Tony Mac

As Mark’s publisher, we are very aware that he will receive condemnation for the crime he committed and he expects that too. Even though he has never sold drugs to anyone nor encouraged their use, he knows full well he made a very big mistake by getting involved in the way that he did – by agreeing to rent a property in his name and then handing over the keys to people who used the house as ‘a stash’. Desperate though he was at the time, he knows there is no excuse and he clearly did wrong. But he has taken his punishment and served four years. We all make mistakes in life, though Mark’s was obviously a relatively huge one. Doesn’t everyone deserve a second chance, though? As for the actual timing of his book, Mark never set out with the intention of trying to ‘cash in’ on his crime. He was approached by several publishers who encouraged him to write his story and he went with us because I’ve known him for around 25 years and he wanted to put his trust is someone who would help him to tell his story the way he wanted it to read. I’m glad that he chose us even though other, bigger publishers offered him a better (financial) deal. He really began the writing process soon after his arrest in May 2005 – initially in the form of keeping a diary and then, after we agreed to produce his book, he focused on it more and more and in fact wrote some 100,000 words from his prison cell. Which is an achievement in itself. I’m certainly not trying to paint him as a saint, but what none of you will have read before is that he also spent time inside racing more than £2,000 for a children’s charity (by running a half-marathon on the prison gym machine) and, once he arrived at Kirkham open prison, walked three miles to church and back each day to tend the church grounds – much to the delight of the local parishioners. Not only did writing his book help to pass the time when he was banged up for 23 hours a day, but it was a cathartic experience and helped him to do a lot of soul-searching over the past four years. The book records, sometimes in harrowing and even heart-rending detail, the highs and lows of not just a former footballer, but a human being just like you and me. Mark certainly won’t get rich from writing his story but the writing process has been good for him and, after all said a done, he needs to get a job and find somewhere to live. No one could condone what Mark did immediately before he was arrested and what he got himself involved in, but I respect him for the way he has taken his punishment and retained his dignity. I also respect that everyone has the right to an opinion even if we don’t necessarily agree with it. To those who have/will bought the book, many thanks and I feel sure you will enjoy it. To those who decide not to buy it, that’s fair enough. Life is, after all, about making choices. In the meantime, some of you might like to tune in to BBC Radio 5 Live tomorrow morning (Tuesday) at 10.00am, when Mark will be the main guest on Victoria Derbyshire’s news and current affairs programme. The Independent newspaper are also running a 2-page feature on Wardy.

There's an article on Wardy in today's News of the World (page 15). For online users, go to the notw's sports section: http://www.newsoftheworld.co.uk/news/30935...n-new-book.html

For older Latics followers, did you see this in the Oldham Advertiser: ‘Warts and all’ pledge from shamed footballer by Carl Marsden SHAMED Oldham Athletic star Mark Ward will walk free from prison next month – and publish a controversial autobiography within days. The Advertiser can reveal that the 46-year-old former right-winger – who went on to shine at West Ham United, Manchester City, Everton and Birmingham after leaving Boundary Park – is to be released from Kirkham open prison on May 11. He is coming out on licence, after serving four years of an eight-year sentence for admitting possessing cocaine with intent to supply. In May 2005, police had raided a property in Merseyside which Ward had rented on behalf of a contact. Inside they found a cocaine stash with a street value of £645,000 – and what was described as a "drugs factory". Ward maintains he never lived at the address and only visited occasionally, but – as he will outline in his book ‘Mark Ward: From Right-Wing to B-Wing... Premier League to Prison’ – he refused to ‘grass’ on his associates. Tony McDonald has known Ward for more than 20 years and kept in constant touch through letters and prison visits. He told the Advertiser: "Wardy is a spiky, emotional character, someone who wears his heart on his sleeve and has always said what is on his mind – even if that has led him into more than a few serious scrapes over the years. His book will reflect those traits and their consequences. He didn’t want to hold back – and he doesn’t – but he didn’t want this to be just another ex-footballer’s boring autobiography." Within the book, Ward relives fond memories of his two seasons at Oldham Athletic after Joe Royle plucked him from the obscurity of Northwich Victoria in 1983 and set his career up and running. McDonald says a 5,000-word chapter called ‘Royle Approval’ recalls the thrill of scoring on his Latics’ debut at Brighton, his relationship with Royle, and revealing insights into what he and team-mates Micky Quinn, Darren McDonough and Andy Goram got up to while away from the club. The book also charts the heartbreak of rejection by his beloved Everton as a 16-year-old – and his joy at signing for them for £1m ten years later – plus his role in West Ham’s most successful league team. But the details of Ward’s life off-the-field are those that are likely to attract most headlines. Ward tells about the night he assaulted comedian Stan Boardman, and brushes with the criminal underworld that resulted in blackmail threats and a six-month intimidation campaign at the hands of a notorious crime figure. He also explains how he got embroiled in the drugs trade and befriended a man who turned out to be one of Birmingham’s biggest drug barons – and was later shot dead in a city centre pub. Then, of course, there are his experiences in jail. Mr McDonald said: "Mark is full of remorse for his crime. He wants to put his nightmare experiences behind him and is determined to rebuild his life. Getting out of prison and releasing the book is the start of that process." Mark Ward’s book will be published on May 30. See http://www.footballworld.co.uk/

Mark Ward book – Premier League to Prison FOOTBALL World are delighted to announce a major deal with former Oldham Athletic star Mark Ward to publish his compelling new autobiography. MARK WARD - FROM RIGHT-WING TO B-WING . . . PREMIER LEAGUE TO PRISON will go on sale soon after his release from prison in May 2009. Ward, now 46, starred on the right-wing for Oldham, West Ham United, Manchester City, Everton and Birmingham City during the 80s and early 90s before he fell on hard times and landed himself in deep trouble. Or, in the words of one of his chapter headings: 'Up To My Neck'. He rented a property near his home city of Liverpool on behalf of a contact, but police raided the premises in May 2005 and found a stash of cocaine with a street value of £645,000 and what was later described in court as "a drugs factory." Although Mark never lived at the address and only visited there occasionally, he was arrested and later charged with possessing a class A drug with intent to supply, He has steadfastly refused to grass on his associates and has spent the last four years serving a jail sentence. Football World publisher Tony McDonald, who has known Mark for more than 20 years, said: "Mark is now full of remorse for his crime and has served his time like a man. He was originally sentence to eight years but, as a model prisoner, he is due to be released on licence having served four years. "He wants to put his nightmare experiences, including a horrible eight months spent on remand in B-Wing of Liverpool's notorious Walton jail, behind him. He is now determined to rebuild his life and, obviously, that process continues when he is released from open prison in May. "I have kept in constant touch with ‘Wardy’ in the past few years, via letters and several face-to-face meetings, and we agreed some time ago that Football World would publish his life story following his release from prison. "It's a riveting story, full of the highs and lows you would expect from a player who played for four major clubs before his world fell apart in the most awful circumstances. But it's much, much more than a book about a former footballer. "Wardy is a spiky, emotional character, someone who wears his heart on his sleeve and has always said what is on his mind ­ even if that frank approach to life has led him into more than a few serious scrapes through the years. His book will reflect those personal traits and their consequences. He didn't want to hold back ­ - and he doesn't ­ - but he didn't want this to be just another ex-footballer's boring autobiography either. "The writing process has helped him to cope with being locked up in a cell and I must say his words are full of raw emotion, liberally laced with Scouse humour and a natural ability to tell it like it is. This (hardback) book will appeal not only to fans of the clubs he represented, but to a much wider audience who can relate to human interest stories and a tortured soul laid bare." TWENTY-FIVE years ago Mark Ward was a high-profile footballer. The ebullient Scouser, who comes from a tough area of Liverpool, emerged from a large working class family to become an overnight sensation at Oldham Athletic. He became very popular among fans for his skill and never-say-die attitude he took into every match. In 1986, Brian Clough said England should take 'Wardy' to the World Cup, while legendary full-back Stuart Pearce named him as the most difficult opponent he ever faced for club or country. But in May 2005 Mark Ward's life was suddenly turned upside down. Police raided a house in Prescot that was rented in his name and found a substantial quantity of cocaine and what was later described at Liverpool Crown Court as "a drugs factory." He was given an eight-year prison sentence for possessing a class A drug with intent to supply ¬- even though he was described by the judge who sentenced him as "a footsoldier" and his part in the crime was minimal by comparison to the main co-conspirators, who were arrested and charged some time after him. Mark was initially sent to the notorious Walton Prison in Liverpool, where he spent one fearfully unforgettable night among the category A prisoners on lifers' wing and a further eight months on remand in the mayhem of B-Wing ¬- alongside murderers, rapists, smack-heads and other major criminals. Some prisoners instantly recognised their new inmate, but now things had changed. From wearing the No.7 on his football jersey with such pride and distinction for the best part of 13 years, he became known as Prisoner Number NM6982. He ended up serving four years but that number and his horrific experiences inside will live with him forever. Ward would no doubt have received a lighter sentence - possibly half - if he had named names when interrogated by police. But Mark Ward is no grass - "it's not my style and against all the principles I was brought up with," he says. He has taken his punishment on the chin, done his time and will never reveal the identity of the men whose drugs operation effectively condemned him to jail. Now full of remorse for his "terrible mistake", he bares his soul here and tells in compelling graphic details how he once had it all and then lost it . . . his career, his marriage and, ultimately, his dignity and his freedom. He examines how it all went so horribly wrong, what prison life was like and how a man once used to playing in front of 50,000-plus supporters in the bitter derbies of Merseyside, Manchester and London coped with being locked up and completing the longest prison sentence ever served by any former Premier League footballer. He tells of the prison gangs, the scams, the fights, the cockroaches . . . and the suicides. "I wouldn't wish the time I spent on B-Wing at Walton on my worst enemy," he says, still haunted by the memory of his first year in the prison system. When Mark was moved to Buckley Hall open prison in Rochdale, he was thrilled to receive a visit from Howard Kendall, the former manager of Manchester City and Everton who twice signed Wardy in £1m transfer deals. Kendall has written an insightful foreword to this book. Mark relives the highs and lows of his turbulent career - the heartbreak of rejection by his beloved Everton as a vulnerable 16-year-old and the sheer thrill of returning to Goodison 10 years later to score brilliant goals that defeated league champions Arsenal (on his home debut) and then Merseyside rivals Liverpool. Playing a key role in West Ham's most successful league team of 1985-86, and being offered a £50,000 bonus by chairman David Sullivan to save Birmingham from relegation. And then, with his playing days finished, he tells why he still feels aggrieved at being sacked from his first job in non-league management at hard-up Altrincham in 2001. Wardy devotes a whole 5,000-word chapter, titled 'Royle Approval', to his two seasons with the Latics. He recalls the thrill of scoring on his debut v Brighton in August 1983 and talks about his relationship with Joe Royle. He reveals what he and some of his team-mates - Mickey Quinn, Darron McDonough, Andy Goram - got up to off the field. Mark explains why he had so much respect for the influential Martin Buchan. We learn of his many off-the-field scrapes, including the night he physically assaulted comedian Stan Boardman, and his brushes with the criminal underworld. Being beaten up and later subjected to blackmail threats during a nightmare six-month ordeal of intimidation at the hands of one of Liverpool's most notorious crime figures. Ward had been threatened with a knife but, typically, he wouldn't back down or pay up his blackmailers. He recalls how he became embroiled in the drugs trade and his friendship with a man who turned out to be one of Birmingham¹s biggest drug dealers . . . before he was shot dead in a city centre pub. And how cocaine ruined the career of a once highly promising, young team-mate. Wardy confronts all his past mistakes and is now hoping for a second chance in life, an opportunity to rebuild a coaching/management career in the game he still loves with a burning passion. Why not order your copy in advance now . . . personally signed by Mark Ward. HOW TO ORDER By Telephone: Simply call our Credit Card Hotline on 01708 744 333 and pay by credit or debit card. By Post: Send your cheque (payable to Football World) to: Football World (Wardy Book), 103 Douglas Road, Hornchurch, Essex, RM11 1AW. MARK WARD - From Right-Wing to B-Wing . . . Premier League to Prison will be published on May 30, 2009. The cover price will be £17.99 but anyone ordering direct from us at Football World will make a saving of £3.00 (post-free in UK) and each copy purchased from us will be personally signed by Mark himself. For more details about the book and how to buy online, please go to: http://www.footballworld.co.uk/

Many thanks for the quick and positive reponses and for your kind help with info and advice. Anyone got any idea which player crossed the ball for Wardy's headed goal v Brighton? I've just bought a copy of the prog showing Wardy on the cover via eBay. Mark knows he can expect some stick for the crime he committed but he has taken his punishment on the chin, served four years and now wants to rebuild his life following his release in May. He knows he made a very bad mistake by getting involved - no excuses there, only massive regrets - and is now full of remorse. He has used his time inside constructively and his decision to write his story is just part of that rehabilitation process and to face up to his past mistakes. There but for the grace of God, eh. The writing process also helped him to pass the time! In the book, he has said only positive things about his time at Oldham and fully appreciates that if it hadn't been for the faith Joe Royle showed in him (having been discarded by Everton as being "too small and not strong enough" in 1981), he would never had made it back into pro football. And, from talking to him recently, I know how pleased he is to see Big Joe back at Boundary Park and hopes it leads to better times for his old club. When our website is set up properly to promote sales of the book, I'll be back on here to post full details - for those who are interested. Cheers again. TMc

I’m working on a new hardback book by ex-Latics winger Mark Ward, to be published on his release from prison in May, and wondered if any Oldham fans can possibly help us with pictures of Wardy in his Latics playing days? We’ve written to the club (who have said they will help if poss), but have yet to receive a reply, so I’m hoping forum members might be able to help... Mark has written a lengthy chapter on his two seasons at Boundary Park, playing under manager Joe Royle (who signed him from Northwich for £9,500 and sold him to West Ham 2 years later for £250,000) and his team-mates, but we’re struggling for pics to put with the words. If we could possibly borrow any relevant prints to scan (and then return them to immediately) or, alternatively, receive high-res j.peg files by email, then I’d be very grateful. We’d obviously credit anyone who can help in the book itself and send them a free copy when it’s published! I appreciate it’s a long shot, but specific pics we’d really like to use are: Any portrait and/or action photos (prints, not photocopies) of Wardy in Oldham colours. Wardy with Joe Royle. OAFC Team pictures from either 1983-84 and/or 1984-85. Any pics of Wardy with Mickey Quinn, Martin Buchan, Darren McDonough, Andy Goram (if not, then any of them on their own). A pic of Wardy scoring on his home debut v Brighton in August 1983. Also, can anyone please confirm the full Oldham starting line-up for that game, plus the attendance? Wardy remembers his last-minute diving header past Graham Moseley in the Brighton goal, but can anyone recall the left-sided Oldham midfielder who crossed the ball from the opposite flank, which led to the goal? Perhaps somebody who collects old match report newspaper cuttings can help on this one? We really want to do the Oldham part of his career full justice, so if you can help in anyway, it will be very much appreciated. Please either reply via the forum, or, if you’d prefer, PM me at my email address: tony@footballworld.co.uk Cheers, Tony McDonald Football World