‘She wouldn’t punch me.’
‘No, you’re right. She’s an excellent footballer. She’d probably kick you. Say nothing, Noah.’
The mood on the bus began to change as they were about to set off. Noah took Stevie’s advice and didn’t mention anything to Maggie about her father or his. Instead, he told her what McGlinnigle had said about her. Feeling an unexpected warmth towards her, he left out the solicitor’s opinion on her chances of making it all the way in the men’s professional game.
‘An undoubted talent?’ She was excited, but tried to hide it. ‘He couldn’t have said anything else, though, could he? I mean the man has eyes and anyone with eyes could see . . .’
Barbara interrupted her. ‘Maggie, just this once, please.’
‘Yeah, all right,’ Maggie grinned. ‘That was fun, wasn’t it? The tournament, I mean.’
‘It was brilliant. We were brilliant. It was the best two days of my life,’ Frank said. He was about to sit down beside his sister, but she shook her head.
‘Sorry, bro, this seat’s taken,’ she said to him.
‘Who’s taken it?’
‘That’d be me,’ Stevie said.
He apologized as he squeezed past Frank and sat down beside her.
‘Shame it’s all over. We had a chance of winning it,’ Limbsy said.
‘We came so close,’ Cormac said.
Michael Griffin nodded in agreement.
‘There’s always next year,’ Sunday said.
‘Yes, we will win the World Cup next year. I can guarantee it,’ Piotr boomed.
The bus passed through Ballymun and joined the M50 as the rain eased off. It was going to be a long journey back to Carraig Cruach.
‘Some of us will be too old then,’ Adam O’Brien said. ‘It wouldn’t be the same team.’
‘There’s an under-sixteen tournament on next year. I saw it online,’ Darren said.
‘A lot of us will be too young for that. The organizers mightn’t allow it.’
Noah looked at Stevie. ‘I think I might know somebody who can find us a way in.’
‘Don’t look at me. My days of organizing are over. There’s no way I’m going down that road again,’ Stevie said.
Kevin McCooley leaned across the aisle and growled at him.
‘Although, I might reconsider under certain circumstances.’
St Mary of the Immaculate Conception School for Girls
Manager: Steven Treacy
Substitutes: Cormac McHugh (12) Adam O’Brien (13) Steven Treacy (14)
DAY ONE TOURNAMENT RESULTS
Drumlock Grammar
1
St Mary’s
0
St Killian’s
3
Park Community
0
Pengardon Academy
2
Drumlock Grammar
1
St Mary’s
4
Park Community
0
Pengardon Academy
3
St Killian’s
0
TOURNAMENT SCHEDULE
Sixteen groups, each group consisting of five teams. Each team plays four matches to determine the winner of the group. Winners of each of the sixteen groups qualify for next round of the tournament (a round of sixteen). Teams placed from second to fifth in their group after the four matches have been concluded on Day Two are knocked out and will take no further part in the competition.
Day One (Thursday):
Group Matches 1 and 2
Day Two (Friday):
Group Matches 3 and 4
End of Day Two – only group winners remain.
Day Three (Saturday):
Round of 16, followed by quarter-finals
Day Four (Sunday):
semi-finals, followed by final
Tournament winners represent Ireland in Schools’ World Cup
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
Special thanks to my agent, Marianne Gunn O’Connor, for all her hard work, enthusiasm and support.
Thanks also to my wonderful editors, Venetia Gosling and Anna Roberto. And to Paddy O’Doherty for all her help (and patience).
And, as always, thanks to Dee for the endless hours you spent reading the story, for all the helpful suggestions you made, and for, you know, putting up with me.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Kieran Crowley is a children’s writer from Mallow, Co. Cork. His debut novel, Colm & the Lazarus Key, was shortlisted for the Bisto Book of the Year Award in 2010. The follow-up, Colm & The Ghost’s Revenge, was published in 2012.
First published 2016 by Macmillan Children’s Books
This electronic edition published 2016 by Macmillan Children’s Books
an imprint of Pan Macmillan
20 New Wharf Road, London N1 9RR
Associated companies throughout the world
www.panmacmillan.com
ISBN 978-1-4472-9979-0
Text copyright © Kieran Crowley 2016
Illustrations copyright © Marta Kissi 2016
The right of Kieran Crowley and Marta Kissi to be identified as the author and illustrator of this work has been asserted by them in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
You may not copy, store, distribute, transmit, reproduce or otherwise make available this publication (or any part of it) in any form, or by any means (electronic, digital, optical, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise), without the prior written permission of the publisher. Any person who does any unauthorized act in relation to this publication may be liable to criminal prosecution and civil claims for damages.
A CIP catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.
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The Mighty Dynamo Page 28
