by Lisa Gibbs
As soon as she was on the footpath and out of sight, Maddy stopped and coughed heavily. Boots pulled on his lead, wondering why they were stopping before they had even started. Maddy’s throat hurt and her legs felt heavy and tired. She’d only walked a few metres and already she wanted to sit down!
She gave in and perched on the low brick wall that circled the neighbour’s house, her legs trembling as she hoisted herself up. Boots sat impatiently near her dangling feet.
I have to be well enough to play tomorrow, thought Maddy. I was getting so good at running passes, and I might even get a turn in goals!
Maddy sat on the fence for a while longer. Boots discovered her loose shoelaces and started pulling on them playfully, growling as he tried to wrestle them out of her shoes, one at a time.
How can I get Mum and Dad to let me play? They keep telling me to drink lots of water – so that’s one thing I can do. I can make sure I act hungry and eat all my dinner – that’s a second thing. Okay, and third, I’ll have an early night so that tomorrow I’ll be full of energy for the game … That’ll be the easiest thing to do – I want to go to bed now!
That evening, Maddy carried out her plan and her parents reluctantly agreed that she could play netball in the morning. When it was time for bed, Maddy kissed her mum and dad goodnight and went to her bedroom. Before she got into bed, she followed her usual Friday-night routine. She carefully took out her netball dress and her favourite windcheater, which was the same blue as her uniform, and hung them on the back of her bedroom door. When she climbed into bed, she lay there staring at her outfit. She couldn’t wait to put it on in the morning. It was the last thing she saw as her eyes drooped shut.
Maddy woke early the next morning. Even though it was hours before the game, she dressed in her netball gear, brushed her hair and tied it into a ponytail. But as she went to tie her pink ribbon, a violent cough shook her body and she was forced to crouch over and brace herself on her knees.
I’m fine, I’m fine, she said, trying to convince herself that she was. Once I’m on the court, I’ll be so busy playing I won’t even notice how I feel!
Chapter Fourteen
Each week the girls in the team tried to make sure that they arrived at the courts with plenty of time to warm up, throw some practice passes, and shoot some practice goals. Maddy arrived and walked slowly towards her teammates. Her legs were wobbly and she felt hot all over, even though she hadn’t done anything to warm up yet.
‘Maddy,’ said Janet when she spotted her, ‘you’re in Goal Attack for the first half.’
Maddy took the bib Janet was holding out for her. Goal Attack was the most popular position. Everyone would be so jealous!
After a quick warm up, Maddy went to her position on the transverse line and eagerly waited for the umpire’s whistle. But when the whistle blew, she struggled to get clear of her defender and make herself available to take the centre pass. Seeing that Jade in Wing Attack had received the ball, Maddy decided to move back into the goal third. But her legs moved as if they were made of lead, and she didn’t get into position in time for Jade’s pass. Shifting direction, she tried to move into the goal circle, but her body just wasn’t responding and again she got there too late: she arrived just as Isabella scored her first goal as Goal Shooter. Isabella smiled happily, and everyone turned to set up for the next centre pass.
Maddy was barely able to step over the transverse line and did nothing to try to block the other team’s Wing Defence from taking the centre pass. She just stood there on the line, watching as the ball made its way to the other end of the court. She felt as if she was moving in slow motion and the rest of the team was in fast forward. After many failed attempts by the Carrington netball team to shoot a goal, Prani as Goal Keeper leapt up to catch a rebound and threw the ball into the centre third. It wasn’t aimed at anyone in particular, so Maddy tried to take off after the loose ball – but she just had no energy to go after it! Her legs ached, and after two steps, she had to stop so that she could brace herself for a coughing fit. She couldn’t see the ball anymore. All she could see was the ground in front of her as she bent over, coughing and coughing. Vaguely, she heard the umpire’s whistle blow and she wondered what was happening. The game seemed to have stopped …
The next thing she knew, Janet was standing beside her.
‘Maddy,’ Janet said, ‘you’re not well. You need to come off court.’
Maddy knew Janet was right and that she couldn’t go on playing. She stepped off court and allowed Janet to take off her position bibs and hand them to Charlotte. Then she slumped down onto the bench and bent over with her arms across her knees. She felt completely exhausted.
After seeing Charlotte onto the court, Janet came back over and sat beside Maddy. ‘I won’t be putting you back on court today, Maddy. Go home and get well.’ She spoke kindly and squeezed Maddy’s arm.
Maddy wasn’t sure whether to be devastated or relieved but in the end, relief won. She was shivering, sweating and aching everywhere. No matter how much she wanted it, there was no way she could play netball today. What she needed was to climb into bed … But it was so hard to move …
Maddy’s mum came to the rescue and helped her up off the bench.
‘Come on,’ she said, ‘let’s get you home.’
Maddy made no protest and followed her to the car. She didn’t even say goodbye to the other girls, or even to Janet. As their car pulled out of the carpark, Maddy snuggled deeper into her windcheater and gave a chesty cough. For the first time since she began playing, netball wasn’t the first thing on Maddy’s mind. Right now, all she could think of was climbing into her cosy bed and wrapping herself in her rainbow-coloured doona.
Chapter Fifteen
Maddy’s mum burst through the front door, soaking wet. ‘The rain’s pelting down out there!’
‘I know, I only just got to the washing in time,’ Maddy replied, raising her voice above the drumming of the rain on the roof, pointing to the basket by the back door.
‘Thanks! That’s such a help!’
‘Well … I went out to save my netball uniform and then figured I couldn’t leave the rest out there,’ Maddy admitted.
Mum laughed. ‘Well, I’m still impressed. But Maddy, you do realise you won’t be needing your uniform this weekend, don’t you?’
‘What do you mean?’
Mum bustled off to get changed into dry clothes. She called out over her shoulder, ‘We’re going away this weekend, remember? We’ve got Grandma’s seventieth birthday party.’
Maddy frowned. She couldn’t believe she’d forgotten Grandma’s party! She’d already missed this week’s training because she had still been sick, and her dismal few minutes on the court last Saturday could in no way count towards actually playing. She was starting to get really good – and now she was going to miss another game. She stood there absently gnawing on her lip. As much as she loved Grandma, she really didn’t want to miss the game this Saturday … There must be a way she could go to the game and the party …
Maddy followed her mum down the hallway.
‘Mum, can’t we leave for Grandma’s after the game?’ she suggested.
She heard her mum sigh from the bedroom. ‘No, Maddy. I promised Grandma we’d get there tomorrow night so that I can start early on Saturday to help prepare the food.’
‘Well, couldn’t you get there tomorrow and Dad and I could get there later the next day, after the game? … Or maybe I could stay at Prani’s for the weekend?’
Maddy knew she’d gone too far when Mum stuck her head out of the doorway, half-dressed, and used Maddy’s full name.
‘Madison Jane. Are you seriously telling me that you don’t want to come and help and be there for your Grandma on her seventieth birthday?’ Her voice became increasingly shrill.
Maddy froze, embarrassed at what she’d said. ‘No, Mum. I’m sorry. Of course I want to go,’ she mumbled, her eyes downcast, and she retreated back down the hallway.
By the time I finally get back, maybe I won’t be good enough and Janet will leave me off court for the whole game! she thought, panicking. Her stomach tightened as she pictured herself sitting on the bench with Phoebe walking past, ignoring her, and Jade laughing at her from on court …
Her dismal thoughts were interrupted by a nudging against her hand. She looked down to see Boots gazing up at her, wagging his tail. He always came to cheer her up when she was feeling upset. She scratched him gently behind his soft ear and, with that slightest bit of encouragement, he leapt up to lie next to her on the couch, his front paws in her lap.
Dad wandered into the room. ‘Hey Maddy.’
Maddy mumbled under her breath and didn’t look up.
‘What’s up with you, grumbles?’ asked Dad.
‘Oh … well … it’s just …’ Maddy frowned, looking down at Boots.
Dad sat down next to her, on the couch. ‘Why do I have the feeling that this is about netball?’
Maddy started tentatively. ‘It’s not that I don’t want to go to Grandma’s, it’s just that I’m missing lots of games …’ The rest rushed out. ‘… I’m going to get behind and then I won’t get as much time on court because the other girls will be so much better than me.’
‘You know what?’ said Dad. ‘I think you might be making it harder than it needs to be. Just relax and enjoy yourself.’
Maddy looked unconvinced.
‘Your mum said you’re a great little netballer. She said you’re even better than she was at your age, and if I know anything about sport, I know that two weeks won’t make a difference. You’ll be straight back into it next week, don’t worry.’
Chapter Sixteen
Maddy was a little sleepy when they arrived at her grandma’s house late on Friday night.
‘Come inside, Possum,’ Grandma welcomed her, with a big squeezy hug. ‘I’ve got your bed all ready for you.’
Maddy melted into her grandma’s arms. Grandma gave the best hugs in the whole world.
The next morning, when Maddy emerged for breakfast, the kitchen was already a hive of activity as Mum, Grandma, Aunt Kerry, Uncle Matt and Dad all prepared for the party. Maddy’s younger cousins were lying in front of the TV watching a DVD, and Maddy’s older cousin was sweeping the front driveway. Maddy quietly got herself a bowl of cereal.
‘Aha! Maddy! There you are!’ said Uncle Matt. ‘Sneaking around, hoping you won’t be given any chores?’
‘Who, me?’ said Maddy, smiling.
‘Actually, come to think of it, I wished I’d done that!’ added Uncle Matt under his breath. ‘So what’s happening with you these days? Are you playing any sport?’ he asked.
‘I’m a netballer,’ she offered. At least, I think I am, she added to herself, worrying all over again that she might not be good enough now that she was missing her second game in a row.
‘What? That won’t do! We are a committed family of basketballers! You can’t even run with the ball in netball. What sort of game is that?’ he demanded with mock outrage.
‘That’s what makes it harder,’ Maddy retorted. ‘I’d like to see you try to stop in a split second when you’re running at full pace.’
‘Whoa, a bit of attitude,’ Uncle Matt observed, ‘I like it. That’ll get you far in sport. A bit of push back when things get tough.’
Maddy laughed as she got up off her chair and put her bowl in the dishwasher. She knew Uncle Matt knew nothing about netball but she liked the way he teased her, as if she were one of the adults.
‘So are you missing a game today, Maddy?’ Aunt Kerry asked.
Maddy nodded at Aunt Kerry and then walked out of the room. She didn’t want Aunt Kerry, Uncle Matt and in particular Grandma to see how disappointed she was to be missing the game.
She walked into the lounge room and had just settled down on the couch, resigned to hanging out with the little kids, when she heard the sound of a bouncing ball coming from the side of the house …
Chapter Seventeen
‘Maddy, you’re finally up!’ Jack exclaimed.
Maddy’s cousin Jack was a year younger than Maddy and lived miles away from her, but they always got on well when the family was together. He’d been dribbling a basketball but when he’d seen Maddy, he’d started to shuffle around the ball as he bounced, daring Maddy to try to get it. Maddy lunged in and managed to tip the ball away from him. They both chased after it and the game was on! A basketball ring was bolted to the front of the garage, so Maddy and Jack took turns dribbling the ball on approach while the other defended.
Jack quickly doubled Maddy’s score.
‘I’m smashing you!’ he crowed.
‘That’s because we’re playing your sport!’ she countered. ‘You wouldn’t have a hope if we were playing netball rules.’
‘Okay, bring it on!’
Maddy was pumped at Jack’s willingness to try netball. She pretended that she was Janet and gave Jack a clear outline of the rules of the game.
‘In netball, you’re not allowed to bounce the ball to yourself, you have to pass it to someone from your team. Maybe we could use the side of the house to pass it and catch it again?’
Jack nodded.
‘And you have to stand this far away from me if you’re defending.’ Maddy demonstrated the distance allowable.
After Maddy and Jack had agreed on the court boundaries, the game began and, for the first time ever, Maddy was getting the better of Jack. She was able to get under his defence with accurate bounce passes to the wall and quick footwork without breaking the stepping rule.
The sounds of their laughs and yells must have drifted through the house because one by one, the other cousins and the adults came to join in until, finally, Uncle Matt emerged to see what was going on.
‘Noooo,’ yelled Uncle Matt in mock tragedy. ‘She’s converted my son into a netballer!’
‘It’s harder than it looks, Dad,’ Jack admitted.
Uncle Matt just shook his head. ‘Jack, Jack Jack,’ was all he could say.
Maddy spent the rest of the day hanging out with her cousins, playing alternating games of netball and basketball. Sometimes she would help with preparations for the party but mostly she and her cousins just tried to stay out of the way of the adults as they got things ready. Occasionally her grandma would slip them something tasty to eat as the food began piling up. Finally it was time to go and get changed into her clothes for the party.
As what seemed like hundreds of unfamiliar adults streamed through the door, Maddy was grateful to have her cousins with her at the party. She helped to pass food around, feeling a little awkward as she interrupted conversations. Whenever the adults in her family were there when she approached, they would make a point of introducing her to the group. At first, Maddy wished they wouldn’t – but then she realised that her grandma had already told all of her friends about her.
‘This is Maddy,’ Mum would say, and Maddy would smile politely.
‘Oh Maddy, you’re the netballer, aren’t you?’ one after the other would say to her.
‘Oh, um …’ Maddy hesitated the first time it happened, but the more they said it, the straighter she stood and the more confident she felt until finally, when someone asked if she was the netballer her grandma had told them about, she looked them straight in the eye and said proudly, ‘Yes, that’s me.’
It was a long night. When Maddy finally got into bed, tired and full of food, she nestled down into the doona. As she drifted off to sleep, she thought about how funny it was that just when she had been missing out on playing netball, people had started calling her a netballer.
Chapter Eighteen
‘Prani, you’ll never guess what!’ Maddy said over the phone the following Monday night.
‘Ooh, what?’ Prani was immediately excited.
> ‘Mum was given tickets to the Diamonds versus Silver Ferns game on Friday night and we have an extra one. Her friends got tickets and can’t go for some reason. How awesome is that! Want to come?’
‘Of course!’ Prani giggled. ‘I’ve just got to ask Mum.’ Maddy heard Prani drop the phone and then pick it up again moments later. ‘Wait, what are the tickets for again?’
Maddy laughed. She loved that Prani was so keen to come even though she didn’t know what the tickets were for. ‘It’s a netball game between Australia and New Zealand.’
‘Got it,’ Prani said, then she ran off to check with her mum. In no time she was back and finalising the details with Maddy.
After hanging up the phone, Maddy stared at the tickets with the giant barcode printed across the top. So much had happened in the past few weeks – she’d lost her uniform, she’d been sick, she’d had her grandma’s seventieth birthday party – that she’d forgotten about the other Madison – Madison Robinson – until her mum handed her these tickets. But now she absolutely couldn’t wait to watch how Madison Robinson played to see if she could copy her game. Maybe then she could impress Janet the next time she played, and make up for her time away.
The week seemed to drag on forever; netball was all Maddy could think about. But finally it was Friday evening and they were on their way to the game. Maddy and Prani stared through the car windows, waiting for their first glimpse of the sports arena. Streams of people were pouring out of the entrance to the carpark and walking along the wide boulevard up to the giant arena. Soon, Maddy, her mum and Prani were among them, trooping up the steps into the stadium. The talking and excitement intensified once they got inside. There were people everywhere, trying to find the right door to enter for their seats, and rushing to buy merchandise to support their team before the game began.