Ricki Herbert: A New Fire

By Ricki Herbert with Russell Gray (Harper Sports, RRP $36.99)

RICKI HERBERT: A NEW FIRE

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The name Ricki Herbert is synonymous with football in New Zealand.

As this book comes out his All Whites team is locked in a home and away battle with Bahrain for a spot in next year's World Cup.

A New Fire charts Herbert's rise from football-mad South Auckland kid, through the sometimes stormy waters of the club game in New Zealand, World Cup qualification and participation in 1982, playing professionally in England, and his subsequent rise through the coaching ranks.

The book is definitely targeted at the keen football fan. It charts, sometimes in painstaking detail, the ins and outs of a game that has often failed to gain traction in a rugby-mad nation. Herbert, however, has been at the forefront of many of New Zealand football's biggest moments for nearly 30 years.

His role as coach of the Wellington Phoenix, New Zealand's only professional team, is the inspiration for the book, which is co-authored by Wellington journalist and Phoenix kit-man Russell Gray. The tone feels a little too flattering at times, and some rather meaty and controversial subjects (such as stroppy players and the sport's infamous in-fighting) are glossed over.

However, A New Fire will be an entertaining read for those who have followed the many ups and downs of the beautiful game in New Zealand.

- © Fairfax NZ News