Who Wants It?

Tales of mid-'80s designer violence straight from the horse's mouth

Colin Ward is the author of the highly successful Steaming In, All Quiet on the Hooligan Front, The Bootsy Egan Letters, Armed for the Match and Well Frogged Out.

Chris Henderson formed the Chelsea Headhunters – who later earned a reputation as the most dangerous fans in Britain - as well as the band Combat 84 who, with their punk attitude and uncut, Orwellian lyrics, represented the antithesis of middle-class England. 
 
After the jailing of Stephen 'Hickey' Hickmott, Henderson organised a gang of Chelsea fans who travelled to matches by luxury coach with the aim of causing havoc and destruction. They were finally arrested and their subsequent trial was meant to be the crowning glory of Thatcher's campaign to vanquish hooliganism. Instead, the dramatic collapse of the case sounded the death knell for all the undercover police operations and mass indiscriminate arrests that had been ordered by the authorities to squash the activities of Henderson and others. 
 
The 'Ministry' continued to pursue Henderson and prior to the 2002 World Cup, he and Hickmott were named as the two leaders planning hooligan and criminal acts for the tournament in South Korea and Japan, which culminated in Henderson being arrested and refused entry to Japan for the England v. Argentina match. 
 
Told in Henderson's exact words, this is the dramatic story of an era of music and football, when how you looked counted as much as how you performed. With its depiction of events surrounding South Korea/Japan 2002, Who Wants It? also shows how the scourge of hooliganism continues to blight the beautiful game today.

Colin Ward

Eight Years that Shook Football

All Quiet on the Hooligan Front is a compelling exploration into the changing face of football. Covering the years just prior to the Hillsborough disaster up to the present day, it shows how the mood of English football has changed dramatically since the era of hooliganism described in its predecessor, the hugely successful Steaming In. 
 
The book revolves around the author’s travels and gives a vivid portrayal of the fun that fans have when supporting their team. It looks at how football has changed now that the terraces have gone, and gives an insight into how members of the press often distort the truth about the game in order to sell more papers. The book emphasises the importance now assigned to marketing within football and, on a darker note, looks at the advent of the drugs culture amongst fans. 
 
 All Quiet on the Hooligan Front chronicles all of the changes which have occurred in the game post-Hillsborough, and leaves it for the reader to decide whether these have been good or bad for the beautiful game.

Colin Ward

Books by Colin Ward

Follow penguin

Follow ladybird

Follow puffin

Sign up to the Penguin newsletter