BLUE HEAVEN - MANCHESTER CITY'S GREATEST GAMES

TITLE		BLUE HEAVEN (Manchester City's Greatest Games)
AUTHOR		Ian Penney
PUBLISHER	Mainstream
ADDRESS		Mainstream Publishing Company (Edinburgh) Ltd
               	7 Albany Street
		Edinburgh
		EH1 3UG
DATE		1996
ISBN NUMBER	1 85158 872 8
PRICE		£14.99 (Hardback)

The Book:

The format is one of a City team (in relevant positions) made up of past players recalling their most memorable game. I don't know how much of the author's choice was due to availability but I'd pay to watch them.

The Team.                     Their Game.
 1.Joe Corrigan             v. Spurs 1981 Centenary F.A. Cup Final
 2.Ian Brightwell           v. Man Utd (H) Div One 23/9/89
 3.Glyn Pardoe              v. WBA 1970 League Cup Final
 4.Ken Barnes               v. Birmingham City 1956 F.A. Cup Final
 5.Tommy Booth              v. Everton F.A. Cup Semi-Final 1969
 6.Paul Power               v. Ipswich Town F.A. Cup Semi-Final 1981
 7.Mike Summerbee           v. PNE (A) Div Two 23/10/65
 8.Colin Bell               v. Newcastle Utd (H) Div One 26/12/77
 9.Niall Quinn              v. Derby County (H) Div One 20/4/91
10.Asa Hartford             v. Man Utd (H) League Cup 4th Round 12/11/75
11.Roy Clarke               v. Sunderland F.A. Cup Semi-Final 1955
Manager.
   Tony Book                v. Newcastle Utd League Cup Final 1976
On The Bench. Celebrity Blues recall their favourite moments.

The Format.

I found this a very well constructed and very entertaining book, with each story being a mixture of the player's thoughts, newspaper reports and the author's research. It brings back many great memories (similar to the submissions to MCIVTA during the close season), the added spice being that these come from the players themselves. I'm sure most fans could pick out from the list above the reason each player picked their particular favourite. Those who love King Colin as much as I do will understand why the tears were welling (alright flowing) when I read his choice.

I would recommend this very strongly to those who like nostalgia (it's not what it used to be), particularly if they were at, or can remember, most of the games selected.

Out Of Ten. 10 (If only for making me cry)

P.S. One thing I must mention is the priceless picture of Paul Power between pages 64 and 65. The question is "What was Paul Power caught doing in the offices of the PFA?"