postcard from Moscow last year and I recognise some of the letters.’
‘Wow,’ said Eoin. ‘There must have been a Russian kid living here long ago. I wonder what happened to him.’
The boys shuffled around for a while, but there was very little to see inside the mansion and there was no sign of the mysterious ghost making a reappearance. Eoin copied the letters down on the back of the photo and then realised he couldn’t now leave it behind.
‘Sure it would just rot here anyway,’ he said to himself as they climbed back out into the sunlight and began the slow jog home.
C HAPTER 16
T he next two weeks flew by as the boys worked on their skills ahead of their first rugby tour. Barney opened the gates for them early in the morning and they were often at the Gaels ground when the sun started to set.
Eoin even devised a cruel game to sharpen his goal-kicking technique. Using string and tent pegs he measured out and marked out four lines at
20, 25, 30 and 35 metres from the goal-line. He then borrowed Barney’s whitewash to paint five blobs at equal distances along each line right across the field, from touchline to touchline.
When he was finished he had twenty spots and a daunting target – kick the ball over the bar from each of the spots in the nearest line, then the second line and so on. But whenever he missed one, he had to start again. It was a difficult exercise, especially from out wide, andit sometimes took over a hundred kicks before he converted twenty in a row.
As a result, almost every night Eoin went straight to bed, completely drained by his efforts. He and Dylan were serious about preparing for Twickenham and given Schillaci’s chip shop a miss as they ate sensibly and got plenty of sleep.
While Dylan had been cranky in the run-up to the first Munster academy session, this time he was more comfortable after making friends with his team-mates. Munster Rugby was all about togetherness and passion for your team, and he was really looking forward to joining up with them again.
Eoin was always nervous before big games, and this tour was no different – worse, probably, as Leinster could have five big games, although he didn’t expect that anyone would be asked to play in them all. He, too, felt reassured that Charlie would be there, Killian too, and that Dylan would be around the place.
Even though he hadn’t worn any of the Leinster kit, his mum insisted on washing and ironing it all carefully in the week before he left. She completed the checklist of match and training gear and equipment in Eoin’s log book and packed it all carefully in his huge kitbag. She also organised the ordinary clothes he would need fora week away and laid them all in a suitcase open on the spare bed in his room.
‘Now, Eoin, I need you to decide what else you want to bring with you. I suppose you’ll want the rugby book Dixie bought you last week?’
Eoin nodded and promised his mum that he would sort it out later. It was only 8pm and the sun was still streaming in his bedroom window but he was so tired that he had to sleep.
He woke very early next day, and decided to go for a run. He headed out in the direction of his grandad’s house, but when he realised after ten minutes that he still hadn’t seen a single person or car he checked the time. To his surprise he found that it was just before six o’clock and far too early to call in to see Dixie.
He continued on out past his grandfather’s home and glanced through the old gates at the Lubov mansion. He came to a sudden halt and stared at the old house. Was that someone in the window? It was hard to tell as the low sun caused a glare which made it hard to see through the glass. He cupped his hand over his eyes to shield the rays, and again caught a glimpse of movement at one of the upstairs windows. It was someone dressed in white.
Eoin had a dilemma. He was naturally curious, andreally wanted to know what was going on at the old house, but he also knew
‘Wow,’ said Eoin. ‘There must have been a Russian kid living here long ago. I wonder what happened to him.’
The boys shuffled around for a while, but there was very little to see inside the mansion and there was no sign of the mysterious ghost making a reappearance. Eoin copied the letters down on the back of the photo and then realised he couldn’t now leave it behind.
‘Sure it would just rot here anyway,’ he said to himself as they climbed back out into the sunlight and began the slow jog home.
C HAPTER 16
T he next two weeks flew by as the boys worked on their skills ahead of their first rugby tour. Barney opened the gates for them early in the morning and they were often at the Gaels ground when the sun started to set.
Eoin even devised a cruel game to sharpen his goal-kicking technique. Using string and tent pegs he measured out and marked out four lines at
20, 25, 30 and 35 metres from the goal-line. He then borrowed Barney’s whitewash to paint five blobs at equal distances along each line right across the field, from touchline to touchline.
When he was finished he had twenty spots and a daunting target – kick the ball over the bar from each of the spots in the nearest line, then the second line and so on. But whenever he missed one, he had to start again. It was a difficult exercise, especially from out wide, andit sometimes took over a hundred kicks before he converted twenty in a row.
As a result, almost every night Eoin went straight to bed, completely drained by his efforts. He and Dylan were serious about preparing for Twickenham and given Schillaci’s chip shop a miss as they ate sensibly and got plenty of sleep.
While Dylan had been cranky in the run-up to the first Munster academy session, this time he was more comfortable after making friends with his team-mates. Munster Rugby was all about togetherness and passion for your team, and he was really looking forward to joining up with them again.
Eoin was always nervous before big games, and this tour was no different – worse, probably, as Leinster could have five big games, although he didn’t expect that anyone would be asked to play in them all. He, too, felt reassured that Charlie would be there, Killian too, and that Dylan would be around the place.
Even though he hadn’t worn any of the Leinster kit, his mum insisted on washing and ironing it all carefully in the week before he left. She completed the checklist of match and training gear and equipment in Eoin’s log book and packed it all carefully in his huge kitbag. She also organised the ordinary clothes he would need fora week away and laid them all in a suitcase open on the spare bed in his room.
‘Now, Eoin, I need you to decide what else you want to bring with you. I suppose you’ll want the rugby book Dixie bought you last week?’
Eoin nodded and promised his mum that he would sort it out later. It was only 8pm and the sun was still streaming in his bedroom window but he was so tired that he had to sleep.
He woke very early next day, and decided to go for a run. He headed out in the direction of his grandad’s house, but when he realised after ten minutes that he still hadn’t seen a single person or car he checked the time. To his surprise he found that it was just before six o’clock and far too early to call in to see Dixie.
He continued on out past his grandfather’s home and glanced through the old gates at the Lubov mansion. He came to a sudden halt and stared at the old house. Was that someone in the window? It was hard to tell as the low sun caused a glare which made it hard to see through the glass. He cupped his hand over his eyes to shield the rays, and again caught a glimpse of movement at one of the upstairs windows. It was someone dressed in white.
Eoin had a dilemma. He was naturally curious, andreally wanted to know what was going on at the old house, but he also knew
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