by Felice Arena
‘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 giant TV 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 Simon, but then decided to say Specky.
‘And we have Specky—yes, you’ve heard right, ladies and gentlemen—Specky, who’ll be hoping to take a specky for Collingwood.’
Then there was an equally large cheer from all the Collingwood supporters.
‘Yeah, Speck! Go the Pies!’ shouted Danny and his family.
‘Okay Specky, you’re player one, and Luke, you’re player two. Take your marks…GO!’
Specky pushed his joystick forward and fumbled slightly with the other controls as he stared intensely at the small monitor in front of him. He concentrated on the tiny bike graphics as they twisted and turned around an animated racing track. He could tell from the frantic commentary given by the official that it was a close competition.
‘It’s neck and neck. Luke is slightly in front for Geelong. Look out for that wall, Specky! Whoa, that was close…’
‘Go, Specky, go!’ cheered Robbo and Danny.
The official was becoming more and more excited as the two boys approached the end of the game.
‘Specky’s hit the lead! No, it’s Luke! It’s going to be hard to separate this one. And here comes the finishing line, and the winner is…’
15 FAMILY, FRIENDS AND FANTASY
‘And the winner is Luke, for Geelong! Congratulations, Luke. You and your dad will be off on a father-and-son footy camp, which will be hosted by some of your favourite AFL champs and Auskick. Specky, bad luck, mate. Hopefully Collingwood will play better today than you did—only joking!’
There was a loud groan of disapproval from the Collingwood cheer squad at the official’s poor joke.
Specky was then escorted back to his seat.
‘Don’t worry, Speck. You did a great job,’ said Danny’s father.
‘You were robbed, man!’ added Danny and Robbo, patting Specky on the back as he sat down beside them.
Specky didn’t mind losing one bit, once he heard what the prize was. He was sort of glad and relieved in a way. The thought of trying to convince his dad to join him at a footy camp was farcical, and it made him think once again of his biological father. I bet he would have been happy to go with me, thought Specky.
‘Here they come! Wahooo!’ Danny pointed to the Collingwood players, who had just started jogging out onto the field. The Magpie theme song was blasting loudly through the speakers across the ground, while fans cheered and applauded their entrance. The Geelong supporters couldn’t help but boo and hiss at them.
The Collingwood cheer squad raised their giant banner, and struggled to hold it up in place. It read, ‘Maggies: Ready to Swoop all over Kitty Cats!’ There was another roar from the black-and-white barrackers as their beloved team charged the wall of paper and burst through it.
Specky looked up into the stands. He guessed the ground attendance had to be close to 80,000 people. It was like a finals game.
The Geelong team was next, bursting through their banner. It read, ‘Minced Pies for Everyone!’
‘Boooo! You’re the ones that are mincemeat, Geelong!’ hissed Danny’s Uncle Joe.
Specky smiled to himself. He had forgotten how footy spectators could get so vocal at a live match—especially Danny’s Uncle Joe.
‘Come on! Get on with it. Let’s crush this team!’ he shouted, sipping from his can of cola.
Finally, the siren to signal the beginning of the game was sounded. There was a raucous roar from every single person in the stadium—the atmosphere was electric. Specky screamed out alongside his friends. He had goosebumps running up and down his arms. There was no other place in the world he would rather have been that afternoon.
The first quarter ended up a runaway success for Collingwood. They had kicked five goals two to Geelong’s measly one goal one. Danny’s family couldn’t be more ecstatic. In the break they hurried to the toilets, stocked up on meat pies and drinks, and prepared themselves for the second quarter. It was during this period that Specky decided to tell Robbo and Danny about his planned meeting with CHRISkicks.
‘Are you crazy?’ asked Danny. ‘It could be anyone, a real freak or something.’
‘Yeah, I know, I know. That’s why I’m telling you both. He’s going to give me some information on adoption and stuff,’ said Specky.
Specky’s friends disapproved of his planned rendezvous with this so-called online friend, so they decided to tag along with him, just in case.
During the second quarter, Geelong made a minor comeback, bridging the score by only two goals the difference. Danny’s family, as well as most of the Collingwood supporters, blamed it on the umpires.
‘Get glasses, Ump!’
‘No way, Ump! How much did they pay you!’
‘You’re blind, Ump!’
‘How many freebies are ya gonna give ‘em?’
By half-time, there were only five points separating the two teams, and Specky, Danny and Robbo scampered off to meet the CHRISkicks kid.
‘So where is he?’ a
sked Robbo impatiently.
The three boys were all hanging out around the entrance of the Barassi Bar, as planned.
‘Well, maybe he thought I was some cyber freak. I told him to look out for my blue cap,’ answered Specky.
Suddenly, Specky got a tap on the shoulder. He turned to see a girl, about his age, smiling at him.
‘Are you Footyhead? Or should I say Specky—you were the one playing Superbikes, weren’t you?’ she asked.
‘Yes, I am. But who are you?’ asked a confused Specky.
‘I’m CHRISkicks!’
‘You’re CHRISkicks?’ Specky was blown away. He never thought that his online footy friend could be a girl.
‘Yes, I am. My name is Christina. Chris for short—CHRISkicks!’
Robbo and Danny sniggered to each other.
‘Oh, and these are my friends, Emily and Sophie.’ Christina introduced Specky to her friends. ‘They tagged along, just in case you ended up being someone creepy…’
Robbo and Danny chuckled again. Specky then introduced them to Christina and her friends.
‘Anyway, here’s that stuff I promised,’ said Christina, as she handed over some pamphlets to Specky. ‘There’s a number in there you can call if you ever decide to search for your biological parents.’
‘Um, thanks, thanks a lot.’ Specky was still surprised. He couldn’t get over the fact that all this time he had been chatting to a girl. And not just any girl, but a girl who was just as passionate about footy as he was. Christina could see that Specky felt more awkward about the whole situation than she did, so she tried to make friendly conversation.
‘So, are you guys enjoying the footy? You reckon Collingwood will win?’
‘You bet!’ quipped Danny. Robbo nudged Danny in the ribs. He knew that the question was directed to Specky.
‘Y-y-y-yeah, I am,’ stuttered Specky. ‘So, where are you sitting?’
‘I’m up in the corporate boxes,’ replied Christina.
Specky glanced over to his friends. They raised their eyebrows at him—they were impressed.
Christina continued. ‘Yeah, my dad’s a TV director—he directs a lot of the televised matches.’
Specky couldn’t contain himself. ‘Wow, that’s what you meant by him working here. That’s cool!’
No one was sure what to say next.
‘Um, well, it was nice meeting you, Specky. I’ll see you online sometime,’ said Christina.
‘Yeah, okay,’ mumbled Specky.
Christina and her friends turned and headed back towards their seats.
‘Oh, and thanks again for these!’ yelled Specky, holding up the pamphlets.
Christina glanced back over her shoulder and waved. Specky watched her disappear into the crowd, feeling totally gobsmacked.
16 SPECKY’S SEARCH
Robbo and Danny stirred Specky about his reaction to meeting Christina.
‘A girl, huh! You should have seen your face, Speck,’ teased Danny.
‘Yeah, it was so red, just like it is now. That’s because you like her, big time,’ added Robbo.
‘Get real! Watch the game, will ya,’ coughed Specky, wanting to change the subject, as quickly as he could.
All the way through the third quarter, Specky couldn’t stop thinking about Christina, even though the match was turning out to be a sensational battle. By the end of the quarter, the score was even: 10.10.70 for Geelong and 9.16.70 for Collingwood.
Robbo and Danny had become so wrapped up in the match that they had forgotten about teasing Specky. They argued over the game tactics that Collingwood should take to win. Specky felt it was a good time to leave them and return to the vicinity of the Barassi Bar. He somehow hoped he would bump into Christina.
As he waited and watched hordes of fans enter and leave the bar, Specky realised that he would be extremely lucky to see her again. Why would she want to come back down here, anyway? he thought.
‘Hey, Speck! What are you doing?’
It was Danny’s Uncle Joe, leaving the bar with more drinks and snacks in his hands.
‘Um, nothing. I was stretching my legs,’ answered Specky.
‘Well, help me carry these back, will you?’ Uncle Joe handed over some of the snacks to Specky, and they made their way back to their seats. Specky glanced over his shoulder—no Christina.
I’ll just have to wait until I get back home on the computer again, he thought.
‘Hey, Speck. The last quarter has started already. You missed seeing a fantastic goal by our sensational captain. Where did you go?’ asked Danny.
Specky sat down beside his friends.
‘He probably went looking for Christina again, ooooewww!’ added Robbo, with a smirk.
Specky blushed, then turned his attention to the game without responding. Geelong had just kicked a goal!
‘Hey, Speck, imagine if your father, you know, your biological father, is here somewhere in the crowd. Wouldn’t that be so weird?’ remarked Robbo. ‘Didn’t you think he could be a Cats supporter? ‘Cause in the baby photo you’re dressed up in all that Geelong gear.’
Specky stared blankly at his friends, then into the sea of supporters around him, especially the Cats barrackers. It hadn’t even crossed his mind.
‘Yeah, how bizarre would that be,’ agreed Danny.
Specky hadn’t heard Danny. He was now deep in thought and intensely checking out the Geelong supporters, wondering if his real dad was there. Would Specky recognise him?
He continued to daydream. Maybe his real dad was really happy that Geelong was slightly in front. Maybe he was also screaming at the umpires, like Danny’s Uncle Joe. It could be that bloke there, he sort of looks like me, he thought.
Specky was so distracted by his daydreaming that he hadn’t even noticed that Geelong had kicked another two quick goals. That was, until Danny and his family and the rest of the Collingwood fans began screaming their disappointment. They could all sense that Geelong was on a winning streak.
‘C’mon, Pies! Don’t do this to us! Don’t lose it in the final quarter!’ pleaded Danny’s uncles. Their voices were hoarse and croaky from shouting for most of the afternoon. Unfortunately, their pleas weren’t enough. Geelong was beginning to steamroll Collingwood.
When the Cats took a five-goal lead with an amazing snap shot from their rover, Specky couldn’t help jumping up in the air to applaud them. Danny and his family all glared at Specky, shocked by his actions. Uncle Joe almost dropped his drink.
Danny pulled Specky back down to his seat. ‘What are you doing? Don’t tell me you barrack for Geelong now?’ he asked, feeling slightly betrayed.
Specky wasn’t sure how to answer Danny. He didn’t know why he was suddenly happy for Geelong—that is, until Robbo’s next comment.
‘I know why he likes the Cats now. It’s ‘cause of his father, the dad he hasn’t met. He thinks if he was with him now, they’d both be barracking for Geelong. Isn’t that right, Speck?’
Specky nodded. ‘Yeah, that’s it. You’re right!’
‘I can’t believe you, Speck,’ said Danny, shaking his head. ‘You’re the only person I know who barracks for six teams.’
‘Well, I’m not sure if I want to barrack for them full-time, but even if I do, it isn’t a crime, is it?’ said Specky in his own defence.
Just then the final siren echoed throughout the stadium—the game was over. Geelong had defeated Collingwood by five goals.
Specky looked over to Danny’s family—they all looked absolutely miserable. Uncle Joe was mumbling to himself, still blaming the umpires for the upsetting loss. Uncle Santo, his children and his friends Ron and Adrian all shuffled out of the stadium as fast as they could. They couldn’t bear listening to the Geelong theme song blasting through the speakers—it was torture. As for Danny, his father and his younger brother Phillip, they looked as if someone had just died. And all the way home no one said a word.
‘Thanks for taking me, Mr Castelino,’ said Specky when they got t
o his house. ‘See ya, Danny. See ya, Robbo. See you on Monday.’
And with that, Specky’s extraordinary day at the MCG was over.
‘So, how was it?’ asked Specky’s mother, as he entered the house.
‘It was great,’ Specky said in passing, on his way to the fridge. He grabbed a couple of cheese slices and joined his mother, who was sitting at the kitchen table organising the bills.
‘Mum, I’ve been thinking. You know how you and Alice are good at maths? Well, do you think Alice got her talent for being good with figures from you?’
Specky’s mum put down her pencil and looked up at Specky curiously. ‘You mean inherited it from me?’
‘Yeah, that’s it!’ said Specky.
‘Well, I don’t think so. Alice is good at maths because she does her homework and I’m here to help her out, not because she was born with mathematical talent!’
‘But Alice has your eyes and the same straight reddish hair as you. So why wouldn’t she have the same mathematical brain like you? Why couldn’t she have been born with it?’
‘Simon, I know where you’re heading with this. Just because you’re adopted, it doesn’t mean that you should feel like you have missed out in any way. We’ve given you everything. We’ve given you a better life than what you would have had. Now please, honey, let me finish what I’m doing here.’
Specky’s mum dropped her head back in to her work. It was obvious to Specky that she didn’t want to look directly at him, as if she had said something that she shouldn’t have. Specky was left to wonder for rest of the day what she meant by ‘a better life than what you would have had.’
The following morning, Specky couldn’t wait to get online. He really hoped he would be able to chat to Christina again. But unfortunately, she didn’t log on for the entire day. Feeling a little down, Specky decided to read the pamphlets she had given him. He read about adopted adult children finding their long-lost biological parents. Some of the stories were very moving. Specky once again began fantasising about what it would be like to find his dad. What would he say to him? Hi. My name is Simon, but everyone calls me Specky. I’m your son! Specky chuckled to himself. But then he started feeling a little guilty. ‘What am I doing? I have a father already. This is dumb!’ he said under his breath. Thinking about all of this adoption stuff was really starting to get to him.