A new book from a Woodborough author shares a frank, behind-the-scenes look into the world of grassroots and academy football from a father’s perspective.
This true story, as told by by Prez’s barrister father Andrew Prestwich, is a warm, witty and intensely personal account of their attempt to navigate the world of grassroots and academy football.
It tells of the characters, skillfulness, kindnesses, injustices, duplicity and, at times, downright stupidity that they meet along the way.
Frank and utterly compelling, it provides a remarkable insight into the sport through Prez’s experience of junior football and the Nottingham Forest Academy.
Incorporated into this memoir is a fascinating behind-the-scenes story arising from litigation between Brian Clough and Robert Maxwell. It also offers a unique insight into the purchase and sale of Notts County by Alan Hardy.
Other well-known football figures who pop up include Darren Fletcher and Gary Brazil, the Academy manager at Nottingham Forest who once said to Andrew, “You should watch everything that goes on here.”
How right he was…
Based on his diaries and rich in anecdotes, Prestwich brings a lawyer’s head and a father’s heart to the world of junior football and lays bare the tensions between sport, education, ambition and nurture.
Andrew was a barrister for 30 years and has been proudly kicking out against injustice ever since.
The author explains: “The inspiration was two-fold. Firstly, it was the dismay that I felt in watching the way in which professional football academies behave. Secondly, of course, it was my son.
“My in-depth knowledge, which started by running a grassroots football team, gives me a comprehensive understanding of kids’ football at all levels. That is coupled with an analytical lawyer’s mind, thereby giving the reader a unique perspective on the subject.
“I kept extensive notes on everything that happened and there are many quotations in the book – several coming from some fairly well-known people in the world of football.”
Prez is due to be published on the May 28, 2026. Find out more via his website: https://prezbook.co.uk/
