Black and White Page 6

  They went off together arm in arm, giggling, while the boys jumped into the back of Ossie’s car.

  “Can’t be bad, this, eh?” Josh grinned. “Even if we did lose the final.”

  “Yeah, you can’t win ’em all, as they say,” Matthew replied with a shrug.

  “Guess so,” Josh said, gazing at the statuette. “As long as we win some.”

  “Dead right, Joshie-Boy,” Ossie chuckled. “There’s always another game.”

  Author’s note

  Good advice for writers is to write about what you know. Well, one of the things I know something about is football, as a fan, player and coach. Lots of my soccer stories seem to involve goalkeepers as main characters – perhaps because I was a keeper in my younger days. Sadly, a keeper can go from hero to zero just by making a single mistake. Hope you have enjoyed this colourful soccer story, even if it is in black and white!

  Also available from Frances Lincoln Children’s Books

  BUTTER-FINGER

  Bob Cattell and John Agard Illustrated by Pam Smy

  Riccardo Small may not be a great cricketer – he’s only played twice before for Calypso Cricket Club – but he’s mad about the game and can tell you the averages of every West Indies cricketer in history. His other love is writing calypsos. Today is Riccardo’s chance to make his mark with Calypso CC against The Saints. The game goes right down to the wire with captain, Natty and team-mates, Bashy and Leo striving for victory, but then comes the moment that changes everything for Riccardo...

  SHINE ON, BUTTERFINGER

  Bob Cattell and John Agard Illustrated by Pam Smy

  Calypso and cricket come together in the Island’s Carnival, and Riccardo has to choose between his two passions. He has been invited to sing at the annual Calypso Final, competing against the most famous singers on the Island, and amidst the pan bands, the masqueraders and the stick-fighters he discovers why the singing competition is called‘Calypso War’. Meanwhile his team-mates at Calypso Cricket Club are playing the most important game in their history and their new captain, Bashy has a lot to learn in a very short time...

  ROAR, BULL, ROAR!

  Andrew Fusek Peters and Polly Peters Illustrated by Anke Weckmann

  What is the real story of the ghostly Roaring Bull? Who is the batty old lady in the tattered clothes? Why is the new landlord such a nasty piece of work? Czech brother and sister Jan and Marie arrive in rural England in the middle of the night – and not everyone is welcoming. As they try to settle into their new school, they are plunged into a series of mysteries. Old legends are revived as Jan and Marie unearth shady secrets in a desperate bid to save their family from eviction. In their quest, they find unlikely allies and deadly enemies – who will stop at nothing to keep the past buried.

  FALCON’S FURY

  Andrew Fusek Peters and Polly Peters Illustrated by Naomi Tipping

  Hidden treasure ... a secret crime ... the precious eggs of a bird of prey... When Jan and Marie discover who is stealing and selling the eggs of a peregrine falcon, they suddenly find themselves in danger. Only the ancient legend of Stokey Castle can help them – and the falcon will show them the way.

  Andrew Fusek Peters’ and Polly Peters’ exciting new novel revisits the Klecheks, a family from the Czech Republic newly settled in Shropshire. Teenage brother and sister Jan and Marie are soon unravelling villainy and mysteries, but they will need even greater courage and ingenuity to face what is about to happen.

  CHRISTOPHERS STORY

  Nicki Cornwell Illustrated by Karin Littlewood

  Christophe has a story inside him – and this story wants to be told. But with a new country, a new school and a new language to cope with, Christophe can’t find the right words. He wants to tell the whole school about why he had to leave Rwanda, why he has a bullet wound on his chest and what happened to his baby brother, but has he got the courage to be a storyteller?Christophe must find a way to break through all these barriers, so he can share his story with everyone.

  WASIM THE WANDERER

  Chris Ashley Illustrated by Kate Pankhurst

  No one at school can score a goal like Wasim! So he is trying out his football skills for Teamwork 10,000 and that might just lead to a trial with the Wood ley Wanderers! But how can he play his best football with Robert Bailey lurking around every corner – and then on the football pitch too?

  Also by Chris Ashley: Wasim One-Star