Tony Collins

In 1895, the game of rugby league was born. Ever since, it has brought us thrilling matches, magical players and countless memorable moments. Published to coincide with the game's 125th anniversary, Rugby League: A People’s History tells the story of the sport in all its glory, from global superstars to local supporters and everyone in between ... professionals and amateurs, men and women, officials and volunteers.

Combining the scholarship of the award-winning Rugby’s Great Split and Rugby League in Twentieth Century Britain with an accessible approach to bring the game’s history to the widest audience, the book is more than just a history of rugby league. It is a social history of the life and times of the north of England.

To order your copy, click here for Scratching Shed Publications, and to listen to my interview with Dr Kevin Moore about the book, check out episode 128 of my Rugby Reloaded podcast.

You can also hear me discuss the book on Sky Sports' Golden Point podcast, the Progressive Rugby League podcast, and BBC Radio 5’s Rugby League Podcast.

‘Worthy of readership well beyond custodians of the sport; to be used as a tool to better understand who we are and where we now go from here’. The Critic.

‘This is a terrific book, extremely well-written, accessible to the widest possible audience, and being based on the highest level of academic scholarship, it reveals a great deal that was new to me about the history of Rugby League’. Dr Kevin Moore, former director of the National Football Museum.

‘One of the most important rugby league books ever released, Rugby League: A People’s History is a brilliantly written piece by historian Tony Collins’. Callum Walker, Total Rugby League.