Switch Play! (2 page)

Ted had been listening to the story raptly. “What happened?” he cried.

The coach sighed. “He missed and we lost the game. But the point is, he knew what he was supposed to do and he did it. And
that’s
what this practice is going to teach you —what to do and when and how to do it. Are you ready?”

Ted shouted “Yes!” along with everyone else. His mind was spinning.

If I could do what that fullback did — but score instead of miss — I’d really wow the fans!

T
ed could hardly wait to get the regular drills over with so he could learn more about switching. When it finally came time
to practice switching, he found out it was pretty easy.

The coach split the team into two groups of five and sent Bucky Pinter into the goal. He called the first group up and used
them to outline the drill.

“We’re going to go three-on-two. Stookie, Bundy, and Alan are on offense. Stookie, you go about midway between the center
line and the goal you’re attacking. Bundy, line up
about twenty feet behind him. Alan, you’re twenty feet behind Bundy.” The boys took their positions.

“On defense will be halfback Amanda and fullback Lisa. The defense will just stand there for now, until the offense gets the
idea.” Amanda placed herself next to Bundy. Lisa went between Stookie and the goal. The coach tossed the ball to Alan.

“Alan, start dribbling.” Alan did. “Now usually Alan would pass the ball to Bundy, who would pass it up to Stookie. But this
time, Alan, keep the ball and switch positions with Bundy.” Alan continued to dribble slowly until he was next to Bundy. Bundy
faltered, looked at the coach, then took a few steps back.

The coach held up his hand. “Whoa! Alan, you forgot to let your teammate know what you wanted to do. Unless you yell ‘Switch!’
Bundy’s just going to think you’re crowding his position. Try it again.”

Alan returned to his position. When the coach blew his whistle, Alan dribbled toward Bundy. “Uh, switch,” Alan said as he
drew near. The coach’s whistle shrilled.

“Louder, Alan,” he advised. “Remember, it’s going to be noisy during a game. You have to be sure your teammate hears you.
Plus, a good loud bellow can surprise the opposition just enough to throw them off balance. And don’t forget to say your teammate’s
name.”

Alan tried again. “Bundy, switch!” he yelled. Bundy dropped back, allowing Alan to keep dribbling forward. When the coach
didn’t stop him, he kept going until he was near Stookie. After a quick glance at the coach, Alan yelled, “Stookie, switch!”

Stookie moved back. Suddenly Alan was in front of the goal. With a grin, he popped a short kick that sent the ball over Bucky
Pinter’s outstretched hands and into the net.

Ted bounced on his heels. He couldn’t wait for his turn!

C
oach Bradley gradually made the drill more difficult. First he had Amanda and Lisa cover their players but not try to take
the ball. Then he had them work harder and try to steal the ball. Finally, he told the offense to switch only part of the
time to see if they could trick the defense. Sometimes it worked, sometimes it didn’t. But after ten minutes, the first group
had become used to yelling “Switch!” Now it was the second group’s turn.

Ted was the fullback on offense. He, Dewey, and Lou Barnes went through the easy steps
of the drill without a problem. Ted was eager to move on to the more difficult ones, when the defense would try to get the
ball.

When they did, however, Ted ran into trouble. He yelled “Switch!” every time instead of mixing it up. So by the fourth time,
Dale Tuget, the halfback on defense, was all over him. Coach Bradley blew his whistle.

“Ted, part of the point of switching is to catch the defense off guard,” he reminded. “Try it a few more times, but keep Dale
on his toes.”

Ted did. He reached the goal twice, but the other times he lost the ball or was forced to pass. Still, those two times were
enough to convince him that during a game, he could go all the way. In fact, he was determined to try it the very next game.

Three days later, he got his chance. The ’Cats were up against the Tadpoles. The Tadpoles weren’t usually a very difficult
team to beat.
Ted decided they’d be the perfect opponent for his switch maneuver.

The ’Cats won the coin toss and got the ball first. Ted watched eagerly as Stookie passed the ball to Jerry. Ted found himself
hoping the ’Cats would lose control of the ball to the Tadpoles.

C’mon, get down this end
, he wished silently.

His wish was granted five minutes into the game. The ’Cats scored an early goal and the Tadpoles took control at the center
line. For once, their strikers easily passed the halfbacks. Suddenly, they were right in front of the fullbacks.

Ted and Lisa rushed the ball. Jabbing wildly with their feet, they managed to free it from the attacking Tadpole. Ted swept
down on it and began dribbling downfield.

“I’m open!”

Ted glanced up and saw Dewey waving to him. Ted hesitated. His instincts told him to
pass. But he fought back the urge and kept dribbling. Moments later a Tadpole halfback was on top of Dewey. Now Ted couldn’t
pass even if he wanted to!

“Dewey, switch!” Ted yelled. As he flew by, dribbling madly, he caught Dewey’s surprised look.
But the Tadpole looked even more surprised
, Ted thought with satisfaction. He risked a quick glance over his shoulder to see if the Tadpole were chasing him.

Wham!
Ted smacked directly into Stookie. The two boys tumbled to the ground. The ball bounced over the sidelines.

“Are you crazy?” Stookie bellowed. He scrambled to his feet and watched as a Tadpole threw in the ball over his head. “I was
wide open! Why didn’t you pass it?”

“Sorry,” mumbled Ted. “I switched with Dewey and —”

“Yeah, well, you better switch back, pronto!” cried Stookie. “Look!”

Ted looked. Dewey was near the ’Cats goal. Ted could see he was trying to help, but he was getting in Bucky’s way. Bucky couldn’t
see the ball. If Dewey didn’t move, a Tadpole might be able to—

“Score!” Stookie groaned. “I can’t believe the Tadpoles scored on us so soon into the game.” He turned to Ted. “If you had
been back there, doing your job, we’d still be ahead! All I can say is, you better not ever try switching with me!”

T
ed felt bad about the goal. But as he jogged back into position, he decided he really couldn’t be blamed for it. It wasn’t
his fault that Dewey had gotten in Bucky’s way.

I bet if I’d made a goal Stookie would be singing a different tune
, he thought. He tried not to think about how he’d run Stookie down.
Next time, I’ll make it work
, he vowed.

He got his chance five minutes before the end of the first half. He found himself in the middle of the field with the ball.
Ahead of
him, Bundy was trying to get free of a Tadpole defender.

Ted decided not to wait to see if Bundy got free. Instead, he dribbled upfield and yelled, “Bundy, switch!”

Bundy didn’t hesitate. He dropped back. The Tadpole defender went with him. Except for the Tadpole fullbacks and goalie, there
was nothing but open field in front of Ted!

Then Stookie appeared, running fast and far ahead of his defender. Ted heard pounding footsteps behind him as Bundy’s defender
charged him. Ted had no choice but to pass to Stookie.

Stookie caught the pass easily. He jerked to a stop to the right of the goal and slammed the ball into the net. The ’Cats
were up 2–1.

“Nice assist,” said Bundy as he jogged past Ted to his position.

“Thanks!” said Ted. He was pleased that his switch had worked so well, but still, he hadn’t done what he’d really wanted to
do.

Luckily, there’s a whole other half left to go!
he thought happily. He sucked on orange slices and drank a cup of water during halftime, all the while thinking about how
surprised everyone would be when he scored his first goal.

The second half started. Ted waited impatiently for the chance to switch with one of the halfbacks. He followed the ball wherever
it went, even when it meant moving out of his position. Twice more he switched positions with the halfbacks, once with Amanda,
once with Bundy. Another time, he was so focused on the ball that he bumped into his sister.

“Hey, watch it!” she cried, rubbing her shoulder. “What’s with you? You’re all over the field today!”

Ted ignored her. But he soon found out she wasn’t the only one who’d noticed his getting out of position. During a break in
play, he felt a tap on his shoulder.

“Ted, I’m subbing in for you,” said Edith “Eddie” Sweeny. “Coach wants to talk to you.”

Ted’s stomach sank as he ran to the bench. He took a seat near the coach. “Uh, Eddie said you wanted to talk to me?”

The coach watched the action on the field for a moment and then said, “You looked like you could use a break. You’ve been
pretty busy out there today. Sit back, and take it easy.” That was all.

Ted breathed a sigh of relief. He’d thought the coach was going to tell him to stop switching positions. It turned out he
just wanted Ted to get a rest — which he needed anyway! But as he reached for a cup of water, he saw the coach look at him
with a slight frown.