Tips from a master
Paddy Lewis
TP: The Life And Times Of Sir Terry McLean, by Paul Lewis and Jock McLean, HarperSports, reviewed by Paddy Lewis
WHEN I began working as a journalist, no one wanted the sports round. My encyclopaedic (read: geekishly freaky) knowledge of sports facts and figures meant it was foisted on me. This was great, as it a) brought heaps of overtime pay and b) I had a licence to try and write like my hero, Sir Terry McLean. I quickly learnt that sub-editors in the early 1990s had little time for flowing prosaic descriptions of club rugby. I also learnt that it was damned hard to match McLean’s style, no matter how much practice I got.
I met New Zealand’s greatest sportswriter once, at a cocktail do in Auckland. I asked him what advice he had for budding sports journos. He turned briefly, looked me up and down, and said “work on general rounds for 10 years first, then you might just have the experience”. And he turned away.
McLean’s writings and famous criticisms are well-known by Kiwi sports buffs, but his life in general is less well-known. This book, by his son Jock and another well-travelled sports writer, Paul Lewis, traverses much more than expected.
There has already been media coverage of some of the more colourful aspects of the book, such as McLean’s supposed affair with a South African politician. For me, the interest in this book lies in how it ties together a man who devoted his life to being the best in his field. As a biography, it reads like a how-to guide on success. Overcoming adversity, hard work, and not being afraid of standing on a few toes to get there.
I can’t think of too many other journalists in NZ who would make such compelling reading. Even if you’re not a McLean reader, or a sports fan, this well-written biography appeals as a slice of New Zealand life over the best part of the 20th century.
WHEN I began working as a journalist, no one wanted the sports round. My encyclopaedic (read: geekishly freaky) knowledge of sports facts and figures meant it was foisted on me. This was great, as it a) brought heaps of overtime pay and b) I had a licence to try and write like my hero, Sir Terry McLean. I quickly learnt that sub-editors in the early 1990s had little time for flowing prosaic descriptions of club rugby. I also learnt that it was damned hard to match McLean’s style, no matter how much practice I got.
I met New Zealand’s greatest sportswriter once, at a cocktail do in Auckland. I asked him what advice he had for budding sports journos. He turned briefly, looked me up and down, and said “work on general rounds for 10 years first, then you might just have the experience”. And he turned away.
McLean’s writings and famous criticisms are well-known by Kiwi sports buffs, but his life in general is less well-known. This book, by his son Jock and another well-travelled sports writer, Paul Lewis, traverses much more than expected.
There has already been media coverage of some of the more colourful aspects of the book, such as McLean’s supposed affair with a South African politician. For me, the interest in this book lies in how it ties together a man who devoted his life to being the best in his field. As a biography, it reads like a how-to guide on success. Overcoming adversity, hard work, and not being afraid of standing on a few toes to get there.
I can’t think of too many other journalists in NZ who would make such compelling reading. Even if you’re not a McLean reader, or a sports fan, this well-written biography appeals as a slice of New Zealand life over the best part of the 20th century.
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