Kiwis adore underdogs. We never cheer louder than when the long-shot outsider charges in from nowhere to blitz the field, or the written-off veteran finds redemption. This book celebrates some of the most inspiring against-the-odds stories in New Zealand sport.

From the famous to the forgotten, from the Carterton Showgrounds to the Stadio Olimpico, the tales within are a tribute to determination, self-belief and bloody mindedness.

Tour de France pioneer Harry Watson, Invercargill speed demon Burt Munro, Waiuku whitebaiting wonder Stephen Donald, tenacious runner Anne Audain, legendary tail-end batsman Ewen Chatfield: the dozens of sportspeople (and one horse) in this book come from across the codes but they have one thing, at least, in common. The odds may have been daunting, the critics scathing, the challenges formidable, but they never gave up.