Read Online Shoot to Win by Dan Freedman - Free Book Online Page B

if it had been stuck on the wrong way.
    â€œHe don’t need no medics – he ain’t a wimp!” said a man, marching on to the pitch. Almost as soon as he saw him, with his big, burly frame and his nose broken like a boxer’s, Jamie knew exactly who he was.
    The man shoved the referee out of way and grabbed Dillon’s hand.
    â€œLet me have a look at that,” he ordered.
    He took one look at it and said: “Right!”
    Then he did something that made Jamie’s whole body squirm; the man forced Dillon’s thumb right back into its socket. Jamie thought he could even hear the noise of the bone snapping back into place.
    â€œAhhh! Dad!!!” squealed Dillon, turning his head away.
    â€œOh, stop moaning, you baby,” said his dad, walking back off the pitch. “Wouldn’t have happened if you’d have scored.”

 

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    Jamie stared at his own thumb, rubbing it softly against his finger. Then he raised his hand to his forehead to shield his eyes from the glare of the sun. He was trying to look for his dad in the stands but he couldn’t see him.
    Jamie’s mum was there, though, and she thought he was looking for her. She started jumping up and down and waving back to Jamie. She even blew him a kiss. So embarrassing.
    â€œLook at that!” said Mike, elbowing Jamie in the ribs. “Breswell’s right back has just swapped positions with their central midfielder – that’s what you call total football!”
    Jamie nodded but he wasn’t scared of them. Even though Breswell were by far the best team Kingfield had come up against, he still felt sure that he could cause them problems with his pace.
    â€œEh, and I’ll tell you something else,” said Mike, nodding towards the Breswell goal. “Their keeper – have you noticed anything about him?”
    â€œNo, why?” said Jamie.
    â€œHe never kicks the ball out; always throws it to one of the full-backs. That’s because they’re trying to keep it on the deck.”
    The Breswell keeper had the ball in his hands. Jamie studied his movements. He watched the keeper bounce the ball once on the ground and then again, waving the outfield players forward as though he were going to kick it.
    But Mike was right – he didn’t kick it. Instead, he quickly bowled the ball out to the right full-back, who had dropped deep to collect it. It must have been something that they’d worked on in training.
    Jamie wondered how long he would have taken to notice that tactic if Mike hadn’t pointed it out.
    And, more importantly, he wondered whether Hansard had spotted it at all.

 

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    After Dillon’s chance from the corner, Breswell re-established their grip on the game.
    â€œGet in their faces!” roared Hansard. “They don’t like it up ‘em!”
    Ollie responded by putting in a really hard tackle, going straight through the back of his opponent.
    It was too hard a tackle for the referee, though, who blew for a free-kick straight away.
    Without taking time to stop the ball, the Breswell centre-half drove a pass into his striker’s feet, instantly making a run upfield to support him.
    â€œRolling ball! Rolling ball!” Hansard protested as Breswell streamed forward. “The ball was rolling!”
    â€œPlay on,” shouted the referee, stretching his arms out in front of him. “Play on!”
    The Breswell striker fended off Dillon long enough to be able to control the ball with his first touch and then lay the ball back with his second.
    He was laying it back for the centre-half, who had played the ball into him in the first pace. That centre-half had sprinted the whole way up the pitch, and now he came on to the ball at full pace.
    He looked as though he was going to wallop the ball as hard as he could but, right at the last minute, he changed the shape of his body. Instead of smashing his foot through the ball, he