Dally Messenger is still an icon of Rugby League in Australia and our first sporting superstar. 50,000 people regularly watched a game of football simply because he was on the field. Born in Sydney, he grew up in Melbourne, where he learned his kicking skills from some of the greats who played Australian Rules for South Melbourne. He represented Australia in League, and both Australia and New Zealand in Union. In the early years of Federation, when League and Australian Rules were jockeying to become the dominant code, he was courted by both sides. At the height of his career, crowds would flock to the grounds just to see him play, and he remains revered in the game to this day. The Master is a popular and authoritative account of the life and times of a great sportsman and while it will have more than enough for the true League fans it will also appeal to anyone who is attracted by sporting excellence and outstanding individual achievement in general