Out of all the cricket magazines I looked at this month, Spin proved to be the surprise package. My initial impressions had not been positive, as the cover (not the one pictured here) appears to have been designed by a seven-year-old with a grudge against humanity and a Jackson Pollockesque approach to colour co-ordination.

As with the other two magazines I’ve looked at, content starts with a section of shorter articles, and news round up, in this case called “Leading Edge”. Quality here is a bit up and down, as interesting pieces, speculating about the next England coach as well as criticising the current one, fight for room along side with others that barely justify inclusion. What’s the point of interviewing an Australian TV cricket reporter who’s never seen over here? Other than she used to be a model, and you can print a large photo of her, of course. Similarly, sending a reporter to face the Merlin bowling machine at the Blue Peter studios proves to be an idea that goes nowhere quickly.

But after these initial, faltering steps, the magazine starts to hit its straps. Interviews are given space to develop properly, and some unusual but interesting subjects are picked; an excellent piece with Richard Ellison about swing bowling comes to mind here. Jon Lewis also makes an interesting subject matter, perhaps because he’s given time and space to explain himself fully.

But what makes the magazine for me is the in-depth Ashes post mortem, the centre piece of which is an excellent tour diary. This article is everything that All Out Cricket is trying and failing to be, as you get to re-live the winter’s disappointments in a way that uses humour to augment the writing.

In addition ‘Spin’ has excess to the Hawkeye technology we see on TV which at times proves illuminating. At others when comparing the pitch maps of McGrath and Harmison it tells us what we already know. But throughout this section the reporting is relaxed yet accurate, cutting to the bone of the frustrations felt by England fans over the last few months.

Verdict: Not what I expected from the front cover. Spin tries to balance depth of reporting with a humorous touch, and on the whole manages to pull it off. The odd miss-fired attempt at light-hearted articles can be forgiven when you reach further in and discover test match cricket reported well but with the starch removed. Spin is the one magazine I read this month, which could keep both dads and kids happy.

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