Rugby league author Ray Gent has turned his attention to the round ball game with an e-book about the “spirit” of the sport.

Football In Its Own Words follows its birth and development through the years from the advent of the so-called Cambridge Rules to the multi-million pound spectacle we have today.

Yorkshire features heavily in Gent’s work – none bigger than William “Fatty” Foulke, the larger-than-life goalkeeper who was said to buckle the scales at 25 stone.

Foulke made only 22 league appearances for the Bantams but he managed to halt play when he snapped the crossbar while saving a penalty.

With his enormous girth covering so much of the goal, spot-kicks became a nightmare for the taker.

After seeing two of his penalties saved by Foulke, one player moaned: “Where else could I have placed the kicks? There was nowhere else to aim!”

There is another story in the book devoted to Bradford Park Avenue and Gent’s admiration for the legendary Len Shackleton (pictured) shines through. There is also the habitual mention of the autobiography penned by the “Clown Prince” and the chapter which is headlined “The average director’s knowledge of football” which was left blank.

Gent, who hails from St Helens, hopes to raise money from book sales to help his local junior team.