A local journalist-turned-PR man has published a book about ten of the most memorable England games to coincide with the build-up to this year’s World Cup.

John Ballard worked as reporter with the Wiltshire Times and the Dumfries and Galloway Standard before becoming a press officer with Cumbria County Council.

Now he has published his first book on Kindle telling the story of ten of the England football team’s greatest games.

Three Lions Roaring covers games from the 1930s to the 1990s and features match reports, profiles of the star players and the backround to each encounter.

Said John:  “Writing this ebook has been a great way to indulge my fondness for football history. Having viewed so many documentaries, watched so many matches and read so widely about the game’s past, committing these memories and opinions to paper – well Kindle – seemed like the logical conclusion of my obsession.

“Although I’ve written thousands of articles and media releases as a journalist and press officer, writing an ebook was an exciting new challenge and an ambition I’d been keen to realise for years.

“Football divides opinion like little else in life so everyone has their own views about which matches should make up a compilation of great England games, but Three Lions Roaring tells the story of the ten I rate as the national side’s finest.”

As well as England’s 1966 World Cup triumph in 1966 and 4-1 victory over Holland in Euro’96, the games covered in the book include some that ended in defeat.

They include the epic encounter with Brazil and Pele in Mexico 1970, the Italia ’90 confrontation with the Germans which was lost on a penalty shootout, and the 1998 loss to Argentina, again on a penalty shoot-out, following the sending off of David Beckham.

The book is available on Kindle for £2.05.