Cheers & Jeers

Dressed in his orange jersey, Justin sprinted out the door to the van. Justin’s soccer team, the Tigers, was playing a big game today.

“Who’s the team you’re up against?” asked Dad as he drove.

“We’re playing the Fighting Bees,” Justin replied.

“Bees!” exclaimed Justin’s little sister, Ellie.

“I don’t wike bees. Dey sting!”

“These aren’t those kind of bees, Ellie. They’re kids on the other team,” Justin explained.

“Oh. But I still don’t wike dem. I wike da Tigahs! Go, Tigahs!” Ellie chanted as they pulled into the parking lot at the soccer field.

“We’ll be cheering for you from the stands!” Mom called as Justin went to find his team.

Soon the game began. It wasn’t long before Justin realized it was going to be a tough fight to win.

“Justin!!” Jeremy called as he passed the ball. Justin raced toward the ball. His cleats sent chunks of grass and dirt flying as he ran. But just as he got ready to kick, a kid from the other team slid toward Justin and sent the ball out of bounds—shoosh! Justin tumbled to the ground.

“Good try, Justin!” his coach bellowed from the sideline.

Jeremy jogged over and gave Justin a hand to help him to his feet. “You okay?” Justin nodded. “These guys are fast! I don’t think I can get past them to score!”

“We’ll get a chance.” Jeremy smiled and ran back to his position.

The game got rougher as it went on. Both teams tried as hard as they could to get the ball. When the Fighting Bees had the ball close to the Tigers’ goal, Justin’s teammate Robbie frantically tried to clear the ball away, but a tall player on the Fighting Bees ran forward and— smack! The ball sailed up and landed right in the net. “Goal!” the referee called. The Tigers groaned as the Fighting Bees cheered.

Finally, it was halftime. “It’s getting tough out there,” said Coach Martin. “But I’m proud of you. Remember not to foul the other team. We don’t want to give them any free kicks they could use to score.”

“We can beat them!” Jeremy said. “It’s only one to zero.”

“Right! We have another half to play,” said Robbie.

The Tigers gave a cheer and ran back onto the field. Justin got into position, eager to score a goal.

“C’mon, Justin!” his dad shouted from his seat. Justin smiled and waved.

“I wuv you, Jussin!” Ellie called out as she waved.

Justin quickly turned back toward the game, feeling a little embarrassed by his sister’s loud announcement.

The Tigers started the second half with new energy. Robbie stole the ball and dribbled it down the sideline then passed quickly to Justin. Justin stopped the ball at his feet and kicked it—up and over the Fighting Bees—right to Jeremy, who shot the ball—zoom—straight past the surprised goalie.

“Goal!” the referee shouted. “The score is tied, 1–1!”

The Tigers crowded together happily, clapping each other on the back. “Great shot, Jeremy!” they shouted. “What a pass, Justin! It’s tied!”

But it wasn’t over yet. Back and forth, the teams ran, trying to make the winning goal.

“Only two minutes left!” Coach Martin roared.

A Fighting Bee kicked the ball high in the air. Jeremy jumped and hit the ball with his forehead, sending it toward the Bees’ net. As Justin sprinted to the ball, he saw a Fighting Bee racing him. Justin was so focused on getting to the ball first that he accidently rammed into the boy—slam! The boy fell to the grass. But the ball was still there! Justin tapped the ball ahead then booted it toward the net where it swooshed right past the goalie.

“Yes!” Justin hollored as his teammates cheered—until—FWEET! FWEET! The referee blew his whistle. “No goal! Foul on the Tigers!”

Justin looked back at the boy he’d knocked down. He was still on the ground!

“It’s a free kick for the Fighting Bees,” said the referee.

When they heard this, the Tigers immediately stopped cheering for Justin and began jeering instead. “Great job, Justin, you gave the other team a free kick!”

“Yeah, Coach just said not to let that happen.”

Justin felt bad. He didn’t mean to foul; it was an accident. But his teammates wouldn’t listen. They were so upset by the foul that they couldn’t pay attention to the game anymore. The Fighting Bees took their free kick, passed the ball down the field, and scored.

“Goal!” said the referee. “2–1 for the Fighting Bees! And time’s up. That’s the end of the game!”

While the Fighting Bees celebrated their win, Justin’s teammates glared at him angrily. “It’s your fault we lost, Justin,” they grumbled. Justin sighed and slowly trudged back to his family.

“Great game, Justin,” Dad said encouragingly.

“No, it wasn’t,” said Justin. “Everyone’s mad at me ’cause I knocked that kid down, and they won.”

“But Justin,” Mom assured him, “it wasn’t your fault. You were trying to make a goal, and that’s all part of the game.”

“Well, the rest of my team doesn’t seem to think so,” Justin replied.

“Son, I know it hurts when your friends say mean things,” said Dad. “But they’ll get over their anger soon, and I’m sure you’ll all be friends again.”

“You pwayed good, Jussin!” said Ellie. “And I still wuv you.”

Justin smiled. “Thanks, Ellie. I love you, too.”

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