Twelve months ago, towards the end of Wolverhampton Wanderers epic Championship winning season, I was only able to enjoy their successes when they played at home. You see, life for me as a passionate supporter of the Old Gold has been a frustrating one - and I don't mean because of our lack of success on the pitch (until now).
My name is Simon Rickards. I'm a 44 year old single man who suffers with anorexia, borderline personality disorder and, as a result, acute social anxiety. During last season I nervously went to as many home games as I could, often arriving way before kick off time to avoid the crowds, taking my seat way too early and escaping before the final whistle. Always with my head down, keen to avoid people. I just went, watched as much of that beautiful football as I could, and left. It was always an ordeal, but an ordeal I wanted to go through to see my team doing what they were doing. However, toward the end of the season I got to know one or two other fans, fans who had picked up on my love of baking through social media. Yes, you read that right - someone with an eating disorder who has a love of baking!
At the end of the season I met some of those people face to face and shared the fruits of my baking passion with them. Our friendships began to grow. Promotion to the Premier League fuelled my desire to see more and more of my team, not just at home but in the stadia of the great teams of the rest of the Premier League up and down the country. But how? With all my anxieties, my fears of new places, public transport, of crowds....how?
'Wolves. Battles. Bakes.' tells the story of this season; of how the love of football, the togetherness of the 'Wolves pack' and the beauty of friendships has enabled me to watch my beloved Wolves nearly every game. I've been to every single away game and only during a particularly bad mental health episode did I miss a couple of home games. It hasn't been easy in any way; the draining nature of anorexia, the fight through crippling anxiety has taken me to hell and back at times, but my friends have led me through it all. The book is a frank account of what it has been like, of how these conditions affect me and have impacted me as the season has gone on. I have tried to give an insight of what it's like to suffer with conditions that are hard to understand to those who, thankfully, have never had to suffer them. For that reason it comes with a warning that some of it may be triggering to those who might suffer with eating disorders, however I have been mindful not to include content that goes too far (excluding things like specific weights, etc.)
I've included a synopsis of each game I've been to, so it's a way of looking back over the season and how Wolves have done from my angle. At times I've pulled no punches! Finally, at the end of every chapter I've written a recipe. Many of these recipes have been baked & taken with me to share with my friends before the matches I've been to. I'd love to see people try them out, after all, it was my love of baking that started all this.
50% of the profits from the sale of this book will go to Wolverhampton Wanderers Foundation.