Team Player by Cindy Jefferies

was the captain’s armband.
    Roddy’s heart started thumping in his chest. This was it! He finally had what he’d dreamt about all along. But being captain was more than simply wearing the armband. Keira was right, it was up to him to unite the team.
    â€œOK,” he said, keeping his voice upbeat but serious. “Thanks, Keira. It must have been hard to say all that. And I reckon we ought to give her three cheers for being such a great captain for this long.”
    As the cheers rang out, Keira went pink with pleasure, and Sam gave Roddy an approving nod.

    If Roddy had thought it would be a tough job to unite the team, he was wrong. With a change of leadership, the mood lightened, and Keira seemed happier without the responsibility. Even so, Roddy was leavingnothing to chance. He pushed a couple of tables together and got the whole team eating every meal as a group. He also asked them to join him in the swimming pool on Monday after school.
    â€œWhat do you want us to do?” asked Jimmy once they were all there.
    â€œHave fun together.” Roddy pushed him, and he landed in the pool with a splash.
    â€œGreat idea!” said Keira with a grin. She gave her captain an almighty shove and Roddy joined Jimmy in the water.
    â€œIt’s lucky you didn’t fall on top of me,” said Jimmy, shaking water out of his hair.
    â€œLuck has nothing to do with it,” said Roddy with a grin. He ducked under and emerged a few yards away. “Remember how you were obsessed with that lucky sock in the first term? Thank goodness you’ve stopped being superstitious.”
    â€œYeah, well that was ages ago,” Jimmy blushed at the memory.

    The day before the match, Keira sat beside Roddy at breakfast. “It’s so much nicer not being captain,” she said. “I hope you don’t regret taking on the job.”
    â€œNo way!” Roddy grinned. “It’s hard work and loads of pressure, but I don’t regret it. Not one bit.”
    That evening, Geno came up to Roddy at the boarding house. “D’you fancy a bit of a kickabout?” he asked. He was holding a football and carrying his boots.
    Roddy put down the magazine he was trying to read. He was so fired up about the match, he couldn’t concentrate on it anyway. “Sure thing,” he agreed at once. “Shall I round up some of the others?”
    Geno shook his head. “They’re watchingthe replay of that Premier League match,” he said. “Besides, I’d rather it was just us. If you don’t mind.”
    â€œOf course not,” said Roddy. “It’ll be fun.”
    The sun was low in the sky when they went out to the practice goal. “Just a gentle run around,” Roddy warned Geno. “We don’t want to pull a muscle or anything now.”
    They practised a bit of passing, and tried some shots. Geno hoofed a beauty into the top-right corner.
    â€œNo goalie would have got to that one,” said Roddy admiringly.
    After half an hour, Geno was happy to call it a day. “Thanks for that,” he told his friend. “I just needed to remind myself that I
can
do it. I feel better now. And with you as captain, the atmosphere in the team is so much more positive.”
    â€œIt’s not just down to me,” said Roddy.“It was just time for a change, I think, and it’s fantastic Keira actually
wanted
to hand over. It would have been awful if she hadn’t.”
    â€œAll we have to do now is win,” said Geno lightly.
    â€œYep,” agreed Roddy with a smile. “That’s all!”

9. Final Match
    The following morning dragged like never before, but eventually the bell went for lunch. Roddy gathered the team around their big table, and made sure they all ate plenty of carbohydrates for the slow-release energy they’d need. The few afternoon lessons gave them a chance to digest their meal, and then it was time for the