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Rhys W Richards

@rhyswrichards

Author of 'Blood On The Crossbar: The Dictatorship's World Cup'. Cardiff City. Cymro i'r carn. https://www.pitchpublishing.co.uk/shop/blood-crossbar

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17.11.2024
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Latest posts by Rhys W Richards @rhyswrichards

Twenty Twenty Six.

31.01.2026 10:20 πŸ‘ 0 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
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I watched the final episode of this last night - Jerry Jones & Jimmy Johnson's reconciliation. I didn't expect to be in tears watching a documentary about a team I don't even like. Superb storytelling.

Goosebumps all over with Jimmy's 'How bout them Cowboys?!' cry!

31.01.2026 10:18 πŸ‘ 0 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0

If Rachel Traitors survives the game of chance, she's blotted her copy book a bit. It's not a convincing win. Like when a team wins a tournament but has a few penalty shootout wins along the way.

22.01.2026 22:10 πŸ‘ 1 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0

Great to see Gabriel Jesus put his injuries behind him and score again. Jesus comebacks don't get much bigger than this!

20.01.2026 20:36 πŸ‘ 0 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0

Christmas sport hierarchy:

1: World's Strongest Man

...everything else a distant 2nd.

28.12.2025 19:34 πŸ‘ 0 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
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The Best Books About South American Football South America takes football to another level, and it’s often led football writing to new heights as well. Here are some of the best books out there on South American football...

NEW POST πŸ—žοΈ

I know a lot of my followers are interested in South American football, so here’s a list of the Best Books on South American Football 🌎

Features @jonawils.bsky.social @hylland.bsky.social @rhyswrichards.bsky.social and more...

Any you’d add?

open.substack.com/pub/outsidew...

13.11.2025 08:01 πŸ‘ 14 πŸ” 5 πŸ’¬ 1 πŸ“Œ 1
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You're going to need a bigger shelf!

13.11.2025 18:17 πŸ‘ 1 πŸ” 1 πŸ’¬ 1 πŸ“Œ 0
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Mi libro β€˜Los Leones: La Historia Única Del Athletic Club’ ha sido traducido al castellano y verΓ‘ la luz con El Gallo de Oro el 10 de noviembre. Mila esker/ Eskerrik Asko a todos los que me habΓ©is acompaΓ±ado en este camino - ya sabΓ©is quiΓ©nes sois πŸ™ŒπŸ» πŸ”΄βšͺ️ #AthleticClub πŸŽ₯ Maitane Recio

02.11.2025 20:36 πŸ‘ 2 πŸ” 2 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
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β™Ύ DIEGO ARMANDO MARADONA: the playlist

Diego Maradona should be celebrating his 65th birthday on Thursday 30th October, to celebrate I present a thread of songs written in homage to El D10S. (Spotify link at end of thread)

Nowhere does music and football better than Argentina!

🎸⚽️🧡

26.10.2025 08:33 πŸ‘ 4 πŸ” 3 πŸ’¬ 1 πŸ“Œ 3

They have a play book:

β€’Say something racist.
β€’Say something racister.
β€’Say something racistest.

Then say, 'At the end of the day, I'm just a normal bloke who loves his family and his country. Is anything wrong with that?'.

26.10.2025 11:25 πŸ‘ 2 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 1 πŸ“Œ 0
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24.10.2025 18:46 πŸ‘ 0 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0

Just shows, you're only one asteroid away from disaster.

23.10.2025 19:05 πŸ‘ 0 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0

πŸ“ΊNo domestic football on TV for 6 months
πŸ‘Šfans rioting
πŸ†”ID cards
⚑️electric fences
😨people crossing the road to avoid you

That was football fandom in 1985/86.

Thank God for Saint & Greavsie.

Read all about it in THE SLUM SPORT - the story of 85/86
Links below⬇️⬇️

23.10.2025 07:53 πŸ‘ 3 πŸ” 2 πŸ’¬ 1 πŸ“Œ 0

Really enjoyed chatting to Chris Lee on the excellent @outsidewrite.bsky.social podcast about the Basque refugee children in Caerleon and those who went on to play for the likes of #AthleticClub and #RealMadrid. Have a listen in the usual places πŸŽ§πŸ‘πŸ» #RefugeesWelcome #StopWar #Euskadi #Gales #Cymru

19.10.2025 15:03 πŸ‘ 4 πŸ” 3 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0

You may as well dig a hole in the ground and shout into that. They don't take anything in.

19.10.2025 08:17 πŸ‘ 0 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0

Brevity really is the soul of wit. She's packed a hell of a lot into that 280 character tweet.

19.10.2025 08:15 πŸ‘ 0 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
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Xi Jinping is preparing to go toe to toe with Donald Trump – and there will only be one winner | Simon Tisdall Beijing has realised that reckless America First policies are alienating old and new friends alike, creating a vacuum it can fill, says Guardian foreign affairs commentator Simon Tisdall

Xi Jinping is preparing to go toe to toe with Donald Trump – and there will only be one winner | Simon Tisdall

19.10.2025 08:01 πŸ‘ 136 πŸ” 43 πŸ’¬ 18 πŸ“Œ 14
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🚨 NEW BOOK ANNOUNCEMENT 🚨

Following Inshallah United, I am chuffed to bits to announce my second book - Assalam Alaikum, Our Kid!

A story of being Muslim, Manc and mad for it in the new millennium

Pre-oder with 25% off at @Waterstones using the code OCTOBER25: www.waterstones.com/book/assalam...

14.10.2025 16:07 πŸ‘ 108 πŸ” 15 πŸ’¬ 12 πŸ“Œ 3
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Cymru 2 - 4 Belgium.

We've got some good players, but we definitely create more problems for ourselves than for our opposition.

It's an anxious experience watching this team, at the moment.

14.10.2025 17:15 πŸ‘ 0 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0

Ah yeah course it was, that was the whole point πŸ˜‚. You'd be pleased to know my attention to detail was better when I actually wrote it

13.10.2025 12:33 πŸ‘ 1 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
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Blood on the Crossbar by Rhys Richards | Waterstones Buy Blood on the Crossbar by Rhys Richards from Waterstones today! Click and Collect from your local Waterstones or get FREE UK delivery on orders over Β£25.

πŸ”— Pre-order here:

Blood on The Crossbar: The Dictatorship's World Cup.

This is the story of the most controversial World Cup in history; Argentina 1978. Read the story of the dictators, the disappeared and every ball kicked in between.

www.waterstones.com/book/blood-o...

13.10.2025 12:11 πŸ‘ 0 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
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I'm happy to announce that Blood On The Crossbar is being re-released on paperback in time for the 2026 World Cup πŸ‡ΊπŸ‡ΈπŸ‡¨πŸ‡¦πŸ‡²πŸ‡½

Pre-order from @waterstones.bsky.social
⚽ Use the code enter β€œOCTOBER25” at the checkout to redeem the 25% discount from Tue 14 to Fri 17 Oct 2026. Link below πŸ‘‡

13.10.2025 12:11 πŸ‘ 1 πŸ” 1 πŸ’¬ 1 πŸ“Œ 0
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Blood on the Crossbar: The Dictatorship's World Cup Blood on the Crossbar: The Dictatorship's World Cup is the story of football's most controversial tournament: Argentina's 1978 World Cup. It was a tournament that took place during a brutal military d...

I wrote a book about that World Cup. Scotland get a chapter, but of course, I had to mention Joe Jordan's Ninian Park handball.

Well, I guess I didn't *have* to.

www.pitchpublishing.co.uk/shop/blood-c...

12.10.2025 18:26 πŸ‘ 0 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 1 πŸ“Œ 0

The way the Jets managed the final minute of that half was... interesting.

12.10.2025 15:10 πŸ‘ 1 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
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Any given Sunday. Especially last Sunday! #SKOL #NFLTottenham #Vikings

12.10.2025 14:37 πŸ‘ 1 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0

Chelsea are quite likeable under Maresca. Beating Liverpool won't hurt that.

04.10.2025 18:25 πŸ‘ 0 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0

As the comms said - Vikings were resuscitated several times in that game. Still a kick in the teeth to see them flatline after a half a dozen sacks and interceptions, though. #NFLDublin

28.09.2025 16:54 πŸ‘ 0 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0

Rams snatching defeat from the jaws of victory Vs Eagles. Never seen back-to-back blocked kicks before!

21.09.2025 20:09 πŸ‘ 1 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 1

The existence of a Buendia and a Buonanotte in the Premier League suggests that there's also a 'Buenostardes' playing somewhere, waiting to be signed by Brighton.

16.09.2025 20:49 πŸ‘ 2 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0

A bunch of my friends who went to Kazakhstan to see Cymru (a) last week, wouldn't go to Swansea last night because it was too far.

My decision to not attend was far more legitimate, of course. It was raining.

10.09.2025 17:58 πŸ‘ 1 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0