by Felice Arena
‘Hey,’ nodded Specky.
‘Hey.’
‘I know what you're gonna say and you don't have to worry about it,’ Specky added quickly. ‘It's all good.’
‘I know I don't have to worry. But Danny's pretty upset.’
‘Sorry?’ Specky asked, realising that he and Robbo were talking about two completely different things.
‘Yeah, Danny,’ said Robbo. ‘His grandmother died yesterday. He's gonna be away for the whole week.’
Specky was stunned.
‘Oh, um, I knew she had been sick…I hope Danny's okay.’
‘I called him before school this morning and he couldn't stop balling his eyes out. He's pretty cut up.’
‘C'mon, Speck!’ yelled Johnny again.
Specky motioned to Johnny that he'd join him in a second.
‘So, what did ya mean before when you said you knew what I was gonna say?’ asked Robbo.
‘Nothing,’ shrugged Specky. ‘Anyway, I'm gonna have a kick. You wanna join us?’
‘Um, nah. Gonna get somethin’ to eat at the canteen. Um…’
Specky suddenly remembered what Screamer had said, about how Robbo and Danny were quick to have him kicked out of the team. Why did they believe that he had turned against them?
‘What?’ he said.
As cruel as Robbo and Danny had been to him recently, Specky hoped this conversation was the first small step to being mates again. Maybe Robbo was about to say he had been wrong and he was sorry.
‘What? You were going to say something else?’ pressed Specky.
‘Yeah, did you come to my house yesterday? Dad said he thought he saw you.’
Specky was disappointed.
‘I guess that could've been me,’ he said as nonchalantly as he could. ‘I was riding my bike around there, so it could've been—can't remember.’
‘Oh, cool, okay,’ mumbled Robbo. ‘Catch ya later.’
As Specky kicked the footy with Johnny for the rest of morning recess, he was blissfully unaware that ten kilometres away in an office in the city, three men were talking about him.
‘I really liked the game of the Johnson boy,’ said Bob Stockdale, Grub's right-hand man and Chairman of Selectors for the Victorian team. ‘He reminded me of a young Matthew Pavlich—big and strong, and what about that mark he took? It was a beauty.’
‘Yeah, I liked him, too, Bobby,’ replied Grub in his gravelly voice. ‘The old man's a bit of a worry, though. The way he cornered us after the game and kept telling us how good his son was. That bothers me a bit.’
‘But that's not the kid's fault,’ said Bob. ‘You know better than anyone that there's always gonna be one or two of the parents who are pains in the neck, and try and push their kids up as hard as they can. If they knew they were doing more harm than good they might think twice about embarrassing themselves and their poor boys. I've heard about this guy through the local league they play in. He's been warned off a few times. I don't think we can let the fact that he acts like an idiot influence us when it comes to judging this kid, though.’
‘I knew there was a reason I kept you around for twenty-one years, Bobby.’ Grub grinned. ‘You're right.’
In the corner of the room sat the newest member of the selection panel. Evan Dillon listened carefully to the two legends of junior football as they decided on their potential squad.
Evan was at least twenty years younger than Grub and Bob and he privately thought that they had been around for too long. It was time for a change, preferably with him as the new coach. As a result, Evan took every opportunity to disagree with them, and it was the source of some tension among the three.
‘What about this Magee kid, Grub?’ he enquired, with a defiant look in his eye. ‘The way you were talking before the game, I was expecting to see a cross between Chris Judd and Warren Tredrea. From watching him play he's more like a cross between Bart and Homer Simpson. He didn't impress me one bit, and I don't think there's any way he'll make the squad.’
Grub turned his chair around and fixed his gaze on Evan.
‘Ahh, Evan,’ he said. ‘You learn, when you've been in this job as long as I have, not to judge a young player on just one performance. Remember the first player you recommended to us as a selector? He turned out to be the captain of a hockey team and was just filling in to make up the numbers. He'd never played a game of football before then, or since probably.’
Bob Stockdale choked on his coffee as he tried desperately not to laugh. Grub continued, as Evan Dillon turned a bright shade of red.
‘I do agree that Magee didn't play well at all on the day. Not to mention the damage he did to my poor old Benz. It was very unlike him to play so selfishly, and you know that's one of my pet hates. But I've seen him half a dozen times over the past two years and his form, in particular in the Diadora Cup games, has been outstanding.’
Grub stood up from his chair and moved over to the window to watch the city traffic below.
‘I'm not sure what was going on with him in the game against the Falcons. I do know that he left Gosmore Grammar recently. I wonder if that had anything to do with it. Bobby, make a few calls for me, will ya? I need to know what's going on with that kid. He can play, but we need him to find some form quickly, because there are a couple of hundred other kids who want to make this team as badly as he does.’
With that, the selectors moved on to discussing another bunch of aspiring hopefuls, with Specky's chances of making the prestigious Victorian squad very much hanging in the balance.
10. the three musketeers
After the drama of the last week, the next two days at school went by for Specky without much incident.
‘Right, here we are. Now, you're sure you don't want me to come with you?’
Specky was sitting in the front passenger seat next to his dad. They were parked outside a cemetery. Specky had asked his parents if he could take the morning off from school to attend Danny's grandmother's funeral. He got out of the car.
‘No, that's okay, Dad, you can go to your meeting. I'll be okay…but thanks.’
‘Well, Danny's a good friend and it's great you wanna be there for him. Make sure you head back to school as soon as it's ended.’
Specky nodded and made his way toward Danny and his grieving relatives. He had never been to a funeral, or a burial for that matter. Well, technically he had, as a baby at his biological mother's service, but he couldn't remember that.
Specky gingerly stepped past a row of gravestones and quietly edged his way into the large group of mourners—mainly a sea of elderly Italian women dressed in black, many of whom were sobbing and comforting one another.
Specky spotted Danny, his parents, Uncle Joe, and the rest of his family at the front of the group—arm in arm, they stood around the coffin of Danny's grandmother and the grave. Specky hadn't spoken to them at the packed church as he and his dad had been hidden among friends and relatives in the back row.
Specky took a couple more steps toward the burial gathering. A priest was praying out loud in Italian while four large men proceeded to lower the coffin into the grave. Without warning, Danny's mother began to howl uncontrollably, which sparked off a wave of howling from other family members. Specky shuffled uncomfortably. He had never experienced anything like this before. He was overcome with sadness as he watched Danny comfort his grieving parents. He couldn't help but think of his own family, and how much he loved them—even Alice—and his own problems suddenly seemed very insignificant compared to what he was seeing in front of him.
‘Hey.’
Specky felt a nudge in his side. It was Robbo.
‘Hey,’ Specky whispered back, happy to see the big fella. And judging by the look on Robbo's face—both surprised and pleased at the same time—Specky could tell Robbo was happy to see him, too.
They stood side by side, without saying a word. They didn't have to. They were there for their mate.
It wasn't until the service had ended and everyone b
egan to stream out of the cemetery that Danny caught sight of Specky and Robbo.
‘I'm really sorry about your Nonna Nina,’ said Specky, knowing Danny always referred to his grandmother as his nonna, the Italian word for grandmother.
For a moment Danny didn't say a word, and Specky began to wonder if it had been a mistake for him to show up. His friend looked as though he had been crying, but he was holding it together and Specky couldn't tell if he was pleased to see him or not.
Suddenly, Danny flung his arms around Specky and Robbo, hugging them both tightly.
‘You two are the best ma…s…tha…a guy…cod…hav…’ he mumbled into Specky's shoulder, choking back tears.
‘You're a good mate, too,’ comforted Specky.
‘Yeah, you are, and…yeah,’ added Robbo, not quite sure what to say.
Danny pulled away from them and regained his composure.
‘I'm sorry, Speck…’ he sniffed.
Woah, thought Specky. He's at his grandmother's funeral and he's saying sorry to me for how he's treated me in the last week. Wow. That's big. Maybe Robbo will apologise too.
‘I'm sorry I got snot on your jumper,’ Danny said.
‘What?’
Danny pointed at Specky's shoulder.
‘I'm sorry that I got snot on your jumper,’ he repeated, sniffing and wiping tears from his face.
Suddenly Specky began to chuckle—mainly out of embarrassment. Danny wasn't thinking about their fight at all! He was more worried about his runny nose. Specky tried desperately to stop laughing—he was in a cemetery, after all!
‘What did you think Danny was saying sorry about?’ added Robbo.
‘Oh…’ croaked Danny, looking awkward.
For a moment Specky and his friends stared at each other. He knew that they had suddenly worked out that he was expecting an apology from them.
But it was too late, Specky was chuckling uncontrollably. And with all the raw emotion in the air, to Specky's surprise, Danny started to laugh as well—and so did Robbo.
Within moments, all three boys were guffawing loudly.
Some of Danny's relatives shot looks of disapproval in the boys’ direction, but no one seemed seriously annoyed. Many, like Danny's father, were just happy to see Danny smile.
‘Thank you for coming, you boys,’ he said, stepping forward to shake Specky and Robbo's hands. ‘Danny's lucky to have you two around. And it's great to see you all together again—like the Three Musketeers.’
Specky grinned. It wasn't the kind of reconciliation that he had imagined—there had been no fanfare or big gestures, just old friends supporting each other. And none of them had had to say anything. They knew they were all mates again.
‘So, Josh, Simon,’ continued Mr Castellino. ‘You're welcome to come back to the house for something to eat and drink.’
‘That would be nice, thanks,’ said Robbo.
Before Specky could answer, something caught his eye. Looking past Mr Castellino, he saw a figure pass behind a tombstone at the very end of the cemetery. It was Screamer. Specky looked at Danny and Robbo—they hadn't seen him.
‘So, will you be joining us?’ Mr Castellino asked Specky again.
Specky politely declined and told Danny's father that he had to get back to school.
As he walked through the cemetery gates, Specky took Robbo aside.
‘Did Screamer say he was coming today—to the funeral?’ he asked.
‘Nah, he couldn't make it, why?’
‘No, reason. I'll catch ya later!’
Specky wondered why Screamer had come. Perhaps he had turned up to support Danny, but had been put off by seeing him there. Specky decided to go back and talk to him.
But when Specky arrived at the spot where Screamer had been standing, he was nowhere to be seen. Specky looked down to where his foot had caught on something. It was the wrapping on some freshly cut flowers. Specky crouched down. There was a card attached to it that simply said, Happy Birthday, Craig.
As Specky was standing up again, he glanced at the gravestone directly in front of him. It read:
Craig Johnson
A football legend in the making
Age 15
Loving son of Kevin and Fiona
and brother of Derek
11. text message
Back in class it was difficult for Specky to concentrate on his schoolwork.
Screamer didn't show up at all for school that day and he wasn't at footy training either.
Specky's mind went into overdrive about what he had found out. What had happened to Screamer's brother, Craig? There were so many things about Screamer that no one knew.
‘Heads up, Speck!’
Specky looked up just in time to see Johnny drill the footy at him. He grabbed the ball easily and was about to kick it back when Coach Pate called the team over.
As it turned out, training that day ended up being a lot more fun than Specky had expected. After feeling down about footy in general, and after going to the funeral that morning, Specky was surprised to realise that he was revelling in tackling, kicking and marking. And Specky's teammates seemed more receptive to him than they had been just a few days earlier. Maybe Screamer had talked to them. Or maybe the tension between Specky, Robbo and Danny had been affecting the whole team.
Either way, Specky knew that regardless of what was going on in the lives of AFL players, they had to put it all aside when it came to match day or training and just concentrate on the job at hand. He had found out the hard way that the moment your mind started to wander you ran the risk of compromising training for the rest of the team or, even worse, ruining the game plan on match day. For however long the game went, or the training session lasted, he had always been able to immerse himself in footy. This was, Specky thought, one of the reasons why he loved to play and train, and he couldn't believe he had let personal issues affect his chances of making the Victorian squad. Coach Pate seemed to share this philosophy, and she paid no attention to any of the matters that took place outside the football team. She played no favourites. As far as she was concerned, footy was footy and they were all there for the same reason: to improve their skills, develop their team work and to have fun. And that suited Specky just fine.
Beep Beep. Specky reached into his pocket and took out his mobile phone. He had a text message.
Hi. I think we should talk. Christina.
Specky re-read Christina's message several times before dialling her number. He didn't like the look of it.
‘Hi. I just got your message. We just finished training and—’
‘Speck,’ said Christina's voice quietly, but firmly, on the other end.
‘Yeah?’
‘I think we should, um…maybe we should, um…’
Specky stopped walking. This wasn't sounding good. He had to say something quick.
‘Look, I'm really sorry for the other night. I know you were only trying to help me,’ he blurted out. ‘It was unfair of me. And, by the way, I know all about Screamer's hidden talent.’
‘You do?’
‘Yeah, and well, I can understand why you didn't want to say anything. 'Cause his dad doesn't—’
‘Well, great! Now you can use it against him!’ Christina said, cutting Specky off.
‘But that's what I'm trying to tell you,’ said Specky. ‘I'm not gonna use it against him. You were the one who was going to do that.’
Specky winced. He knew he shouldn't have said that.
‘I know I was!’ said Christina defensively. ‘But then I had second thoughts. I was just trying to help you, but you didn't want my help anyway.’
The conversation wasn't turning out the way Specky wanted it to. Somehow it had turned into an exact repeat of the other night at the cinema.
‘Look. I think it might be best if…um, you know, we break up, and just be friends.’
There. Christina had just said what Specky had dreaded the most.
‘Speck?’
‘Yeah.
I heard ya.’
‘So, I'll catch you later then?’
Specky wanted to yell out at the top of his lungs how much Christina meant to him. He even wanted to say the L word. The word he had never said to anyone else. He wanted to say all of this, but couldn't. He didn't.
‘Yeah, see ya later.’
‘Okay. Bye, Speck.’
‘Bye.’
12. meanwhile…back at the game
‘C'mon on, boys!’ cheered some of the parents, as Specky and his Booyong High teammates ran out onto the visitors’ oval for another Saturday morning footy match—this time against the Yardley College Magpies.
‘Hey, Magee,’ called Screamer as they jogged out to take their positions. ‘Heard Christina came to her senses and dumped ya.’
Specky shook his head. News sure travelled fast around the school. But, of course, he had told Alice, and he should have realised that that would be like putting it on the evening news.
‘Yeah, whatever,’ shrugged Specky, trying to look like it didn't worry him.
Screamer snorted and sprinted off toward the goal square. Normally, Specky would've been a lot more cheesed off by a remark like that, but since learning of Screamer's family secrets he couldn't help seeing his old rival in a different light.
Specky hadn't told anyone about Screamer's brother. He was curious to find out more himself, but knew Screamer wouldn't tell him. He wondered if Christina knew anything, but thinking about that just reminded him that he couldn't phone and ask her. He decided not to think about any of it for a while and just focus on footy.
‘Have a good one, Speck!’
‘Go, Speck!’
‘Yeah, you too,’ replied Specky to his teammates, who were definitely making him feel like part of the team again.
Specky gave the thumbs-up to Danny, who, surprisingly, had shown up to play that morning.
‘Life has to go on. My nonna would've wanted me to play,’ he had said to Specky earlier in the change rooms.
Danny wore some black tape around his arm in honour of his grandmother, and most of Danny's closest friends, including Specky, did the same.
