PAUL ‘JUDAS’ COOKE: TODAY TALKSPORT, TOMORROW YORKSHIRE!

Pitch Publishing is a fantastic imprint.
They do all the great Got, Not Got series
and plenty of other 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 aficionado
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, Good Old Sussex by the Sea, Orient to the Emirates, 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 the sport of triathlon.

Andy Holgate, Can’t Swim, Can’t Ride, Can’t Run & Can't Sleep, Can't Train, Can't Stop

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!, Natural

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 series of books

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

05 Oct

PAUL ‘JUDAS’ COOKE: TODAY TALKSPORT, TOMORROW YORKSHIRE!

Hull rugby league superhero/supervillain Paul Cooke is on talkSPORT this afternoon – with book events to follow back home in Yorkshire tomorrow and Friday.

Last night saw a packed book launch at Garbutts Bar in Hull, where Paul signed lorryloads of books and met local league fans from both sides of the city’s traditional divide. No doubt which book is going to be on an awful lot of Xmas lists this year in Hull!

“A great time was had by all,” said biographer Adrian Durham (shirt pic, right). “Former England head coach Steve McNamara came along – here he is with Paul (main pic) signing a book. Steve is a Hull lad, good of him to come. He's back in the UK visiting after finishing the season as Sydney Roosters assistant coach in Australia.”

Listen out for Paul Cooke on talkSPORT this afternoon, and then meet him live in Yorkshire on Thursday and Friday:

Live on talkSPORT's Hawksbee & Jacobs show 2.30pm
Live on talkSPORT 2 The Ray Stubbs Show 3pm
Thursday 6th - 11am-2pm - Hessle bookshop
Thursday 6th - 7pm Waterstones, Jameson St, Hull
Friday 7th - 7pm Brittannia pub, Leigh

Click here for more information, or to read a sample from Judas?

If you're from Hull you're either black and white or red and white. No ifs, no buts. Judas is the story of Paul Cooke, a gifted rugby league player who enjoyed glory at Hull FC on the west side of the city's rugby league divide - but caused outrage when he walked out of the club to join bitter rivals Hull Kingston Rovers.

Brutally honest and self-critical, Cooke tells the painful truth in this book, alongside some glorious memories of sporting brilliance. It's the story of the player called 'Judas', Hull's most-hated rugby league son.

Paul confronts some painful home truths in the book, and invites family, team-mates, coaches and club executives to be brutally honest in it as well;

He talks about winning the Challenge Cup and scoring the decisive try in the final, as well as losing a Grand Final with Hull FC;
For the first time ever, Paul explains why Cup-winning coach John Kear was sacked at Hull FC;
Paul exclusively reveals why he had no choice but to leave Hull FC;
He doesn't hold back with his feelings towards the people at Hull FC who let him down;
He details the extent of the hate and abuse he received after making the move to Hull KR;
He talks about his meltdown after he switched clubs in Hull which led to him being breathalysed on the training ground and diagnosed with depression;
He opens up about how the death of his mother changed him completely;
The book ends with glory for the club where he is now assistant coach as Leigh Centurions achieve promotion to Super League in 2016.