by Felice Arena
‘What’s up? We gonna have a kick?’
Joining the group were more of Specky’s classmates: Paul ‘Smashing Sols’ Solomon, the hardest hitting tackler in the Booyong Lions; Sanjay ‘the Bullet’ Sharma, originally from India, who could run like Chris Judd and never seemed to get tired; and Ben Higgins, simply known as ‘Gobba’ because of his big mouth, who dreamed of a full-time career as a sports commentator and given half a chance would commentate on anything and anyone.
‘So, what’s happening? What are you guys talking about?’ Gobba asked. ‘Is it about me and how I’ve had the most awesome holidays ever at the Dennis Cometti School of Young Sports Callers in Perth? ’Cause I did, you know.’
‘We know! You told us like a hundred times this morning and in that last period. So, yeah, that’s what we’re talking about – we’re talking about you, Gob,’ said Robbo sarcastically.
Specky noticed that Gobba looked slightly dejected.
‘No, but it’s great, Gob!’ he said quickly, genuinely impressed. ‘You are the next Dennis Cometti.’
‘Thanks, Speck!’ said Gobba, cracking a smile again.
‘Hey, Magee!’
Specky turned to see Screamer walking toward them.
Like Specky, Derek Johnson had a habit of pulling down amazing marks and that was how he had earned his nickname ‘Screamer’.
‘Hi, guys. Hey, Magee – how’s State training going?’
‘Ah, yeah, it’s all good,’ answered Specky, who was still having trouble getting used to the fact that his one-time enemy was now always so friendly. Since Screamer had followed his dream of becoming a professional musician and reconciled with his overbearing dad last term, he was a totally changed person.
‘That’s cool,’ Screamer said. ‘How’s Grub treating ya?’
‘Yeah, he’s still pretty tough,’ Specky replied, remembering his latest training session with his State coach – a legend in the world of junior footy, Jay ‘Grub’ Gordan.
Specky and Screamer had both made it into the Victorian Under Fifteen squad, but only Specky had been training with the team for the last fortnight. In five weeks’ time he would represent their state in the national carnival in South Australia.
‘Grub was disappointed you dropped out of the team,’ Specky added. ‘But he understood why you did it, I think. So, are you still gonna play for Booyong?’
‘Yeah, of course. I’d never give up playing footy,’ Screamer said. ‘Plus, I gotta give my old man something to look forward to. By the way, I took that piano masterclass – it was amazing! I’ve been asked to do another one in a couple of weeks.’
‘That’s great,’ said Specky, catching Danny and the Bullet pulling faces at each other.
‘Hey, Screamer – you wanna kick?’ said Johnny, tossing him the ball he had tucked under his arm.
‘Yeah! I’ll cop ya all later!’
As Screamer and Johnny headed off, Specky swung around to see Danny shaking his head.
‘What? What’s that for?’ asked Specky.
‘Man, to think that only a few weeks ago he was the toughest dude around. He used to just get you in a headlock or cork ya for no reason. Now, he’s all nice and stuff, and it kinda sucks… I miss the old Screamer.’
‘Man, sometimes you’re so full of it,’ said Robbo, shaking his head. ‘If you’re missing it so much, then…’
Specky laughed. He knew where this was heading. Before Danny could say, ‘Nah, don’t even think about it,’ Robbo had him in a headlock and had dropped him to the ground.
Gobba yelled, ‘Stacks on!’ and suddenly it was on for young and old. Everyone rushed Robbo and Danny and threw themselves on them.
‘Get off me! I can’t breathe,’ cried Danny, underneath the pile. ‘You’re crushing me! Get off, you knob-heads!’
As Specky rough-housed with his mates, Samantha ‘Tiger Girl’ Shepherd was walking toward them across the field, desperately trying to get his attention.
‘Speck!’ she yelled. ‘Specky! I wanna introduce you to someone.’ But Specky and the boys still didn’t notice her.
‘You’re dead!’ yelled the Bullet, emerging from the pack just long enough to get Smashing Sols in a headlock.
Tiger Girl put her fingers in her mouth and whistled. It was so loud and so piercing that a sheep farmer would’ve been proud of it.
The boys suddenly stopped punching and shouting. They looked up at Tiger Girl, their bodies still tangled up like a bag of lolly snakes.
Standing beside her was a new student.
‘Hi,’ choked Specky, shoving Robbo’s arm away from his face and scrambling to stand up.
Robbo, Gobba, the Bullet, Smashing Sols and Danny, whose head was sticking out from the very bottom of the pack, also froze.
She was the most beautiful girl they had ever seen.
‘This is Monique Lafayette,’ said Tiger Girl as the boys untangled themselves and wobbled back to their feet. ‘She’s here on an exchange program from Geneva in Switzerland. And she’ll be staying with me.’
‘G’day.’
‘Hello.’
‘Hi,’ said the others, their eyes practically popping out of their heads.
‘Tell your mates to stick their tongues back in their mouths and to stop drooling,’ whispered Tiger Girl, leaning in to Specky. ‘It’s embarrassing.’
Specky nudged his elbow into Robbo, who in turn jabbed the others.
‘’Allo. So, you are Seemon? Samantha ’as told me all about you,’ Monique said, flashing a bright pearly smile.
‘Woah, your accent is so cool. It’s like Pepé Le Pew!’ Danny blurted out.
Tiger Girl rolled her eyes.
‘Well, you ’ave a nice accent, too,’ exclaimed Monique, whipping her long sun-bleached hair over her right shoulder.
Specky saw Danny turning bright red.
‘So, are you in Australia for a year?’ asked Specky, trying hard not to look as if he were staring at Monique like his friends were.
‘No, I am only ’ere for a little while. For five weeks,’ replied Monique. ‘It is summer ’olidays in my country now. That is why this is a short exchange.’
‘Well, that’s a shame,’ said Robbo. ‘Um, I’m Robbo.’
‘Robot?’ said Monique.
Smashing Sols and the Bullet snorted and laughed, but when Johnny gestured for them to have a kick with him and Screamer they took off.
‘No, that’s Rob-bo,’ repeated Robbo slowly. ‘But you can call me Josh, if that’s easier.’
‘Josh. That is a very nice name.’ Monique smiled again. ‘And – ’ow do you say? – you are very ’igh… um… ’igh?’
‘Tall!’ croaked Robbo, excitedly. ‘You mean tall? Yes, I’m tall.’
Specky smiled as Robbo’s face lit up. Tiger Girl rolled her eyes again. ‘You guys are pathetic,’ she whispered to Specky.
‘Bonjour,’ said Gobba, stepping forward. ‘Ça va? Je m’appelle Ben. Bienvenue en Australie.’
Specky whipped his head around in shock – as did Robbo, Danny and Tiger Girl.
‘Ah, tu parles français? You speak French?’ beamed Monique, impressed.
‘Yeah, only a little – un peu,’ said Gobba, proudly sticking out his chest. ‘I lived in Canada for a year and learned some French there.’
‘What did you just say?’ interrupted Specky, equally impressed.
‘’e asked me ’ow I was, and ’e welcomed me to Australia,’ said Monique. ‘You speak good French, Ben – très bien!’
Gobba grinned.
‘Okay, that’s enough of this meet-and-greet gush-fest,’ said Tiger Girl, shaking her head. ‘I gotta show Monique around a bit. We’ll catch you later.’
As Tiger Girl dragged Monique away, Specky and his friends stood frozen for a moment, totally gobsmacked.
‘Woah,’ said Specky.
‘Double woah,’ gasped Danny.
‘Triple woah!’ said Gobba.
‘How hot was she? She’s like a supermodel,’ st
ammered Robbo.
‘Yeah, well, you can keep your eyes off her,’ said Danny, turning to face Specky and the others. ‘’Cause she’s got Castellino’s girlfriend written all over her.’
‘What?’ spluttered the boys simultaneously.
‘She’s gonna be my girlfriend,’ continued Danny. ‘Didn’t you hear how she said she thought my accent was nice? She couldn’t take her eyes off me. Remember, I am the Italian Stallion.’
Specky, Robbo and Gobba burst out laughing.
‘Yeah, right,’ scoffed Robbo. ‘More like the Spaghetti-brained Pony. If she liked anyone, it was definitely me. She liked my name and she said I was tall.’
‘That was her way of politely saying you’re a freak,’ Danny snapped back.
Specky laughed some more.
‘Well, you’re both blind as,’ jumped in Gobba. ‘She totally lost it for me. I’m the one who can speak her language.’
Specky’s friends all started speaking over the top of each other, arguing loudly about who Monique liked best.
As Specky looked on, wondering whether he should leave his mates to it and have a kick with Johnny, Smashing Sols, Screamer and the Bullet, he got a text message.
Specky looked at his phone. The text was from Christina, his girlfriend, who went to a school on the other side of the city. It read:
Speck. I’m gonna come c u at state training 2nite.
I have 2 tell u something.
It’s big news. xox
I wonder what that’s all about, he thought as he put his mobile back in his pocket. Maybe it’s got something to do with Carlton playing on the weekend. Christina was a diehard Blues fan.
‘Well, Speck, who d’ya think Monique really likes?’ asked Danny.
‘And don’t say yourself, ’cause you’re already taken,’ added Robbo, quickly.
‘Look, I don’t think she likes any of us that way,’ shrugged Specky. ‘Seriously, she just met us. She was only being nice. There’s no winner here.’
‘That’s it!’ Gobba clicked his fingers. ‘A contest! The first one of us to get Monique to say who she really likes is the winner.’
‘Nah, let’s make this really interesting,’ said Danny. ‘The first one to kiss her is the winner.’
‘Yeah,’ said Robbo and Gobba in unison.
‘And the winner gets the other two to do their homework for a week,’ added Danny.
Specky shook his head. He wanted to tell his mates to get a grip, but knew it was a waste of energy to argue. They were unstoppable.
‘But any of us could say we kissed her,’ said Robbo.
‘Well, we can get Speck to ask Tiger Girl for confirmation,’ said Danny. ‘Girls always talk to each other about that stuff.’
‘Yeah, good idea.’ Gobba nodded.
‘Don’t get me into this,’ protested Specky, sensing it was all going to lead to trouble.
‘Come on, Speck,’ urged Robbo. ‘You can be like an adjudicator, sort of an umpy.’
‘Come on!’ said Danny and Gobba together.
‘All right, all right,’ said Specky, thinking that there was no way that a girl like Monique was going to kiss any of them anyway. ‘Whatever – I’ll do it.’
‘Yes!’ hissed the boys, slapping high fives.
‘Let the games begin,’ declared Gobba.
After school, Specky’s dad drove him to State training.
‘I’ll hop out here, Dad,’ said Specky, when he spotted Brian.
He made his way over to where Brian and another State player, Michael Bayless, were standing, talking. ‘So, you got all your stuff?’ he asked.
‘Yeah,’ nodded Brian.
‘We’ve converted the study into your room, so it’s all ready for ya.’
As the three boys jogged out to the centre of the oval to join the rest of their team and their coach, Specky scanned the boundary to see if Christina was there. She wasn’t.
‘Come on! We haven’t got all day,’ growled Grub, gesturing for them to hurry up.
Specky felt the familiar butterflies that were always present when he trained with the Victorian Under Fifteens. This was what he lived for – training and playing alongside the best young footballers in the state.
He loved playing for the Booyong Lions, too, but this was different. While he never let it show at school, he always knew that even if he cruised through training and games he would still be amongst the best players out on the ground.
But when he looked around at his new team-mates, Specky wondered if he was going to be good enough to mix it with the best. For the first time, real doubts crept into his mind. These guys were so much bigger and stronger than any other team he had played with.
He caught the eye of Spiro Molopolous, a talented young ruckman from Orbost. When they had all been getting changed for the first training session, Spiro had sat around wearing nothing but an old-fashioned jockstrap as he got his ankles taped up by the trainers – modesty was not one of his strong points. Specky and his team-mates couldn’t believe that at the age of fourteen he had a hairy chest.
Spiro was tough and gruff, and just looking at him was an intimidating experience for Specky. It had soon become clear, though, that he was one of the unofficial leaders of the side.
‘Rightio, you lot. Let’s get one thing clear,’ said Grub. ‘Just ’cause you’ve made this side that’s no excuse to sit back and think that the hard work is done.’
Grub, although not a tall man, had a massive presence about him.
‘In fact, the hard work is just starting,’ he continued. ‘We’re going to begin with a beep test, to find out how many of you are prepared to push yourselves past the pain barrier. Let’s head inside the basketball stadium over there and get started.’
Specky and Brian followed their team-mates inside to discover the court covered in bright red cones.
‘I’ve heard all about this, Speck,’ said Brian, looking grim. ‘All of the AFL clubs use it as a way of measuring fitness, and it’s supposed to be torture.’
‘Yeah, well, we can only do our best,’ said Specky, sounding less concerned than he really was.
The whistle blew and the test began. The players had to run between two lines of cones, over a thirty-metre distance. Once they got to the end, they turned around and lined up to run back again. Initially the boys found it very easy. The ‘beep’, which came from a portable stereo, was the signal for them to start each run.
As the test continued, the time between the beeps got shorter and shorter, which meant the players had to run faster to ensure that they weren’t eliminated. At the end of each stage, the pace increased.
Specky was making it to the end of the thirty metres fairly comfortably, and was turning around, ready to go with a bit of time to spare, but a couple of the bigger players were struggling.
‘You reckon Dean Cox and Brendon Lade would be dropping out at level ten?’ Grub roared at them. ‘Push yourselves, you blokes!’
The boys did their best, but as the beeps became more frequent they began to drop out. Many of the others collapsed in a state of exhaustion, gasping for breath.
When the stereo announced that they were at level thirteen, Specky thought he was going to pass out. No sooner had he sprinted to the end of the cones, than the beep would sound, sending him sprinting back to where he came from. Before long it was almost continuous sprinting, with no time for recovery.
Brian and Specky were going stride for stride, and Spiro was one of only six players left in the test, which amazed everyone. From the sideline, the rest of the team cheered their support.
‘Hang in there, Speck,’ hissed Brian, in between taking huge gulps of air. ‘Just take one at a time. Don’t think beyond the next sprint.’ Then the beep sounded, sending them on their way again.
Specky wanted to return the encouragement, but he couldn’t talk. He was light-headed, his legs were burning and his chest felt like it was going to explode.
There were now only four players left as th
ey approached level fourteen. Specky knew that anything above that, even at AFL level, was recognised as a good effort.
‘Who’s going to be the weakest one?’ bellowed Grub as the rest of the team urged them on. ‘You all want to stop. I can tell. But how do you know the bloke next to you isn’t feeling worse? One more sprint might finish him off.’
Specky desperately wanted to hang in there. Beside him, Spiro sounded like an eighty-eight-year-old asthmatic – he was wheezing and coughing – but he was still going. And Brian just had this determined look on his face that said he was never giving up.
The other player was Michael Bayless, who didn’t even appear to be trying.
They had two more sprints to go to reach level fourteen. Specky barely made it in time for the second last one, which prompted Grub to yell at him.
‘Magee! You gonna let your country buddy beat you, are ya?’ he said. ‘Not to mention that big, bumbling lug-head, Molopolous.’
Spiro grinned, and ran harder, looking more determined after Grub’s insult.
Specky closed his eyes and called on all of the energy left in his body. He was running on memory now. Ten metres from the line, his legs started to wobble and Brian, Spiro and Michael pushed past him.
Three metres left to go.
I’m gonna make it to level fourteen, Specky thought.
But just as he was about to put his foot down on the line, the dreaded beep echoed across the stadium.
‘You’re out, Magee!’ shouted Grub.
Specky slumped to the sideline as the remaining three players belted back down the track with the rest of the team now screaming their encouragement.
As Specky slouched over on his hands and knees, desperate to regain his breath, two electrolyte drinks were pushed in front of him by one of his team-mates. Specky suddenly vomited on the beautifully polished basketball court and one of the trainers rushed to his aid as he dry-retched.
Two sprints later, Spiro collapsed alongside him – also out of the contest.
Brian and Michael were able to push on for a further three sprints before Brian was eliminated. Michael continued to glide between the two cones until he eventually fell short of level fifteen.
