Sgt Wilko's Defending Champions
Sgt Wilko’s Defending Champions follows the fortunes (or misfortunes) of Leeds United in the inaugural season of the Premier League, a transformative period that also saw the launch of the UEFA Champions League, the back-pass rule and Sky TV’s ‘whole new ball game’. The season began with lifting silverware and included an extraordinary European campaign as Howard Wilkinson’s champions continued to thrive at the impenetrable fortress of Elland Road. But the controversial sale of Eric Cantona to their arch-rivals and a mystifying drought of away wins turned hopes of retaining the title into fears for Premier League survival. Written as a retrospective, match-by-match diary of the author’s first year as a season-ticket holder, this is the story of a young boy dealing with the trials and tribulations of falling in love with a football club, a nostalgic and entertaining account of what went wrong for Wilko’s men and an ode to the beautiful game, back when it was still a thing of beauty.
Rocco Dean began writing during the Covid lockdown in 2020, in a style that combines detailed factual reporting with emotional and reflective commentary. Sgt Wilko’s Defending Champions is his sixth book, continuing his personal account of the ups and downs at Elland Road, from the great Don Revie era through to Marcelo Bielsa’s iconic reign. Rocco is a regular presenter on the Leeds That podcast.