The brainchild of Samuel Ryder, a wealthy seed merchant from St Albans, the Ryder Cup was a bi-annual British-American professional golf tournament that was first played for the trophy bearing his name in Worcester, Massachusetts, in 1927. America won the match and gradually became the dominant force in the competition. During the 1960s the results were so one-sided that the Ryder Cup was expanded so that players from Ireland could compete for the British team. As the Americans continued to win comfortably, Jack Nicklaus led the movement to alter the teams so that European players were also allowed to compete against them. Since 1983 the contest has become one of the most competitive tournaments in the world, with many players achieving sporting immortality for their exploits on green and fairway on both sides of the Atlantic. This book examines the careers and Ryder Cup contributions of 50 of the greatest golfers in history, from Tiger Woods and Arnold Palmer to Steve Ballesteros and Nick Faldo. Lavishly illustrated throughout, this book provides the perfect accompaniment to the upcoming tournament at Gleneagles in Scotland.

Presented in an A to Z format, this illustrated compilation highlights all the tournament's pivotal moments and matches including England's glorious triumph on home soil in 1966 to Zidane's notorious sending off in the 2006 Final. The world's best players take centre stage from heroes of the past such as Pele, Beckenbauer and Maradona to today's superstars including Messi, Neymar and England captain Steven Gerrard.

Held every four years, the European Championships represent the pinnacle of international football in Europe. It is arguably more difficult to win the tournament than the World Cup because the continent is traditionally strong in the sport and the overall quality of the opposition is better. Having qualified, which is difficult enough, your team is likely to come up against the cream of European football in the shape of France, Germany, England, Italy and current world champions, Spain. However, throughout the tournament's rich history, some surprise winners have emerged, such as Denmark in 1992 and Greece in 2004. Liam McCann takes us through the history of the championships, its finest games and greatest players, with special emphasis on the 2012 tournament in Poland the Ukraine.

While university lecturer Ed Sampson is recovering on a cruise off the Florida coast, the ship is capsized in a category five hurricane. A British Rapid Reaction Force rescues him and he teams up with RRF agent Zoe Fox to investigate the out-of-season event. They learn that the storm's formation seems to be connected to a vast corporation's methane mining interests off Bermuda. With the US economy crippled by a lack of oil, and the mysterious drilling organisation threatening to ration its new power source, time for the West as a whole is running out... Sampson races to destroy the drilling platforms before a second hurricane devastates much of the southern United States. He and Zoe are on the brink of success when a dramatic new twist leaves them facing Armageddon Liam McCann's third action / thriller novel grips from first page to last and lends itself perfectly to adaptation as a Hollywood movie.

A respected British neurosurgeon is killed in his home. On the same night, a break-in at a top-secret science facility reveals the theft of an electromagnetic pulse machine that can analyse and alter human brain rhythms with terrifying results. The British must retrieve the machine before it falls into enemy hands. Assigned to the task by their government, Sampson and a beautiful female agent follow the trail to mainland Europe where they learn that a mysterious power is trying to sell it to the highest bidder. As they race to recover the device, they are stunned to discover that it could be used to launch a pre-emptive strike on NATO forces. With time running out, Sampson risks all to unmask the mastermind and bring him to justice in an orgy of violence and destruction Liam McCann's second science-fiction thriller hurls the reader from one crisis to another and lends itself perfectly to adaptation as a major film.

University lecturer and former forensic investigator Ed Sampson discovers that an apparent natural disaster was actually caused by a mysterious rogue satellite. When he finds out that the power behind the incident intends to use a new technology to create a space-based weapons system that will permanently alter the world's climate, he is thrown headlong into a nightmare. With investigative teams drawing blanks, and with death stalking him at every turn, Sampson follows the trail to the European Space Agency and a solar furnace high in the Pyrenees. He soon realises that the free world is threatened by a conspiracy so terrifying that even the superpowers must face the prospect of annihilation. Liam McCann's science-fiction thriller takes the reader on a roller-coaster ride and lends itself perfectly to adaptation as a major Hollywood blockbuster.

Ryker, a young peregrine falcon, is being given a hunting lesson by his father when they notice a flock of ravens attacking their family by the chalk cliffs they call home. They race back to help but Ryker is knocked unconscious in the battle. When he wakes, he realises his parents and partner are missing. As if this wasn't bad enough, he finds his unborn chicks are no longer in their nest Ryker pushes thoughts of personal safety to one side and embarks on a journey of discovery. He must unite the oppressed birds in the forest so that they will rise up and help save his family from the evil gamekeeper and his enforcer, Dillon, a raven with a mean streak and foul temper. But Ryker is young and inexperienced in the ways of the world and he doesn't yet know who to trust... The Battle of Boxhill is an engaging children's story that will appeal to readers of all ages. Packed with drama, suspense and wonderful characters, it will delight, surprise and enthrall in equal measure.

Danish Air Force pilot Hans Gundelach is a man trapped in Germany when Hitler invades his homeland in 1940. Instead of trying to rejoin his family, he heads for occupied France with a set of secret technical drawings given to him by a Jewish gun-sight maker. Although he knows he'll be shot as a spy if caught, Gundelach's hatred of the Third Reich drives him on into the unknown. Along the way, he falls in love with a local woman, services a downed Hurricane fighter and eventually makes it to England to deliver drawings he hopes will change the course of the war in the Atlantic, but, once there, he finds his troubles are only just beginning... This is an incredible true story about one man's crusade to help the Allied war effort against the Nazis. It gives a fascinating insight into Gundelach's resourcefulness and drive, and his lasting hope that his actions will make a difference. Beautifully told and richly entertaining, The Little English Boy will delight readers of all ages.

Ed Sampson is back in his fourth pulsating adventure Sampson is injured in a terrorist attack in London that kills one of his closest companions. When he leaves hospital he learns that a Far Eastern crime syndicate appears to be responsible for this and other attacks around the world. And when he discovers that the British government deliberately brought the US into the Second World War by tricking the Japanese into attacking Pearl Harbour, he is drawn into a deadly game of cat-and-mouse with the man at the head of a mysterious organisation that has revenge on its agenda... Sampson must race against time to bring his nemesis to justice before his diabolical plan can be set in motion. Liam McCann's fourth science-fiction thriller lends itself perfectly to adaptation as a Hollywood blockbuster.

This erudite and entertaining book explores the greatest rivalries in the history of sport. From Muhammad Ali and Joe Frazier to Chris Evert and Martina Navratilova, 15 chapters cover the titanic clashes between the individuals and teams that have made the sporting headlines over the last 150 years. Re-live the finest moments from the fiercest Ashes contests, the epic duels between Alain Prost and Ayrton Senna, and the nail-biting climaxes to the Ryder Cup. Experience the brutal hits from State of Origin rugby league, and marvel at the careers of NBA giants Larry Bird and Magic Johnson. Andrew O'Brien and Liam McCann's first collaboration takes the reader into the heat of battle and serves up endless ammunition for debate, whether it be in the pub or the locker room. (With contributions from former England No.8 Dean Richards, current Toro Rosso Formula 1 drivers Jean-Eric Vergne and Daniel Ricciardo, former Arsenal and England striker Alan Smith, former Zimbabwean cricketer Andy Whittall, current England rugby player Maggie Alphonsi, former Scotland and British Lions prop Tom Smith, and England's top off-road triathlete, Sam Gardner.)