I Just Can't Help Believing: The Relegation Experience

by Charlie Connelly

Every football supporter has peered at least once into the yawning chasm of relegation. At the beginning of May each year, nails are bitten and hair is pulled out across the land as clubs either topple into the division below or are saved by last-gasp winners or equalizers. This is a study of the causes, effects, and heightened emotions of relegation. Drawing upon the experiences of players and supporters, the book explores the meaning of emotion in the English game, particularly in the current top-heavy financial climate where relegation is measured in millions of pounds' worth of lost revenue. Charlie Connelly examines tales of relegation and narrow escapes at clubs ranging from Manchester United to Millwall, and Coventry City to Colchester United, and asks whether relegation really merits the widespread wailing and gnashing of teeth that accompanies it.

223 pages, Paperback

First published September 1, 1998

About the author

Charlie Connelly (born 22 August 1970, London, England) is an author of popular non-fiction books. In addition to being a writer, Connelly also appears as a presenter on radio and television shows.

Charlie Connelly is a bestselling author and award-winning broadcaster. His many books include Attention All Shipping: A Journey Round The Shipping Forecast, In Search of Elvis: A Journey To Find The Man Beneath The Jumpsuit and Our Man In Hibernia: Ireland, The Irish And Me. Three of his books have featured as Radio 4′s Book of the Week read by Martin Freeman, Stephen Mangan and Tom Goodman-Hill. Charlie was also a popular presenter on the BBC1 Holiday programme and co-presented the first three series of BBC Radio 4′s Traveller’s Tree with Fi Glover.
His book Gilbert: The Last Years of WG Grace was shortlisted for the 2016 MCC/Cricket Society Book of the Year. The book he wrote with his friend Bernard Sumner, Chapter And Verse: New Order, Joy Division And Me was shortlisted for Book of the Year at the NME Awards, while his most recent co-writing project, Winner: A Racing Life with the champion jockey AP McCoy is shortlisted for Sports Autobiography of the Year.
The audio version of Attention All Shipping came second in a public vote to find the greatest audiobook of all time organised by Waterstone’s and The Guardian. Romeo and Juliet was third, which Charlie takes as official confirmation that he’s better than Shakespeare.