In the Line of Fire: The Inside Story from the Lions Head Coach

by Warren Gatland

Overview

'"Draw"' is an inadequate way to describe what the Lions did here. They stopped one point short of a miracle.' Daily Telegraph

Warren Gatland's In the Line of Fire is the ultimate chronicle of this summer's remarkable Lions tour to New Zealand - home of the fearsome All Blacks, the double world champions - which culminated in an historic and nerve-shredding series draw.

The book is the Head Coach's candid record of the perspiration and inspiration, the withering ferocity,and the turbulent peaks and troughs which go hand-in-hand with one of sport's toughest challenges.

It gives rugby fans an unparalleled front-row seat with the squad and coaching team during every facet of preparing for and executing a successful tour on the opposite side of the planet, recounting intriguing details on everything from pre-tour planning and strategy, to on-tour experiences, analysis and decision-making.

It all adds up to a thrillingly definitive exposition and post-mortem of a mind-blowing six weeks in the cauldron which forged the mighty All Blacks.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781472252487
Publisher:	Headline
Publication date:	11/09/2017
Sold by:	Hachette Digital, Inc.
Format:	eBook
File size:	11 MB
Note:	This product may take a few minutes to download.

About the Author

Born in Hamilton, New Zealand, in 1963, Warren Gatland played rugby for the provincial side Waikato for eight years, and made 17 appearances for the All Blacks, before turning to coaching. He was the Head Coach of the British & Irish Lions squad which recorded an epic and thrilling Test series draw against the mighty All Blacks in 2017. The result was the first time the Lions had not lost a series in New Zealand since 1971. Gatland also led the Lions on their triumphant tour of Australia in 2013, and he served as Assistant Coach on the 2009 tour of South Africa. After a dozen years at the helm, Gatland left his post as Head Coach of Wales after the 2019 World Cup. In that time, the Welsh have reached two World Cup semi-finals, won three Grand Slams and the Six Nations four times. During his career, Gatland has also coached Connacht and the Irish national team, as well as Waikato and Wasps.

Table of Contents

Prologue 1

1 Waikato Kid Tames Lions 8

2 Mutiny On The Buses 16

3 The Big Call 24

4 'We Really are in This Together' 37

5 Injuries, Training Camps and Farewells 62

6 Land of the Long White Cloud 72

7 Baa-Baas Not So Sheepish 80

8 A Dose of the Blues 93

9 'Don't Worry Gats, We've Got Your Sack' 108

10 A Highlander Low 119

11 Family Time-Out 134

12 Job Done 144

13 Back to My Roots 159

14 Let's Be Bold 177

15 Gountdown 187

16 The Agony 195

17 Hurricanes and Storm Clouds 209

18 The Geography Six 225

19 Lei's Get Physical 232

20 The Ecstasy 242

21 Downtime 259

22 The In-Between 276

23 That was the Tour That Was 295

Postscript 304

Appendix 307

Acknowledgements 314