Chapter One: Nick and Anderson

“Good job, Nick. We made the playoffs!”

Nick was eight years old, and he loved to play soccer and was excited about the playoffs. He knew how to play his hardest because he was playing the stars. To win, Nick and his team had to practice a lot, so they were ready for the big game. Their team name was the Crushers. Nick was lucky because he was not playing Anderson. Anderson was a great soccer player and started way before Nick, at the age of five. So, it was possible that he was better than Nick. Anderson’s team name was the Spartans. Nick had played Anderson’s team before and had lost.

In that game, Anderson’s team scored six goals, and Nick’s team had scored three. Nick was not able to defeat Anderson because Anderson was very good with his moves. He did lots of moves like putting the ball inside and outside of his legs. Nick couldn’t do that. Nick was trying to do that. He was still trying to figure out how to put the ball inside and outside of his legs. But Nick knew that a hard team was coming, Uteam. He went to lots of soccer camps and tried his hardest so he could get better and be like Anderson. One day, Nick was asking his dad if his team could someday beat the Spap.

Nick was not scared of the playoffs, but he was scared of the championship because of Anderson’s team. But his dad said kept saying, “try your hardest.’’

’’But Anderson is way too hard!” said Nick.

***

It was one day before the big game, and, lucky crushers, they were ready! The day was here, and the Crushers and the Stars were playing.

‘’Run, Nick!’’ the crowd shouted.

The score was 2 – 2. Ten seconds were remaining. Nick was on the breakaway. He shot  and scored!

’’We made the semi-finals against the Dragons!’’ the coach cheered.  

Seconds were counting… 2… 1… 0… Fans were cheering, hats were flying towards the ground, fans were screaming. The screaming could be heard outside the grounds.

“Nick, nice goal,” said Bryce.

“Thank you,” said Nick.

***

At home, Nick practiced a lot of his shots. His dad burst into the room door.

‘’Nick. Great job. Are you nervous about the semi-finals?’’

“A little bit,” Nick said. “It’s getting harder in levels. I don’t know if I’m up to the level of Anderson. His team has made it to the finals, and they said, ‘we do not care who our opponent is.’’’

“Nick, time for bed,’’ said his mom.

“I thought Dad says it is time for bed,” said Nick.  

“He is very busy,” said his mom.

Nick had been telling his dad, “you don’t have to be millionaire, in the hundreds are fine.” He was on a call, and they could not disturb his dad. Then, Nick went to bed and dreamed about winning the finals.

Chapter Two: The Big Game

The semi-finals were three days away, and they did not know how good their opponents were because they had not played them in the regular season, but they saw in the standings that the opponents were in second place. Nick’s team was in third. If the Crushers did not play well, they would lose and not make the finals. That was why Nick and his teammates were practicing a lot. And Nick was trying to do better on his shots. He practiced three hours a day with his teammates and two hours alone.

At the end of three days, his dad said, “Slow down so that you get your shots better. Even if you lose, try your hardest. And make sure to get to sleep early tonight, since your game is tomorrow.”

The big game was here, and the score was 2 – 1. Dragons were winning. Twenty seconds were remaining, and Nick was sweating. Nick dribbled into the Dragon’s zone and shot top shelf. Fans were quiet and watched the ball fly, and Nick scored! The score was tied, and fans were cheering so loudly.

Buzz.

The game had gone to overtime! Teams huddle, and then they started to play. Nick shot from the side and scored! Fans were louder than the city!

“We made the finals!” said the coach.

Nick went home with a shock. He was dripping with sweat, and he could feel his heart pounding at the speed of light.

‘’Nick, I saw you play today. You played awesome,’’ said his dad in an excited mood. ’’Go practice more so you are ready for the finals, and remember, there are three games, and your team has to win two, and you are playing the Spartans,’’ said his dad.

‘’What?!” Nick said.

He was dazed.

Chapter Three: What Happened To Nick

Nick was playing soccer in his backyard and shot a goal. Something must have happened because he felt harsh pain in his ankle. Nick screamed a little bit, and then hopped to his mom who was watering the flowers.

“I shot a goal, and I twisted my ankle, and it hurts badly,” Nick said.

His mom took a look at his ankle. The ankle had a blue bruise and was swollen.

“Try moving your foot, and if it hurts, we’ll put an ice pack.”

Nick was trying to move his foot, but it hurt very badly.

Nick said, “It hurts badly. I need the ice pack.”

And Nick hopped to the house and quickly went to the kitchen and got an ice pack from the freezer.  Then he went to the sofa, sat there, and put the ice pack to his foot.

Then his mom said, “How are you going to play in the finals on Saturday? That’s two days from now!”

Later, when Nick was eating his dinner, he asked his mom, “If I don’t play on Saturday, how is my team going to win? I can’t sit at home and just relax while they play!”

“We’ll see if your leg is good on Saturday. But if it’s not, we’ll see if you can play. But I don’t think it’ll be good for your ankle. And your shots won’t be good either.”

When Nick went to bed, he slept with ice pack, and dreamed about losing the finals.

Chapter 4: The Finals of Three

The next day, Nick woke up very early so he could practice before the game.

“But what about your ankle?” his mom asked.

“My ankle is fine,” he said, even though it still hurt him.

The swelling had gone down.  

So his mom asked, “Are you sure?”

And Nick said, “I’m sure.”  

Later, the finals were here, and nobody knew who is going to win.The teams were going onto the field, and the Spartans were playing Nick’s team, the Crushers. Just at the ten second mark, Anderson scored for the Spartans! By the middle of the game, the Spartans were leading 2 – 0. Then, the Crusher’s scored when Nick passed to Bryce, and he took a shot from the corner and scored! The rest of the game didn’t go so well because Nick’s ankle was still hurting badly. He couldn’t play that well. It was almost the end of the first game, and the Spartans were leading 3 – 1. Seventeen seconds were remaining, and Nick knew that they were going to lose the first game. The buzzer went off, and the Spartans had won. The team was cheering as loudly as the fans. Anderson tackled the goalie, and they both fell to the ground, screaming with excitement. Nick went home, sad and exhausted. The next game was tomorrow.

The next day, the teams took the field. Nick’s team, the Crushers, were pumped up. Then, the game had started, and the Crusher’s were going hard out. Nick was dribbling into the Spartan’s zone and just shot it from the corner — a top shelf! He scored. The Spartans were surprised when they saw the goal. Then, in the middle of the game, Nick’s team was so happy that they were winning. Then, the Spartans took the ball and shot it very far, almost half field, and it went inside the goal. Thirty seconds remaining, and Anderson and the Spartans were driving it into the Crusher’s zone, and Leo passed it to Anderson, but Nick defended it by kicking it high. The ball flew over the players and landed above the goalie’s hands, into the net. The Crusher’s had scored the final goal of the game! The buzzer blew. This time, the Crusher’s tackled each other, hugging each other.

The coach said, “Great game! We only need one more game to win the series. Get ready for the finals tomorrow.’’

***

The game was here. It was the middle of the game, and the score was 0 – 0.There were nine seconds remaining, and the Crushers were drenched with sweat.The buzzer blew. The game had gone to overtime. The teams huddled. Then they went back on the field. Nick dribbled into the Spartan’s zone. Anderson blocked Nick’s path. Nick shot from the corner and scored! The fans were louder than the city, and the Crusher’s jumped onto the goalie. The fans were screaming so loudly!

‘’Awesome!” said Coach.

“Nick rocks!” the fans shouted.

“Nick, you did awesome,” his parents said. “You won the finals!”

“You put pressure on the Spartans, and then you’ll win it!” said Nick.

“That’s what I was telling you,” his dad said. “Put in your practice, and you’ll get better.”

That night, Nick and his team had a small party that had lot of food and a lot of games, because they deserved it.

The  End