Just finished reading Match Fixer by Neil Humphreys. Neil is a Dagenham lad who worked in Singapore for six years and has written a novel about Chris Osborne, a former West Ham reserve caught up in Singapore's S-League match fixing.
Humphreys really gets over just how endemic the betting culture is in Singapore. It's an atmospheric book where you can really sense the heat of the streets and the tackiness of the ex-pat hostess lounges. It's full of believable characters such as Danny 'The Spear' Spearman a washed up fat ex-footballer now making a living as Singapore's version of Alan Hansen.
It has undercover detectives, drug dealers, many West Ham references and a mention of Faces night club.
Humpreys did a signing at the Newham Bookshio[p before a recent match and is a nice guy writing from his own experience. Well worth a read and enough to give those seeking to root out corruption in the game a spot of floodlight failure.
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