Matthew Lloyd was born into a football family, and it was clear early in his career that he had the ability to surpass his father's legacy. For a while it looked he would head to Carton as well, but Essendon conjured up a complex deal to secure the talented 16-year-old in the 1994 preseason draft. This of a young footballer who taught himself a process to become the most accurate shot for goal in the AFL after a tirade from one his coaches. It is how a boy with natural ability became the captain of the Essendon Football Club, a premiership player, and a life member of the AFL. And now it is about the transformation into devoted father and a multimedia expert on AFL when it looked like his career was cut short before its time. It's the story of a testy relationship with his final coach and the bone crunching hit that saw him finish his time as a player on suspension. It looks at how he considered a future with other clubs before deciding to retire on his terms. Above all, it is a brutally honest account of an astonishing career from a man who is a straight shooter in more ways than one. 'The denuded earth of the iron-ore loading yards, the huge jetties thrusting their way out into the clear blue sea, the endless ponds of the solar salt farm, stretching stark and white over hundreds of hectares . . . all appeared a hideous invasion upon nature. But to Mike McAllister, there was something faintly ludicrous about it. Man's interference seemed petty in the face of such unconquerable timelessness. In millions of years, mankind would cease to exist, but this terrain would not. This was the Pilbara.... Floodtide is a brilliant observation of turbulent times in the mighty 'Iron Ore State' - Western Australia. The novel traces the fortunes of four men and four families over four memorable decades: The prosperous post-war 1950s when childhood is idyllic and carefree in the small, peaceful city of Perth . . . The turbulent 60s when youth is caught up in the conflict of the Vietnam War and free love reigns . . . The avaricious 70s when Western Australia's mineral boom... "Matthew Lloyd at his peak was a goal kicking machine in an era where the power forward was fading from the game. A five-time all Australian, he topped the AFL goal kicking three times in his 270 game career and kicked the ton twice, his first in the Essendon Premiership season of 2000. Born into a football family, it was clear early in his career that he had the ability to surpass his father John's 29 games with Carlton. For a while it looked he would head to Carton as well, but Essendon conjured up a complex deal to secure the talented 16-year-old in the 1994 pre-season draft. Brothers Simon and Brad each played football too and are now involved with the Fremantle Football Club, and sister Kylie works on The Footy Show at Channel 9. His mother Bev, even met his father at the football. Sport, and in particular football, was and remains in the blood. This book is the story of a kid driven by a fear of failure to climb the highest peaks in football."--Publisher's website
