by Ellyse Perry
Ellyse wanted to suggest they go out, or play ping-pong again, or go to the movies, but there was absolutely not a spare hour in her week. It helped her feel a little less guilty when Charlie said she’d asked Jazz to go shopping and she’d said no.
‘But she wouldn’t say why not,’ Charlie added. ‘Said she didn’t feel like it. You know Jazz – for her to say she doesn’t feel like shopping …’
On Friday night, Charlie texted Ellyse: Mum’s making me go to bed at 8 pm!!!
Ellyse laughed. She texted back: Beat u – in bed already. C u at the bus.
It was still dark when they gathered around on the footpath next to the team bus at 5.45 am. Excited chatter filled the air as the grown-ups loaded bags in the luggage compartments. Rocky’s and Charlie’s parents were driving down behind the bus. Dad had agreed to come along as one of the parent helpers. ‘Wouldn’t miss this for anything,’ he told Ellyse.
Ellyse was disappointed that Mum wasn’t coming, but being a doctor meant she couldn’t always take time off when she wanted. Charlie and Ellyse sat together and talked as the bus clattered along the freeway south of Sydney. Out in the country, the green paddocks stretched forever, and cows wandered back from milking. The sun rose in a pink haze, but Charlie and Ellyse were both asleep by then, the hum of the motor lulling them.
Finally, they arrived at the grounds, which were filled with kids and their parents. There were six regional teams in two age categories, and the Under 14s were playing first. In the draw, they had two games in a row against two country teams, and the play was fast on the harder field. The first game against the Northern Ravens was tough, with the Mets not totally feeling like a team yet. The game ended in a 2–2 draw, and the Mets sighed with relief.
In the next game, against the South Coast Suns, the Mets started to gel, calling out to each other, passing better and feeling more confident. It showed in the result: a 6–2 win. Ellyse and Charlie high-fived each other.
‘We did it,’ Charlie said.
After the Under 17s played, they had lunch and time to relax, then the finals were announced. Northern Sydney Mets were to play the Hunter Hornets. Mets had made the final by one touchdown.
‘Omigod,’ Charlie said. ‘I think I’m going to be sick.’
‘You know what Ms Beattie would say,’ Ellyse said. ‘We’re not playing the FA Cup final here!’
‘It feels like it, though,’ said Charlie.
‘And to think you weren’t going to even try out.’ Ellyse hugged her. ‘Told you it’d be great. Let’s get out there and blast them out of the park.’
The referee called for the teams to get ready and they ran onto the field. Charlie and Ellyse were in the starting six, but the coach was soon rotating players off the bench. The Hornets scored first, then Rocky made an amazing run, dodging and weaving around four players to score a touchdown. 1–1. Ellyse and Charlie went back on, and after eight passes back and forth, Charlie hooked around the end Hornets player and scored.
The second half was even tighter. The Hornets weren’t giving in. Both sides scored twice more, then the Hornets evened it up. 4–4. Two minutes from full-time, Ellyse went to pass to Rocky on her left, dummied instead, saw a gap open up and ran through to score the winning point. She was nearly crushed under her teammates’ hugs when the full-time whistle blew.
‘Pez! Pez! Pez!’ her team chanted, making her blush.
I guess Pez is better than Shrimp! she thought, grinning.
At the end of the day, there was a barbecue and the handing out of medals and cups.
Charlie gazed at her shiny medal on its blue ribbon. ‘Wow, this is almost as good as being in Cats.’
‘Almost?’ Ellyse said, raising an eyebrow. ‘No, it’s better!’
Charlie sighed. ‘I do love acting, though. Let’s call it even.’
They all piled back into the bus for the trip home.
‘I’m zonked,’ Charlie said, but Ellyse still felt the thrills of the day zinging through her.
As they drove back over the hills towards Sydney, she remembered all the best bits again – Charlie’s magic passes, Rocky’s run, her winning touchdown, and the medal still hanging around her neck. As tiredness crept over her, there was a loud bang that made her jump, and the bus veered to the side of the road.
‘Don’t worry, kids,’ the driver called. ‘Just a flat tyre. We’ll have it fixed in a jiffy.’
All of the grown-ups climbed out, leaving the kids to sleep or play video games, but Ellyse wanted to get out of the stuffy bus. She stepped down into an eerie light – the moon had just risen and it floated, large and white, near the horizon.
‘Don’t go too far,’ Dad said.
‘I won’t.’ She walked along the road, which was lined with gum trees that melted into darkness. When she came to a side track, she stopped and looked up at the moon. Suddenly, the day’s events fell away and all she could think about was Jazz. What are we going to do? Are we going to lose her as a friend? She wrapped her arms around herself as sadness swept over her. It seemed like such a long time since she’d seen Jazz really laugh. Sometimes she used to laugh so hard she’d snort and then they’d all get the giggles. Where did that Jazz go?
As she looked up at the moon lifting into the sky, a dark shape came towards her, wings spread wide, the tops of them shining in the moonlight. She caught a glimpse of the owl’s huge feathers and eyes, then whoosh! The owl swooped low, almost touching the top of Ellyse’s head, the wind from its wings washing over her.
That was so amazing! It’s like its eyes were looking straight into me. And right then, she knew what to do about Jazz. She’s my best friend – and Charlie’s too. We’re going to grab her and hug her and talk to her and make sure she knows we’re always there for her, no matter what. We’re going to show her we’re her bestest friends ever.
When Ellyse got back onto the bus, she woke Charlie and told her the plan.
‘You’re absolutely right,’ Charlie said. ‘We should do it first thing tomorrow.’
So they did. Ellyse’s mum took them to Jazz’s house, and when Jazz opened the door, they pulled her into a massive group hug.
‘Get your jacket,’ Ellyse said. ‘Mum’s taking us for hot chocolate and marshmallows.’
In the cafe, Mum sat at another table with the paper while the three girls talked and talked, and Jazz cried.
‘It’s been so awful at home,’ she said. ‘I just felt like I couldn’t explain any of it, and that stupid retreat made it worse. Mum and Dad shouted and Dad left early. Now they definitely are getting a divorce.’ She sniffed. ‘Carla and Sheridan think I’m being a wuss.’
‘You can tell us anything,’ Charlie said. ‘That’s what we’re here for.’
Jazz ducked her head. ‘You were right, Ellyse,’ she mumbled. ‘I was shoplifting. I didn’t even care if I got caught. I wanted to teach Mum and Dad a lesson, but nothing helped.’
‘I’m sorry I said it, all the same,’ Ellyse said.
‘It’s okay,’ Jazz said. ‘The funny thing is, now the divorce is official, I feel better. Like they’ve given up, so I can too. Give up worrying, I mean.’
‘But surely you’re not giving up shopping,’ Charlie said with a grin.
‘Totally not!’ Jazz said. ‘Hey, Mod Girl have got some new make-up. I saw it the other day. Let’s go and try it out.’ She laughed and poked Ellyse in the arm. ‘And we’re going to try it out on you.’
Ellyse groaned. ‘Okay.’ She knew Jazz was happily planning to put purple eye-shadow and bright red lipstick on her, but it was totally worth it to hear Jazz laugh again. Yep, friends forever!
FULL NAME: Ellyse Alexandra Perry
NICKNAME: Pez
BORN: 3 November 1990 in Wahroonga, NSW
HEIGHT: 176 cm
CRICKET POSITION: All-rounder; right-hand bat, right-arm medium-fast bowler
CRICKET TEAMS: Southern Stars, NSW Breakers, Sydney Sixers, Loughborough Lightning
SOCCER POSITION:
Defender
SOCCER TEAM: Sydney FC
1. Do you have a pre-match routine?
I love to listen to music when I’m travelling to a match so I can get into focus for the warm-up.
2. What do you do to relax?
Cooking, reading and going for a walk outside are my favourite things to do to wind down and relax.
3. Do you read books in your spare time?
I try to read whenever I can. I always take a book with me on the plane and usually end up powering through it.
4. What’s your favourite sport as a spectator?
The Tour de France! I’m glued to the TV screen every year when it comes on.
5. What has been your most exciting professional sporting moment?
Representing Australia for the first time would have to be the most exciting moment. There’s nothing quite like the feeling of representing your country for the first time.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted by any person or entity, including internet search engines or retailers, in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including printing, photocopying (except under the statutory exceptions provisions of the Australian Copyright Act 1968), recording, scanning or by any information storage and retrieval system without the prior written permission of Penguin Random House Australia. Any unauthorised distribution or use of this text may be a direct infringement of the author’s and publisher’s rights and those responsible may be liable in law accordingly.
Version 1.0
Winning Touch
ePub ISBN – 9780143781271
First published by Random House Australia in 2017
Copyright © Penguin Random House Australia, 2017
The moral right of the author and the illustrator has been asserted.
A Random House book
Published by Penguin Random House Australia Pty Ltd
Level 3, 100 Pacific Highway, North Sydney NSW 2060
www.penguin.com.au
Addresses for the Penguin Random House group of companies can be found at global.penguinrandomhouse.com/offices.
National Library of Australia
Cataloguing-in-Publication entry
Creator: Clark, Sherryl, author
Title: Winning touch/Sherryl Clark, Ellyse Perry
ISBN: 978 0 14378 127 1 (ePub)
Series: Ellyse Perry; 3
Target audience: For primary school age
Subjects: Girls – Juvenile fiction
Touch football – Juvenile fiction
Soccer stories
Students – Juvenile fiction
Other creators/contributors: Perry, Ellyse, author
Dewey number: A823.3
Cover photograph of Ellyse Perry by Steven Chee/DLM Australia
Cover and internal illustration by Jeremy Lord
Cover design by Hannah Janzen
Ebook by Firstsource