Read Online Specky Magee by Felice Arena - Free Book Online

lot of the MCG. They all hopped out and joined the flocks of fans who were spilling out from the Richmond train station across the road. Specky stared in awe at the giant stadium as he and his friends made their way towards the AFL members’ entrance gates. Seeing this larger-than-life national landmark sent a tingle all the way down Specky’s spine.
    ‘One day I’ll play here,’ he promised himself, under his breath.
    Danny’s father generously paid for Robbo’s and Specky’s tickets, and they all excitedly clicked their way through the turnstiles. Once inside, Specky followed Robbo, Danny, and Danny’s brother and father through the vast concrete hallway. There was an air of excitement brewing as fans decked out in their team’s colours dodged and passed one another on the way to their seats. Specky could hear a distant roar from inside the ground—it was the crowd that arrived earlier in the day, cheering during the last few minutes of the reserves’ match.
    ‘There it is,’ said Danny proudly, as he and the others stood at the top of the aisle facing the immaculate green turf before them.
    Specky grinned. ‘Wow! I forgot how big it was,’ he gasped, as he and the others made their way down to the front-row seats, close to the boundary line.
    It was a gloriously sunny day, with just a hint of a winter breeze sweeping over the city side of the stadium—perfect for footy.
    ‘Hey, about time you made it. I couldn’t hold these seats any longer.’ It was Danny’s Uncle Joe and other members of the Castellino family.Specky edged his way in behind his friends as he and Robbo were introduced to everyone.
    ‘Boys, you remember everyone here, don’t you?’ said Danny’s dad.
    Specky and Robbo nodded.
    There was Danny’s Uncle Joe, his Uncle Santo, his younger cousins Stefan, Luisa, Jayden and family friends Ron and his son Adrian.
    Specky waved a friendly hi to them all—he still couldn’t get over how they all loved footy. He briefly fantasised about what it would be like if he, his parents and Alice were all there together.
    ‘Hey, Speck. Snap out of it, man.’ It was Danny nudging Specky to stop daydreaming. ‘That official over there is trying to get your attention, Speck. He’s pointing directly at you.’
    Specky looked up to see that there was indeed an official-looking person standing on the boundary pointing at him. He waved Specky over to the fence.
    ‘Hey, kid!’ he said. ‘Do you want to play Superbikes, the giant-screen computer game? I’ve already chosen a kid who supports Geelong. Are you a Collingwood supporter?’
    Before Specky had a chance to explain to the man that he barracked for five teams, Danny quickly answered for him.
    ‘Yes, he is. And he’ll play the game.’
    ‘Great!’ said the official.
    Specky wasn’t sure if he wanted to play. He felt a little pressured.
    ‘Come on, Speck, this is all part of the pregame entertainment. They always pick kids out of the crowd. I’ve wanted to get picked for ages. Come on, you might win something really cool!’ urged Danny.
    ‘Yeah, and Superbikes is really easy. You’ve played it on my computer tons of times,’ added Robbo.
    Specky agreed and jumped over the fence to join the official and his competitor. They then made their way over to the other side of the ground, where a portable PlayStation was set up. The official grabbed a microphone and spoke to the crowd.
    ‘Okay, ladies and gentlemen, we’re ready for another game of Superbikes!’ His voice echoed throughout the entire stadium.
    Specky looked up to see that his face and the computer game’s graphics were up on the giantTV screen for everyone to see. He and the other boy were each handed a joystick.
    ‘All right,’ continued the official. ‘We have Luke representing Geelong…’
    There was an instant roar from all the Geelong supporters.
    ‘And we have…’ The official leaned away from the microphone and asked for Specky’s name. Specky almost said