Authors: Joe O'Brien
Tiger Boots (10 page)
Danny was furious.
‘Clara’s just a friend. She’s my dad’s friend’s daughter in Boston, and she’s not well. That’s why we – the whole team and my school – have been having collections and football marathons.’
Trinity looked at Lowry as if to say that now was probably a good time to leave them alone; Lowry bowed out.
‘I’m sorry, Danny,’ said Trinity, looking
mortified.
Danny walked over to her. He knew how Trinity must be feeling at this moment. Trinity hung her head in shame, but Danny put his hand on her arm. She looked up at him and he smiled at her.
‘Wait here,’ he said, and ran off for the dressing room.
D
anny brought Trinity back to his house.
‘Have a seat,’ he said as he switched his computer on. ‘I should have told you all along about Clara.’
‘It’s okay, Danny,’ Trinity said. ‘This is all my stupid fault. I should have trusted you and it was wrong of me to look at your e-mail.’
Danny started typing really fast.
‘What are you doing?’
‘I’m writing an e-mail to Clara, but I want you to read it before I send it.’
Danny wrote:
How ya, Clara!
It’s Danny. I hope you’re well! Sorry it’s
taken me a week to get back to you, but you said in your last e-mail that you were going into hospital for some treatment so I wanted to wait until you were feeling better. I hope you’re okay now. It’s great news that you were given a date for your operation. I just know it will be a success and then you can get back to playing GAA and all the other stuff you love.
We had our football marathon in school last Tuesday. It was brill! But my class didn’t win. Dirty Dempsey’s class won. That’s no problem, though, because we drew with Barnfield in the last game of the league today and that was enough to make us runners up. You should have seen it. It was savage! I scored a goal at the end to level the game. Tommy Dempsey even came over after the match and gave me the twenty euro toward your collection, and more or less said well done!
Anyway, Clara, I have someone special sitting beside me. It’s my girlfriend, Trinity. She’s the best! I think that you would get on great with her. She’s kind, funny, dead smart
and she means a lot to me. I hope you get to meet her some day.
So I’ll see you next weekend. I’m really excited. I’ve never been on a plane before, but I’m sure it will be animal! Did I tell you that I dreamt a few weeks ago that I was travelling on a big plane with my da, and now it’s going to happen? Strangely, I also dreamt that I had brought something with me - something that never leaves my room – my signed Dubs’ jersey. I’m going to bring it and give it to you. I know it will mean a lot to you, being a Dubs’ fan.
That’s it for now. My da’s just come in. See ya next week.
Danny
Tiger Boots!
Trinity read the e-mail then turned to Danny and smiled, her eyes watery. As they looked at each other, Mick came into the sitting room all excited and out of breath.
‘Danny,’ Mick gasped.
‘What’s up?’
Mick had a smile on his face – a proper smile. One that Danny hadn’t seen in a while.
‘You’re not going to believe it, son. Hi, Trinity.’
‘Hi, Mr Wilde.’
‘What?’ Danny asked, anxiously.
‘That Principal of yours, Mr Dunnigan–’
‘Dunstan.’
‘Yeah! Dunstan. That’s the name. He was at the game. You’re not going to believe what he’s after just saying to me.’
‘What?’ Danny let out a laugh.
Mick clapped his hands and danced around in a circle.
‘He’s after telling me that the school caretaker is retiring, and he offered the job to me.’
‘SAVAGE!’ Danny cheered and danced in celebration with his father as Trinity laughed with joy.
Finally, the future was beginning to look good again for the Wilde boys of Littlestown.
JOE O’BRIEN is an award-winning gardener who lives in Ballyfermot, Dublin. He is the author of the first two books about GAA player, Danny Wilde, Little Croker and Féile Fever. He is also the author of the popular Alfie Green series for younger readers.
This eBook edition first published 2012 by The O’Brien Press Ltd,
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Tel: +353 1 4923333; Fax: +353 1 4922777
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Website: www.obrien.ie
First published 2010
eBook ISBN: 978–1–84717–398–0
Text © copyright Joe O’Brien 2010
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Have you read the first two books about GAA player Danny Wilde?
Turn the page to read an extract from Little Croker, the first book about Danny Wilde and his team, the Littlestown Crokes ...
M
ick Wilde's boys, in all-blue, lined up against the boys in red and green from St Agnes' Boys. Each player, from Paddy Timmons at right corner full back to Danny in midfield, right up to Doyler in full forward, anxiously awaited the throw-in.
Mick tied Heffo's lead to his bag and began his routine pacing up and down the line, while Jimmy just stood with his arms folded looking relaxed.
âHere we go,' announced Jimmy.
âCome on the Crokes!' shouted Mick.
âReady, lads?' asked the ref.
Then he gave Danny and the St Agnes'
midfielder a nod. Danny and his opposite number raised their heads as the referee blew on his whistle and threw the ball high above them.
Danny was first in the air stretching his left hand above his opponent's. He passed the ball down to Sean Dempsey, then turned his man and headed for goal, leaving the St Agnes' number nine dazed with Danny's pace. The battle had commenced!
Dempsey kicked straight up to Barry Sweeney in centre half forward, who knocked a perfect pass out to Splinter Murphy.
Splinter threw a shimmy around his man and spotted Danny running in behind the full forward line.
Danny raised his hand.
Doyler made a run wide and opened up a gap for Danny.
Splinter knocked a sweet pass in towards Danny, who caught it beautifully on the run.
Danny took a quick glance at goal and dropped the ball onto the side of his right boot.Â
The ball swerved past their keeper and into the top right corner.
GOAL!
âCome on, lads!' shouted Danny as he fisted the air in glorious celebration.
Mick and Jimmy were hopping around on the side line.
âWhat a dream start!' cheered Jimmy.
âCome on lads, settle down and back into it!' warned Mick.
Jimmy was right â Danny had given the Crokes the perfect dream start and it totally rattled the St Agnes' boys.
Barry Sweeney caught the kick out and knocked a long, high ball over for a point.
Crokes kept the ball in St Agnes' end of the field for the next twenty minutes, scoring four more points. Danny was playing a stormer in midfield, winning everything in the air and when they tried to break through, Danny relentlessly pulled off tackle after tackle.
When the ref blew for half time the Crokes were winning 1-5 to nil.
Little Croker
by Joe O’Brien ISBN: 978–1–84717–0460
Little Croker & Féile Fever by Joe O’Brien
Available in all good bookshops or from
www.obrien.ie
