A cricket match is like a jig-saw puzzle: its many elements the players, their tactics, sponsorship, the crowd, even the weather - are all integral parts of the whole. Even though crowds have been blamed for everything from taking wickets to winning or losing matches most cricket writers have paid them little attention.

AVE A GO, YER MUG looks in detail at the influence of the crowd on the development of Australian cricket from the days of the larrikins and the first inter-Colonial games to the 'ugly ockers' and the super-hype of today, and reveals just what it is that makes Australian crowds differ from one century to another, from one city to another, and what makes them different from those of any other cricketing country. Other factors which have affected crowd behaviour such as the impact of the media and of new technology, competition from other sports, recent improvements in facilities and changing methods of crowd control are also explored together with the tradition of uniquely Australian humour personified by characters such as Sydney's Yabba.

'AVE A GO, YER MUG will delight and fascinate the cricket buff and historian alike.