Chapter 4: Chapter 4

“Hmpf!” they said as they walked off. Their jerseys had numbers ten and fifteen on the back of them and had their names, Matthews and Woods.

“Dude, you were awesome!” said Kevin congratulating Shane over his save.

“Thanks!” said Kevin as they were heading into the dressing room.

“Great work team, now remember to continue playing like this, and we’ll win this one!” said Oliver rallying his team. “And, just don’t let your guard down!” said Oliver warning his side of a potential threat in the second half.

“Right!” they all exclaimed.

After stepping on the pitch for the second half, both teams were cheered on by their supporters. While Aberdeen High continued to be jeered and booed by the Cashville High supporters as they made their way on the pitch.

Marissa again got excited when seeing her High School team take center stage on the pitch as they were getting ready to start kick-off of the second period in the game.

“And with both teams having made their way on the pitch, it looks like Aberdeen High are starting the second-half with their kick-off. It should be a scintillating second-half for everyone to view!” said the commentator as the second-half was underway.

Shane continued to remain alert throughout. Although he didn’t have anything to do until the sixtieth minute as Aberdeen High was continuing to lead the match their way. And all he had to do was take a goal-kick for a mistimed and misplaced pass that Ian had made. He quickly took the goal-kick and sent it to his teammates upfront so they could go on the attack once more. The match was going favorably for Aberdeen High, who continued to charge forward and attack. However, no matter what, they just couldn’t score one more goal to make it two-nil.

“And it looks like Aberdeen High are playing fast-paced attacking football with extreme determination. However, they’re just not able to grab that one extra goal that they’re so craving!” said the commentator taking notice.

“I hope they can score one more goal. I really wanna see one more goal!” said Marissa hopeful.

“Let’s just hope they can win this one!” said Sam, who was content with the current scoreline.

After some time, on the seventy-fourth minute, Cashville High was able to steal the ball from Aberdeen High, and they charged forward in attack. Their teammates played one-touch football with each other and marched forward towards the Aberdeen High goal. Shawn Patterson launched a vicious cross in the path of Ian Wilson, who headed the ball with much force straight towards the top-right corner. Fortunately for Shane, instead of merely observing the ball go past him, he guessed right beforehand and had already plunged forward to try and save the header. He kept it with his fists, sending it straight above the crossbar. With that, the ball had gone for a right corner-kick to Cashville High.

“And Shane Foster saves it, ladies and gentlemen! He saves it! Cashville High will be hoping to make something out of this corner-kick that they have just received!” said the commentator who was impressed with Shane’s save.

“Shane makes another wonderful save!” said Marissa getting joyful after watching him make the save.

“That save was impressive!” said Sam acknowledging.

Just as the corner-kick was taken, it was headed out by Benjamin Cross, who rose high to clear the ball from danger. Subsequently, the ball went out of the box and towards the feet of Oliver Peabody, who began counter-attacking with Jerome by his side. They kept on charging forward, continuously passing to each other. Oliver, after getting ahead of the Cashville High defense and dribbling past them had managed to chip the ball over the incoming Cashville High goalkeeper from nearly outside the box. He managed to score a brilliant goal and make the score two-one in Aberdeen High’s favor!

“Aberdeen High after playing swift counter-attacking football have made the score two-nil ladies and gentlemen with their captain Oliver Peabody making a charge towards the Cashville High goal and teeing up with his teammate Benjamin Cross for a one-two before releasing a clever chip just as the keeper was coming forward. He has made the score two-nil! This lad has played phenomenally for his team tonight!” said the commentator remarking Oliver’s performance throughout the match.

The college scout looked at Oliver, having been impressed by his performance in the match throughout.

“Yay, we’re winning two-nil now! I’m so happy for Shane and the rest of the team! Exclaimed Marissa feeling overjoyed.

“It was a terrific goal!” acknowledged Sam.

“Way to go, Oliver!” said Shane feeling proud of his friend and captain Oliver Peabody for his performance throughout the match. Oliver had played his heart out throughout the game and deserved credit for it as he not only played a captain’s role in the entire game but also played fantastic individually as well. He had earned recognition for his performances throughout the match as he had played exceptionally brilliant for Aberdeen High.

Oliver, after having gotten done with the sea of teammates that had come forward to congratulate him, looked at Shane towards his goal and smiled. They were both hardworking individuals who always wanted their team to succeed.

Kevin was on the sidelines clapping for Oliver. Although he always wanted the betterment of his team, he at this particular point did feel like making his appearance on the pitch and getting some action as it would have felt nice to play for the team on the football field and not just on the training ground. Little did Shane know, was that he would have his wish granted in only a short while!

The match continued to go in Aberdeen High’s favor with them seeming to dominate possession and create chances for themselves and not let Cashville High steal the ball from them or attack forward towards their goal for that matter.

Then on the eighty-first minute, the coach of Aberdeen High approached Kevin, who was watching the game from the bench and said to him, “You’re coming on! Get up!”

Kevin couldn’t believe his luck! Like Shane, he, too, would finally be making an appearance for Aberdeen High. He quickly got ready and stood on the sidelines to come on just as someone was to come off.

The coach had substituted their captain Oliver Peabody since he didn’t want to outrun Oliver and tried to give him a well-deserved rest. While coming off, he received a standing ovation from the Aberdeen High supporters who showed their gratitude and respect for all the hard work that Oliver had put up on the field. He may have been jeered and whistled at the same time from Cashville High supporters, but it didn’t matter to him because he helped his team in reaching the quarter-finals of the competition. He, while coming off on the eighty-third minute, held his hands in the air and clapped, showing gratitude towards his supporters and for his display on the pitch.

“And it looks like Oliver Peabody is coming off for Aberdeen High folks! He’s receiving a standing ovation from his supporters who show their gratitude by giving him a send-off he deserves! On comes number fourteen, Kevin James, who makes his way for the replaced Oliver Peabody, and he’ll be happy to play the remainder of the game!” said the commentator announcing as Oliver was coming off.

Before Oliver came off, he took off his captain’s armband and put it himself on his friend and teammate Benjamin Cross’s arm. Then he took off.

“Oliver played well throughout! He deserves the recognition and gratitude from our supporters!” said Marissa, who felt he deserved his standing ovation.

“More importantly, Kevin’s coming on the pitch!” said Sam, who suddenly got excited seeing Kevin coming on.

Marissa looked at Sam and smiled sweetly. She didn’t want to say it, but she knew just as she was developing something for Shane in her, Sam was feeling the same for Kevin.

“Woohoo, Kevin! You’re on the pitch tonight!” said Shane, excited now that Kevin was playing alongside him.

Kevin came forward and low-fived Shane after coming on.

Kevin was playing as a defensive midfielder, so he was positioned near Shane all this while.

There wasn’t much activity happening after that with the tempo of the game seems to have fallen with Aberdeen High players passing to each other in their half and slowly running down the clock.

The Cashville High players also lost confidence within themselves to try and turn this one around. They stopped chasing the ball and stood where they were. Even their supporters started booing them after that!

“And it looks like the Cashville High players aren’t receiving much sympathy from their supporters' ladies and gentlemen!” said the commentator who was taking notice of what was going down on the pitch.

“Yay, we’re gonna win!” said Marissa giddily and confidently.

“I sure hope so!” said Sam, not getting too excited or confident for that matter.

The match continued the way it was with the referee soon blowing his whistle for full time as the full ninety-minutes and the three minutes of stoppage time had ended.

Aberdeen High had won the match against Cashville High two-nil and was through to the quarter-finals of the Inter-State High School Tournament!

“And Aberdeen High have done it, folks! They’ve beaten Cashville High two-nil to reach the quarter-finals of the Inter-State High School Tournament! Surely a lot of credit is due to their captain Oliver Peabody who gave it his all and put in an outstanding performance on the pitch today! Cashville High looked nowhere near as good as their previous form in this tournament. After witnessing their performance today, one has to wonder as to how in the world did they even make it this far in the tournament! Aberdeen High also has their cheerleaders to thank for their support as those girls have given it theirs all tonight! That’s all we have for you today, ladies and gentlemen, please join us next time as we will see Aberdeen High taking on Riverside High in next weeks quarter-finals next week! Till then, goodbye!” said the commentator drawing the match to a close and giving his summary of the match he had just watched.

“Yay! Woo hoo, we’re in the quarter-finals!” said Marissa thrilled after Aberdeen High secured qualification to the quarter-finals.

“And Kevin got to play!” said Sam, who was also thrilled.

The College scout from the University of Manchester was impressed by the performance of Oliver Peabody.

After the game, Shane and Kevin came to each other and hugged and congratulated each other. “You were great, dude!” said Kevin saluting.

“So were you! And by the way, congratulations for making your appearance on the pitch with me, it felt terrific to play alongside you in a proper match and not just on the training ground!” said Shane congratulating Kevin on coming onto the pitch.

“Awww shucks!” said Kevin as they made their way towards the dressing rooms.

On their way, they came across those two characters Matthews and Woods, who were nailing Shane and Kevin before the match. “Told you we would win!” said Kevin sticking his tongue out at them

“You must have bribed your way through every single match! That’s the only way you could have come this far!” added Shane.

“Well, you couldn’t bribe us! And that explains why you probably didn’t go through to the quarter-finals after tonight’s game!” concluded Shane as those two headed down the tunnel and into the dressing room of their team.

“Hmpf!” said those two after tasting the bitter taste of defeat at the hands of Aberdeen High.

Inside the dressing room, everyone was busy congratulating each other, especially to Oliver for his outstanding display on the pitch.

“Thanks, guys, it was nothing really!” said Oliver modestly.

Shane came forward and asked Oliver directly, “Hey, did those guys from Cashville High come and try to bribe you the way they tried to bribe us?”

Oliver truthfully replied, “Yeah, but I wouldn’t take it. It wasn’t the right thing to do!”

He went on courageously “They even tried to offer me a scholarship to the college of my choosing, but I declined! It wouldn’t be the honest thing to do! The honest thing to do would be to earn a legal scholarship or go to a college based on what I deserved going, not by cheating my High School out of the right to go to the next round based on my selfish whims!”

“Attaboy, Oliver! They tried to offer us one as well, but we declined them, and now we’ve taken them out of the tournament!” said Kevin high-fiving Oliver over his noble character.

“Yeah, good job!” said Shane congratulating Oliver.

Soon afterward, a reporter had come and congratulated Oliver over his team’s performance and presented him with the man of the match accolade and asked him how it felt. “It feels great, I mean we worked hard to get this far and we’re in the quarter-finals now. I just want my team to enjoy themselves because without them, we couldn’t have come this far!” said Oliver modestly.

The reporter then said, “Well, Oliver, there’s no I in a team, and you’re the perfect example of it!”

He let out a small laugh and said modestly, “Thank you!”

Afterward, when Shane and Kevin had packed their stuff and headed out for home, they met Marissa and Sam, who had been waiting for them outside.

“You guys, were great! And Shane, you kept a clean-sheet throughout the match!” said Marissa congratulating.

“Aberdeen High got an important victory today!” added Sam

“Thanks, guys, and thanks for your cheering couldn’t have done it without you!” acknowledged Shane courteously.

“Oh, it was nothing!” said Marissa modestly.

“No, it was, our team can’t do it without you girls cheering us on!” said Kevin, who added his bit into the mix.

“Well, all this thanking each other has made me hungry; how about we go for some fish and chips?” suggested Sam.

“Aye!” shouted the rest of them in anticipation and agreement.

They walked off to eat their dinner and enjoy the rest of their evening together.

The Obstacle

The next morning after Shane woke up, on the breakfast table, he told his mum about his team’s heroic performance and how he kept a clean sheet after making two fine saves for Aberdeen High.

“I’m proud of you, sweetie! But please keep your eyes open towards college admissions as well, and towards college scholarships, in particular, my odd jobs can’t cover your college expenses, you know!” reminded Mum.

“I know mum!” said Shane with a wail.

Come Monday morning, Shane and Kevin greeted each other on their way to school. Kevin’s hand was the previous day’s newspaper in which was given the full report by a journal of the match between Aberdeen High and Cashville High.

“Let me see!” said Shane, who just couldn’t resist snatching the newspaper from Kevin’s hand.

“Hey!” said Kevin, annoyed.

“Come on, I want to know my ratings and how well our team did and the review we got!” said Shane explaining his actions with a sheepish grin across his face.

He went on, “It says here that Aberdeen High performed well to destroy Cashville High’s hopes of qualification to the next round and by far the most exceptional performer of the evening was Oliver Peabody of Aberdeen High. While his teammates performed well alongside him, they were of no similar match to that of their captain and his stellar performance. After last night he is more likely to take with him the scholarship to University of Manchester said the college scout from Manchester University!”

“What!” screamed Shane, alarmed all of a sudden!

“That’s why I didn’t want to show it to you on the spot!” explained Kevin.

“But, but….how?” asked Shane alarmed, suddenly panicking.

“Easy now, calm down first of all!” said Kevin calming down Shane.

“Okay, now speak up already!” said Shane, puffing.

“Well, you see, you made two great saves in the entire match, and that was pretty much all your contribution in the match that would go by noticed whereas Oliver ran his heart out till he got substituted and I came on the field!” explained Kevin.

“So, does that mean I’m not good enough for that scholarship!” blurted Shane, getting alarmed.

“Well, you’re not an outfield player, outfield players have more chances of winning man of the match awards, you’re more dependent on the opposition team, to be honest; because if they attack and strike a shot, only then will you get a chance to make any save at all! Also, he was the man of the math for Saturday’s game. You could be the one for the game against Riverside High on the coming Saturday night, which is yet to come!” said Kevin explaining.

“So what are the categories for which that scholarship will be handed out?” asked Shane, who was keen for a reminder again.

“Man of the Match awards, how much your influence on the pitch affects your team and how well you interact with them and your communication and understanding with them, not to mention how well you behave with rival players and above all you must play clean and not break the rules in any way,” explained Shane.

“So that’s what it’ll take!” said Shane, suddenly feeling hapless to his situation. He sat down on a nearby bench and began to ponder over his thoughts. He had just given up the free scholarship to Manchester University due to his morals and because Kevin talked him out of it and also because of what Marissa might think. But in truth, now Shane didn’t know what to do! He was now on the brink of not receiving a scholarship, which he so severely wanted due to personal reasons. He thought about spending four years with Marissa and how well they could have gone, but actually, he began thinking more about his mum Gertrude who loved him so much. He wanted to remove the burden of household expenses from her by getting into a decent college, then getting a good high paying job with which he could provide for himself and his mum a comfortable lifestyle so that they would never fall short of money or choice of what to eat and wouldn’t have to eat broccoli stew anymore!

“Aww, man, I feel upset now! I needed that scholarship to be able to spend four years with Marissa, but now I need it more than ever to give mum a comfortable life so she wouldn’t have to do odd jobs anymore! I feel like a complete screwup!” said Shane feeling defeated all of a sudden. He put his hands on his head and began to ponder over the situation at hand.

“Dude, no sweat! Quit imagining what could have been and start focusing on what can be!” said Kevin, slowly trying to raise Shane’s spirits.

“Huh?” said Shane as he slowly looked up towards his friend.

“What I’m saying is, is that Cashville High was an easy team to beat! They probably even made their way to the round of sixteen by bribing their opposition teams! They couldn’t bribe us, which is why we managed to beat them easily. Riverside High will probably be super tough to beat, which is why they’re in the quarter-finals. In that game, you will be tested, and you will be expected to put up your best performance, which means that you still have a chance of getting that scholarship! Just believe in yourself!” motivated Kevin trying to snap Shane out of his dilemma.

“You’re right!” said Shane getting up all of a sudden from the bench with an immediate feeling of motivation.

“Oliver’s my friend, and I should be happy for him, but I need that scholarship to spend the next four years of my life with Marissa and to provide a comfortable old age for mum! Whatever happens, just like Oliver, I too will give it my all!”

“Attaboy, I’m proud of you! Now let’s get to class. We don’t wanna be late!” said Kevin feeling proud of Shane and, at the same time, hurrying them to class.

As soon as they reached class, they ran into their teammates from the football team. They were all discussing the match from the previous Saturday night.

“And did you see the way I assisted!” said Oliver reminiscing of Saturday night.

“Hey, if it isn’t Shane and Kevin!” said Oliver getting up from his seat to shake hands with them.

“Great to see you too, Oliver!” said Shane greeting as he and Kevin shook hands with Oliver.

“We were just talking about Saturday night, and how well it had gone for our entire team!” explained Oliver.

“We all put in an awesome performance on Saturday night!” said Kevin adding his bit.

Just then, Marissa and Sam walked in through the door. Shane looked at Marissa and suddenly felt his heart pounding with intense emotions. To him, Marissa looked lovely as always. He saw her loose blonde hair and thought, “how wonderful it must be to be around such long silky blonde locks!”

“Hey, guys! Good Morning,” said Marissa greeting everyone.

“Yeah, Good Morning,” added Sam.

“Good Morning Marissa and Sam!” said everyone together, greeting them.

“So, is the football team ready for their match against Riverside High on Saturday?” asked Marissa, taking an interest.

“We’ll have to be on our level best if we’re to beat them, and we need your pals Shane and Kevin here to give it their best on the training ground and the football field on Saturday!” answered Oliver confidently.

“Well, we’ll be there to cheer you on!” replied Marissa supportively.

“Thanks! We’ll need all the cheer we can get!” said Oliver before they all seated themselves onto their seats, and their teacher Mr. Crawford came to take their class.

After classes during the after school training sessions, Shane and Kevin were giving it their absolute all in training. During push-ups and leg exercises and every other form of training possible, those two made it an effort to give their very best and to settle for nothing, but they're very best.

Marissa and Sam, who were overlooking them in the distance, saw their hard work and commitment. Marissa said, acknowledging, “Wow, it looks like the boys are working hard for their match on Saturday night! I just hope they get rewarded with a win on Saturday evening, it would mean so much to Shane!”

“It would also mean a lot to Kevin if they go through and even more if he gets some minutes on the pitch!” said Sam, who observed the evident hard work he was putting for his team.

Just then, Oliver came to Shane and Kevin and said, “Hey, you two, practice scoring from corner-kicks as well! Who knows, maybe for any given reason Shane even you may need to come forward to try and score from a corner!”

“But why me?” questioned Shane.

“Well, Riverside High is known to concede late on as they’ve been very unlucky in the tournament by having conceded late on. They’re known to score early on, but they have managed to concede late on, on more than one occasion! And if for any reason we are trailing, then you’ll have to come forward as well to try and score from the corner since we’ll need an equalizer and you will have to do your bit as well!” explained Oliver who was firm with his decision with Shane practicing scoring from corner kicks.

“Okay, Oliver!” said Shane in a low voice.

After Oliver had walked away, Kevin asked, “Dude! What was that all about? You feeling nervous going for a corner kick?”

“Sigh, never mind! Let’s just continue training!” sighed Shane resuming training. But the truth was, Shane never really felt comfortable going for corner kicks, he always felt uneasy being around so many bodies of players, even while having to defend from one! And always felt nervous at the prospect of having to go and score a goal. He much instead preferred to save a target rather than score one.

Shane put everything he had in him and got ready to try and score from a corner. But he just couldn’t find his best form for his team during training.

“Shane that was sloppy!” scolded Oliver as he felt Shane wasn’t putting in enough effort while trying to score from the corner.

“I’m trying, Oliver, I am!” whined Shane.

“Dude! Put some muscle into it, and please try to leap forward at least and head the ball wherever it’s going!” said Kevin trying to encourage Shane, who wasn’t even leaning forward to try and make some sort of contact with the ball. Kevin, on the other hand, was performing far better than Shane in this area.

“Just remember, our opponents Riverside High are not easy, and they will give us a tough challenge if we’re to try and get to the semi-finals of the tournament! And remember, they Have conceded late on and they’re not strong with man-marking opposition players in their box! So you will have a decent chance of scoring if told to come forward!” said Oliver raising his voice to try and instill in Shane a belief that he can and will overcome his weakness of not being able to score from a corner-kick. He being captain, had to build on Shane’s confidence and ensure that Shane remains motivated throughout.

“You guys are right! I’ll try harder!” admitted Shane as he got up to try and start training again.

“Poor Shane, being told off like that!” remarked Sam looking on.

“It’s okay; he’ll get over it! He will improve over time!” said Marissa having faith in Shane’s abilities and capabilities.

“Girl, you do think he’s gonna improve over time!” remarked Sam noticing Marissa’s behavior.

“I don’t think he’s going to improve… I know he’s going to improve! And just in time for Saturday night against Riverside High!” corrected Marissa firmly displaying the utmost of confidence in Shane.

“I sure hope so!” said Sam.

After football training was finished and cheerleading practice was over with, Shane, Kevin, Marissa, and Sam headed for home.

“You sure you’re okay, Shane?’ asked Marissa considerately.

“Yeah, I’m fine!” said Shane, who didn’t want Marissa to feel for him. He didn’t want her to concern over him.

“Well, practice makes perfect, I’m sure if we all practice what we’re weak at, we’ll all get perfect at it!” said Kevin cheering up the mood around them.

“Yeah, Kevin’s right! You don’t perfect something in just one day. You continue practicing till you get it right!” said Sam, siding with Kevin.

“Thanks, guys…let’s start walking now!” said Shane, who wanted to change the subject quickly. The truth was, Shane, didn’t like anyone worrying about him much as it leads to a fall in his self-confidence and self-esteem. It felt nice he thought for people who were looking out for him or were at least concerned about him. But he didn’t want anyone to ever pity him in any situation or circumstance. Whether it was his financial situation, playing time on the field situation, or any other obstacle he ever incurred.

The four of them walked off into the sunset heading towards their homes and spending time with each other on the way, which they so often enjoyed doing.

As Shane and Kevin waved goodbye to Marissa and Sam, immediately after turning around, Kevin confronted Shane and said, “Dude! Marissa is looking out for you! She’s concerned for you. She worries about whether you’re happy or depressed, I think she’s starting to fall for you!”

“Right! The same way you and Sam are starting to fall for each other!” remarked Shane.

“That’s a completely different story!” said Kevin shaking his head and blushing.

“But what I mean to say is, is that you have more of a chance now with her than ever before! Now just go and ask her out on a date and make her your girlfriend! And please whatever you do, please just try and score from a corner kick, who knows, maybe Marissa will be smitten all over you, and she’ll finally go out with you!” he continued

“You’re right! I will improve on my scoring ability from a corner! If we win on Saturday, I’m asking her out!” said Shane with great determination and confidence.

“Attaboy! Now let’s quickly go home. I’m getting hungry!” said Kevin putting his arm on Shane’s shoulder as they walked to their homes in the sunset.

The following week continued to be the same with Shane and Kevin continuing their football practice while Marissa and Sam were improving on their cheerleading, and the four of them continue to spend time with each other as much as possible. For Shane, the dream was still a possibility he believed. He just had to keep on wowing everyone to get that scholarship and make going to Manchester University an opportunity.

Come Saturday night, Shane and Kevin made their way early to the stadium to get ready to face Riverside High.

“Are you feeling nervous?” asked Kevin concerned

“A little, but I’m more focused on performing well tonight!” said Shane determined.

“Great, let’s do our best, then!” said Kevin supportively.

They entered their dressing rooms and met up with their teammates.

“Hey, you boys ready for our clash against Riverside High?... It’s going to be a tough one if we’re to make it to the semi-finals after this one!” said Oliver greeting them.

“Hey, yeah, no doubt it’s going to be difficult! Let’s just give our best out there tonight!” said Shane focused.

After a short while, both teams made their way through the tunnel and stepped on the pitch to face each other.

“Just go out there and give it your best!” said Kevin patting Shane on the back as Shane made his way to the pitch.

After stepping on the pitch, both sides were met with a warm response from their fans who cheered as much as they could for their respective High School sides. The supporters of either side were not mocking or booing the other team’s players in contrast to the previous game.

“And we are live here folks in the quarter-finals stage of this season’s Inter-State High School Tournament. It looks like Aberdeen High are looking on to face Riverside High in what should be a thrilling encounter for everyone to witness!” said the commentator up in the stands as both teams had made their way on the pitch and were looking to face each other.

“Yay, this is so exciting!” said Marissa giddily.

“It’s not going to be easy, this one. I just hope Aberdeen High progress to the next round!” said Sam feeling uneasy.