Mention the name Alan Hudson to football supporters of a certain age and they’ll become misty-eyed and reflective about a time when what happened on the pitch was the only thing that mattered.
The era of the ‘mavericks,’ of which Hudson was a fully paid up member, came at a time when top flight attendances in England were routinely above 40,000 or more and kick-offs were only ever at 3pm on a Saturday.
Pitches were more quagmire than snooker table, which makes Hudson’s jaw-dropping skill set all the more remarkable.
A stellar career at Chelsea and Stoke City particularly, with spells at Arsenal and Seattle Sounders, are often overlooked by football supporters in preference for discussing the hard-drinking and socialising narrative that ‘Huddy’ wrote away from the pitch.
Long before the days of sports science, nutrition and the like, a beer or two down the local was de rigueur. That Huddy drank more than most, and stayed out longer than everyone else was something of an irrelevance given that he was still the hardest worker at training the following morning. Work hard, play hard perfectly encompasses how he lived his early life.
In my book ‘Huddy’ – The Official Biography of Alan Hudson, published on October 25 through St David’s Press, I’ll tell you all about who the real Alan Hudson was and is. You’ll learn about a side of him that very few get to see, and you’ll also have a fuller understanding of the cantankerous façade.
You’ll get to know the man behind the lurid newspaper headlines via anecdotes from his closest family and friends, and from his old teammates and associates from the world of football.
One of the most naturally gifted players that England have ever had the luxury of producing and someone who was never shy in coming forwards and speaking his mind, Alan will be the first to admit that he’s made as many enemies as he has friends. Speak to either and you’ll get a vastly differing perspective of him.
The book doesn’t look to sugar coat any part of Alan’s life story, for it would not be a true reflection of the man. I wouldn’t have written it any other way and to his credit, Alan would not have let me write a ‘soft-soap, rose-tinted’ biography either. This is the definitive, warts and all, tale.
To those that think they know Huddy, his story has been told in part before yes - but not like this.
Of course, his footballing career features heavily, but what I hope will be of as much interest to the reader is his private life.
How did he and his family cope with his regular bouts of depression, womanising and hard drinking? How did he manage to recover after a hit and run accident in 1997 that should’ve killed him?
For the first time ever, his surgeon Dr. David Goodier released details of Alan’s admission, and what happened whilst he was in a coma for three, long months. It’s grim but fascinating reading.
And what about now? How does Chelsea’s most locally born player spend his time?
I’ll consider the book a success if I’ve managed to convince just one reader that Alan Hudson isn’t the person they believe him to be.
Find out by picking up a copy, priced at £13.99.
