one.


The Mad Russian had actually been a medical student in Russia but, having no English, the only work he could get in Melbourne was as a labourer on the wharves. His Polish wife, who had survived a Nazi forced labour camp, was short, dynamic and, according to her granddaughter Carmen, “something of a stunner”. She took in boarders, including some pretty rough types. But one, Reg Cook, was a cut above the rest. He worked as a clerk at Olympic tyres. He dressed up on Sundays even though he didn’t go to church. And he barracked for the Dogs, went every week, took the Mad Russian’s son, then eight years old. His name is Alexander Petropulo.


In 1960s Australia, with “a Russian father, a Polish mother and a name that sounded Greek”, Alexander was a “wog”. An outsider. Through Reg Cook and his connections, however, he grew up inside the Footscray Football Club. He kicked the footy with club legend E.J. “Ted” (Mister Football) Whitten. He and Reg Cook went to the footy together for decades. Together they saw Merv Hobbs’ famous mark in the 1961 preliminary final, saw Ted Whitten’s last game, walked out on to the oval to hear the footy orator’s last three-quarter time speech.


Reg Cook was an optimist, not a quality one finds in abundance reviewing the history of the Western Bulldogs/Footscray Football Club. Indeed, club historian Darren Ace Arthur calmed himself before the 2016 grand final by persuading himself that a Bulldog defeat was certain. But it didn’t matter how badly the Bulldogs were doing on the field, Reg Cook would always find something positive to say.


“Wasn’t that a lovely goal so-and-so kicked today?” Reg Cook wanted to live out his days in the care of Alexander’s mother, but when the boarding house closed up he had to go. Alexander, who later became a lecturer in educational technology at Monash University, says Reg Cook, the Bulldog optimist, was like his de facto father.


Alexander married and when his daughter Carmen was an infant her mother was hospitalised. Alexander had already bought his daughter a Bulldog scarf the day she was born - in 2016, she wore it to the grand final. Caring for Carmen as an infant, Alexander sang her the Bulldog club song every night. Alexander and Carmen have been going to the footy together for decades.


Carmen is now in her 30s, works in marketing and is active on Twitter. She is protective of the Bulldog players, both from external critics and barbs chucked at them by their own supporters. The title of the book comes from an incident involving Carmen which occurred the Monday after the Dogs had comprehensively lost the last home and away match of the 2016 season to 16th-placed Fremantle in Perth and slid to the rank outsider odds of 67-1 to win the flag.


In two weeks, they would travel back to Perth to meet West Coast in the first round of the finals. The Dogs hadn’t won in Perth for years. Their average losing margin in recent times there had been 70 points. West Coast were coming into the finals with impeccable form, having played off in the grand final the year before. It seemed like a familiar Bulldog story in the making: crippled by injuries, they had made a characteristically brave tilt for the flag which would end in a characteristically anti-climactic manner. This, after all, was a club that had won only one premiership in its VFL/AFL history, and that in 1954, a time closer to the 19th century than our own.


It was at this moment of utter public disbelief in the team that Carmen Petropulo had what I call her Joan of Arc moment: she had a premonition that the Dogs were going to win the 2016 premiership. The number of people around Australia who shared her conviction at that point could have been counted on one hand. On Monday morning, wearing her Bulldog scarf, she was striding towards her favourite coffee shop in the centre of Melbourne when a worker on a building site yelled out, “”I think your boys are going to win! Two weeks off’ll do ‘em the world of good!”. Looking up, she liked his face, and thought, “That’s all we need. A wink from the universe”.


So that’s how the book got its name. I’d like to think Reg Cook approves. And her grandmother, too.

[Twodogs]

Thanks for that BAD. I was wondering where the name was from. It's a good title.


That book he talks about, A Bunch of Ratbags is a big source of controversy in my family. I bought it home when I was at school and mum hit the roof. "I won't have that boy's name mentioned in this house" "and "that book is going straight back where it came from."

Then a couple of months ago my son brings this book home and tells me that apparantly it's about Footscray. "Oh! Let's show nanna" I said...

[AndrewP6]

Bit late to the party, but I just picked this up. 12 pages in, loving it. Great read.