FULL TIME AT MAINE ROAD

Title Full time at Maine Road Author Len Grant Publisher Len Grant Photography ISBN No 1-952-67203-0 Price £13.00

This book is a photographic record of the last months of Maine Road: the stadium, games, fans, residents, dispersal and ultimately the demolition of what was our home for 80 years. Len Grant was commissioned by Manchester City Council to record the transition of the area and his photographs are well composed and evocative, bringing back matchday memories of the old familiar haunts and characters.

The foreward is by Richard Leese (City fan and leader MCCl) and there is an introduction from Mark Radcliffe (shame on the typos there for Sean Goater and Burden Park). The photos are interspersed with comments from fans and residents "the buzz has gone", "Saturday afternoons are dead around here" who understandably have mixed views on the change. The auction of the various saleable items is also covered, with some of the items shown with their new owners including one couple whose garden is now complete with turnstile.

Halfway through the book, the mood changes (for City fans at least) as the mammoth task of removing the stadium from the Moss Side skyline unfolds and the old lady is demolished. Great pictures, but a number of fans will find it sad to see those stands resembling something out of Bagdhad with scenes of mangled steel, rubble, cranes and diggers on what was once the best pitch in the country. A nice memory of Maine Road in it's own right, and a book to dip into now and then when the feelings of nostalgia creep in.

Heidi (editor at mcivta.city-fan.org)