A devil of a time by Alister Nicholson & Tom Jellett

Subtitled, The Tasmania Football Club story, the contents of this book will excite enthusiasm, as it appears that for boy or girl, whether they follow football or not, this book will be enjoyable. The tenor of the book is timed to shadow the serious considerations between Tasmania and the  AFL, as to where the football oval will be and the costs involved, discussions which affect the nation.This book gives an engaging look at the history of football in Tasmania, and how it has supported the AFL through its players and supporters.

The endpapers give a number of facts about Tasmanian football, including the story of the mascot Rum’un, the Tasmanian name for being cheeky or mischievous.The child in the story is dreaming of the future, when a Tasmanian team joins the AFL. They will sit proudly in the stand, watching the Tassie devils in their colours; myrtle green, rose red and primrose yellow. The child lives on a farm and practises in the paddock where football posts have been erected, as they continue dreaming of the time ahead.

But as they sit with their grandpa, he recalls past great times in Tassie football: when Rich kicked 800 goals, and Ian Stewart won three Brownlows, or Huddo was helicoptered to a match. Or when Tassie beat Victoria in 1960, or the time the Wynyard fans removed the posts to avoid the opposition kicking a goal.

An engaging, joy filled book about Tasmanian football and the part it plays in this island state, Tasmanians being as fanatical as their mainland cousins. The story of its part in Tasmania’s history is wonderfully illustrated by Tom Jellett, his familiar jovial faces peering out at the reader engaging them in the story of our times. Children will be aware that plans are afoot to include Tasmania in the AFL, and this book encourages their deeper interest.

Themes: Football, AFL, Tasmania, Tasmanian devil.

Fran Knight