A Devil of a Time: The Tasmania Football Club story
By (Author) Alister Nicholson
Illustrated by Tom Jellett
Hardie Grant Children's Publishing
Hardie Grant Children's Publishing
26th August 2025
Australia
Children
Fiction
Childrens / Teenage fiction: Family and home stories
Childrens / Teenage fiction: Humorous stories
Hardback
24
Width 240mm, Height 240mm
Its the game that has defined us, a heartland football state.
For decades weve defied the odds, punched above our weight.
With an army of supporters and a state thats in its prime.
Lets give those opposition teams a DEVIL of a time.
A joyous, inclusive picture book that celebrates the history and evolution of the Tasmania Football Club The Tasmania Devils, ahead of its entrance to the AFL in 2028.
Alister Nicholson is one of Australia's best-known and trusted radio and TV sports journalists. He is currently a leading commentator for Channel 7 Sport, covering AFL and cricket, and worked for over a decade on ABC Grandstand. Alister has covered many of the biggest sporting events in Australia, including AFL grand finals, the Olympics, the Commonwealth Games and Test cricket. In addition, he is a regular panellist on ABC TV's Offsiders program. Alister grew up in Penguin on the north-west coast of Tasmania, where he dreamed about one day becoming a sports broadcaster. He now lives in Melbourne with his young family.
Tom Jellett is a Sydney based illustrator. For over twenty years he has illustrated a number of books for children including My Dad Thinks He's Funny by Katrina Germein, Why I Love Footy by Michael Wagner, Whale in the Bath by Kylie Westaway and the Besties series with Sporty Kids author Felice Arena. His work can also be seen in a number of magazines and newspapers, including editorial illustrations for The Australian and The Weekend Australian. Tom was also recently included in the Editorial category for Illustrators 62, and exhibited at the Society of Illustrators, New York in 2020.
Alister and Tom's first picture book together, Cricket, I Just Love It, is a funny and quirky celebration of Australia's favourite summer sport, cricket, and was published by Allen & Unwin in late 2021. Their next book, The Backyard Games, was published in 2024 by Allen & Unwin.