The following review is provided by Beth Wild. 

ROY WONDER: CHELSEA CHAMPION

Roy Bentley with Jim Drury

Tempus Publishing Ltc.

ISBN #0-7524-3707-0 

As we all know John Terry has lifted the League Trophy twice in the last three years, but we also know that 50 years before JT did it that first time, Roy Bentley lead our team to our first victory as League Champions. And this book will take you through Roy’s life from young lad to sharing the celebrations in 2005.

If you have never met Roy, well this book really is his voice. I had met Roy a few times before reading this book, and when I did sit down to read it, I could easily hear his voice as I read the words. It isn’t just about his life, and what he went through to start and actually have a career as a footballer, the dedication, bit of luck and hard work it took. But also through his words you really understand how committed he is to Chelsea and how passionate he still is about the team, the game and his family. Football was certainly not as prestigious or as lucrative then as it is now. And Roy’s honesty in describing everything from training regimes, or lack of them, to player/manager/owner relations, to fan interaction, to everyday working conditions is a truthful reminder of where our roots are. It is a history lesson about Chelsea from a first hand account.

And it isn’t just a recap of the games he played, and who scored or even his insight into the players he played for or against. It is more than that. It is a behind the scenes look into a time when football well and truly was a different “game”. No luxury accommodations, no 6 digit salaries, no state of the art training facilities, but a game played by guys that had a passion for it, a real working man’s sport.

From the opening paragraph you understand the similarities and the differences between then and now, and yet as you read through his account at Chelsea you ache for the chance to have been there, to have shared those moments, and made those memories your own. Roy’s easy style let you “get to know” some of the legends he played with and against, and his pride to play for Chelsea and for England, and his heartbreak as well. And not just his life on the pitch but off it as well, when being a footballer was still about being in the news, but surely didn’t have the lifestyle it has now.

And Roy doesn’t stop with just his football playing career at Chelsea. It also covers the rest of his career, and his insight into the game, players, and management of today. To hear this from someone with his experience was very enlightening and I was so glad he added it to the book. It is a thoughtful and honest perspective about our team today, and the game. Roy is a genuine gentleman, a very fine person, and though he most certainly has the right to have a few bones to pick with how he was treated, his love of the Club and I think the supporters, most of all, really comes through.

Well worth any Chelsea supporter’s time, this is a great book to read. Not too many stats and history to be overwhelming but a great account of a few years in our history, by and about one of our True Chelsea Legends.