PITCH AUTHOR’S PARLIAMENTARY MOTION

Pitch Publishing is a fantastic imprint – they do all the great Got, Not Gots and retro sports titles.

James Brown, The Late Tackle, talkSPORT

Pitch Publishing show the way for enterprising sports book publishers and remains a beacon of hope for sports authors aspiring or established.

The Sports Bookshelf.com

Pitch Publishing, an outfit whose "pitch perfect" commissioning of boxing material stands as a rebuke to more established houses

Boxing Monthly

Pitch capture the real spirit of sport with entertaining and clever ideas. They work out what the aficianado would want to read, then deliver it with great verve.

Paul Hayward, The Daily Telegraph

Pitch have enabled me to write in the ways I enjoy most. Their production support is superb, delivering eye-catching designs, attentive proof-reading, energetic marketing and helpful advice.

Tim Quelch, Bent Arms & Dodgy Wickets, Underdog!

Pitch are willing to back out-of-the-blue and innovative ideas and turn them into viable, entertaining books. They do so with great presentation and editorial flair.

Justin Parkinson, Then Came Massacre

Pitch saw the potential in my story, used their expertise to polish it, published it and helped inspire thousands around the world to get into triathlon.

Andy Holgate, Can’t Swim, Can’t Ride, Can’t Run

The process of working with Pitch to produce Picking up the Threads was enjoyable and rewarding, with the final edition surpassing expectations and becoming a resounding success.

John Chandler, Picking up the Threads

Pitch will take a chance on books that other publishers won't and realise that interest in football extends beyond the Premier League and the top 20 countries in the FIFA rankings.

Steve Menary, Outcasts!

Pitch have the vision to look beyond the obvious, seeking out interesting ideas and subjects and matching them with the right target audience.

David Tossell, Tony Greig, The Great English Final, Grovel!

Pitch have been an absolute joy to work with, contributing their passion, expertise, knowledge and experience to help produce a brilliant book.

Sam Pilger, Ashes Match of My Life

Pitch took our original concept and further enhanced it, using their knowledge, experience and expertise, and helped make Got, Not Got one of the football books of the year for 2011.

Derek Hammond, Got, Not Got

Pitch bought into the concept of development through football, channeling profits and proceeds from Eleven into helping some of the most disadvantaged young people in the world.

Steve Fleming, Eleven

In the highly competitive world of sport publishing,
Pitch have consistently demonstrated the happy
knack of spotting, nurturing and promoting winners.

Neil Dunkin, Anfield of Dreams

03 Jun

PITCH AUTHOR’S PARLIAMENTARY MOTION

Congratulations to Jeff Holmes, author of Moody Blue, who was the subject of a landmark motion in Scottish Parliament yesterday. It’s a famous first for a Pitch author!

Jeff’s local Eastwood MSP, Jackson Carlaw, tabled the motion to congratulate his constituent for being shortlisted for International Sports Autobiography of the Year.

Here’s the text of Motion Number: S5M-00329 in full: “That the Parliament congratulates Jeff Holmes, who is an author from Eastwood, on being shortlisted for the Cross Sports Book Awards 2016 in the International Sports Autobiography of the Year category for his book, Moody Blue; understands that the book focuses on the life and career of the former Rangers player, Marco Negri, who broke the goalscoring records of Paul Gascoigne and Brian Laudrup by scoring 33 goals in 29 games; notes that Jeff lost out at the awards to Ronda Rousey at the awards on 1 June; sends its commiserations to him on not winning, but looks forward to his next sports book.”

Well done, Jeff. And our congratulations also to the great Marco!

Goals are guaranteed to put a smile on the faces of supporters, and throughout a remarkable career, Marco Negri did just that – but he also earned the respect of his fellow pros. Here, some of the top names in the game deliver their verdict on the Moody Blue:

“Marco was up there with the great finishers and had a real eye for a goal. He was a joy to play with.” – Paul Gascoigne, former superstar of Rangers, Tottenham and Lazio.
“I spent a lot of time with Marco at Rangers and we became true friends. He scored lots of goals for the club but seemed genuinely happier for me when I scored – which wasn’t too often!” – Rino Gattuso, a 2006 World Cup winner with Italy, who remains friends with Marco to this day.
“We were team-mates then and I was a bit down, but Marco publicly dedicated one of his goals to me and it gave me such a lift. He always had a big heart.” – Marco Materazzi won five Serie A titles with Inter Milan, but recalls the days when a Marco Negri goal at Perugia helped cheer him up.
“Whenever I talk about strikers, I cannot fail to mention Marco Negri. Had it not been for injury, he would surely have played at the top level.” – Alberto Zaccheroni managed Juventus, AC Milan and Lazio – and remembers coaching Marco Negri at Cosenza.

Click here for more information, or to read a sample from Moody Blue:

The Story of Mysterious Marco.