Greg walked into the living room, turned on the TV, and surfed through the channels. After five minutes, he clicked the TV off again. He climbed halfway up the stairs toward his bedroom, then stopped and came back down. He paused uncertainly and finally came back into the kitchen.
“What are you staring at?” he muttered. “Shouldn’t you be out playing with your little friends?” He stormed past Stookie to the garage. Moments later, Stookie heard him pedal away on his bike.
I should be out playing with my friends, Stookie realized. But for some reason, my friends don’t want to play with me. At least, one of them doesn’t.
Chapter 7
Stookie tossed and turned that night. The next day at practice, he was cranky from lack of sleep. Seeing Lou made him even crankier. Usually, he and Lou joked around before practice began. Today, the two boys stood as far apart as they could.
Coach Bradley clapped his hands to gather the team together. “I’ve got a new offensive play to teach you today.” He asked Roy and Jerry—a substitute and a regular striker—to help demonstrate. “It’s a pretty simple move, really—as long as the two players involved are in good communication. It’s called a fake crossover. We’ll use it when we have a direct free kick near the opponent’s goal.”
He placed a soccer ball on the ground. “Both players line up as though they’re going to take the kick. One stands here,”—he pulled Jerry five feet to one side of the ball—“the other over here.”
He walked Roy farther away from the ball, on the opposite side from Jerry. The boys and the ball now formed a lopsided triangle, with the ball as the point nearest the goal.
“Now here’s the tricky part,” the coach said. “Jerry and Roy both start toward the ball.” He set both boys in slow motion. “Jerry pulls his foot back as if he’s going to take the kick—but instead of connecting with the ball, he steps over it.” Jerry stepped over the ball.
“A split second later, Roy takes the kick.” Roy nudged the ball with his foot.
“If all goes well,” the coach said, “the defense has been so busy watching Jerry that they’ve ignored Roy. So Roy’s kick takes them completely by surprise. Lots of times, the ball winds up in the goal. But just in case it doesn’t,”—he put his hand on Jerry’s head—“Jerry is in prime position to follow the kick and gain control if necessary. And Roy shadows him.” The two boys walked a few steps. “Okay, any questions?”
Bundy Neel raised his hand. “How do the two players know which one is actually going to take the kick? Won’t they collide if they don’t know?”
“Yeah,” Jason Shearer added. “Some of our players can’t afford any more knocks on the head!”
The coach raised an eyebrow at Jason. “Talking about yourself, Jason?” The other players laughed. “Let’s come up with a signal. The person who will take the kick will raise his or her arm in the air. Okay?”
Everyone nodded.
“Let’s pair off and give it a try, then. To start, let’s have strikers pair up with strikers, and then halfbacks with halfbacks. Then we’ll mix it up. Rest of team, just watch for now, then we’ll have you get in position.”
Jerry and Roy, already paired up, stayed together. That left Lou and Stookie staring at each other.
“Well, let’s get on with it,” Lou finally growled. “I suppose you’ll want to take the kick. After all, making a goal is what you Norrises live for, right?” He kicked the ball to Stookie, then turned away.
Chapter 8
Stookie and Lou had never played together so poorly. They kicked each other’s shins, tumbled over each other’s feet, and even collided so hard they fell flat on their backs. When the coach finally signaled for them to switch partners, Stookie was bruised and angry. His play improved with his halfback partner, Dewey, but his mood did not. He couldn’t wait for practice to end.
But when it did, Coach Bradley asked Stookie and Lou to stay for a moment.
“Okay,” he said, hands on his hips. “What’s going on between you two?”
Stookie looked sullenly at Lou, who stared at the ground. Since Lou didn’t answer, Stookie did.
“Lou’s jealous of me.”
Lou’s head shot up. There was fire in his eyes. “Jealous of you?” he cried. “What for?”
“Because I’ve come closer to scoring a hat trick than you have!” Stookie retorted. “And everyone knows that’s what every striker should do!”
“Who told you that? Your big brother?” Lou rolled his eyes. “Just because he got his name and picture in the paper doesn’t make him an expert on soccer. Oh, he’s a good player and all, but I heard he’s been kind of a jerk since that hat trick. In fact, I heard he might get kicked off the team for missing practices. And even his best friend can’t stand to be around him anymore, because all he talks about is his hat trick, hat trick, hat trick.” Lou shook his head. “And you want to be just like him? Unbelievable.”
Stookie was stunned. He turned to the coach.
“But, getting three goals in one game means … means …”
“Means you could be hogging the ball and not letting anyone else take shots on the goal,” the coach quietly finished for him. “Which is just what you did in the game against the Black Hawks—and why you spent the second half on the bench instead of on the field.”
He sighed. “Stookie, if there’s one thing I want all my players to learn, it’s teamwork. There’s no room for superstars on the Soccer ’Cats. That’s why none of my plays focuses on one particular player. Instead, each play gives more than one ’Cat a chance of helping the team to win. Take the fake crossover, for instance.”
Stookie hung his head. The coach hadn’t yelled at him, but he might as well have. Stookie felt awful.
“Lou,” he said. “I’m sorry for the way I’ve been acting. I didn’t realize I was being such an idiot. What can I do to make it up to you?”
Lou chuckled. “Don’t sweat it.” Then he looked thoughtful. “Well…maybe there is something you can do.”
“What? What?” Stookie asked eagerly.
“Stick around and work on the fake crossover with me some more. We really stank at it today!”
Chapter 9
Stookie and Lou walked home together forty-five minutes later. Stookie was sweaty and tired, but happier than he’d been all week.
In fact, he was feeling so good, he decided to try to talk some sense into Greg. He’d hate to see his brother lose his best friend the way he’d almost lost Lou.
He needn’t have worried. When he walked into the house, he found Greg and Roger sitting together at the kitchen table.
“Okay,” Greg was saying, the grin on his face a mile wide. “I’lladmit I’ve been a jerk for the past few days, if you’ll admit that my scoring a hat trick was the best soccer playing you’ve ever seen in your life.”
Roger threw up his hands in defeat. “Fine, fine. I bow down before your greatness.” He flopped his arms down onto the table. “Now get dressed for practice, you big jerk. You’re lucky you’re still on the team, you know.”
Greg turned serious. “I know. If I hadn’t called the coach to apologize as you suggested, I bet I’d have been kicked off for sure. Thanks for talking sense into me, buddy.”
Just like Lou did for me, Stookie thought. He headed upstairs, thinking about how lucky he and his brother were to have such good friends.
Stookie bounded out of bed the next day, eagerly looking forward to the game against the Tadpoles. He hoped he and Lou would have a chance to run the fake crossover play.
The game started promptly at ten o’clock. Stookie took his position at center field. When the ref’s whistle blew, he kicked the ball to Lou. Lou tore up the grass, dribbling with all his might toward the Tadpoles’ goal. Stookie and Jerry kept pace with him.
Lou came face to face with a tackier and shunted the ball back to Stookie. Stookie started down the field but met a Tadpole halfback. A quick glance to the right told him Jerry was open. He aimed a pass in that d
irection. But before he could get the kick off, a second Tadpole defender stole the ball from him.
Rats! Stookie thought, spinning around to give chase. Where did that guy come from?
Fortunately, the Tadpole was better at stealing than he was at dribbling. Bundy Neel got the ball away from him easily. With an expert pass, he sent it back to Stookie. Stookie controlled it, then took off like a shot.
He crossed over into Tadpole territory, dodging a halfback, then a fullback. All of a sudden, the goal was right in front of him. Heart pounding, he drew his foot back to take a shot on goal.
Wham!
The same Tadpole who had stolen the ball hit him from behind. Stookie landed hard.
Tweet!
The ref called for a direct kick. Stookie stood up and shook himself off. As the Tadpole defense lined up in a solid wall before the goal, Stookie caught Lou’s eye. Now was their chance to try the fake crossover!
But which player would take the kick, Stookie or Lou?
Chapter 10
After a moment’s hesitation, Lou raised his hand, signaling that he’d take the kick. The ref placed the ball on the ground where the foul had taken place. Stookie took position a few feet to one side of it. Lou moved into his place.
Stookie charged forward. Lou did the same. Thanks to the extra practice they’d put in the day before, they moved like a well-oiled machine. Stookie stepped over the ball. He shielded Lou for just a split second. But that was all Lou needed to trick the defense.
Whap! Lou’s foot connected solidly with the ball and sent it soaring past the wall of fullbacks. The goalie made a frantic dive, but he was too late. Goal!
Lou and Stookie leapt into the air, whooping and slapping palms. Not five minutes into the game and already they were on the scoreboard!
“Great shot, Lou!” Stookie yelled.
“It’s your turn next, buddy,” Lou responded.
But the score stayed at 1-0 for a while. Then, ten minutes before the end of the first half, the Tadpoles scored on a corner kick.
“The game’s not over yet!” ’Cats captain Bundy Neel cried, as they took their positions.
“You’ve got that right!” Stookie agreed loudly. At the ref’s whistle, he set the ball in motion. Passes flew across the field from Lou to Stookie to Jerry and back again. Slowly but steadily, the front line powered their way past the halfbacks into Tadpole territory.
But the Tadpoles weren’t about to let them go unchallenged. When Stookie received the ball from Jerry, two fullbacks double-teamed him. The other fullback and a halfback were covering Jerry and Lou. Stookie didn’t have anyone to pass to!
He heard Dewey London call to him from behind. With a desperate stab of his foot, he pulled the ball away from the Tadpoles. There wasn’t time or room to turn around to pass to Dewey. So instead, Stookie kicked with the heel of his foot and sent the ball rocketing blindly backward!
The fullbacks were caught completely by surprise—and out of position. Dewey didn’t even have to move. He just kicked the ball into the goal!
“Yes!” Dewey screamed. “I made a goal! I made a goal!” The usually quiet halfback was jumping for joy.
The half ended with the score 2-1. The team crowded around the coach, sucking orange slices and downing cups of water.
“I like what I see out there,” Coach Bradley praised. “Good teamwork and good thinking on your feet. Fancy footwork out there, mister,” he added, grinning at Stookie. “That move will give you a check mark in the assist column.”
Stookie grinned back, then pretended to turn thoughtful. “Hmm. Assists are almost as good as goals, aren’t they?” He tapped a finger against his chin. “Let’s see, if I set a team record for assists and score a hat trick, why, that should be enough to earn me a full color picture on the front page!”
“You even think about it,” Lou growled menacingly, “and the next time we try a fake crossover you’ll find yourself flat on your back.”
Stookie laughed and threw an arm around Lou. “There are worse things in life than having a friend who keeps a person in line.”
Lou gave Stookie a shove and the two boys fell over in a heap, laughing.
SOCCER ’CATS
#4 Hat Trick
Matt Christopher
Illustrated by Daniel Vasconcellos
When Stookie Norris’s older brother, Greg, gets his picture in the paper for scoring three goals in one game, Stookie is dazzled. Greg insists strikers should try to score a hat trick every game, though Stookie’s coach has never told him that. Still, when the Soccer ’Cats have their next game, Stookie does his best to score three goals—even though it means running wild all over the field chasing the ball. But is that really the best way for him to play his position?
Here is the fourth paperback entry in the Mall Christopher Soccer ’Cats series, an exciting line of first chapter books perfect for sports tans ready to start reading on their own.
Hat Trick Page 2