Backfire

• Jacob Barber, Grade 9
• Short Story
• 2011

I had just trained tremendously. It was the hardest training I have ever done. I was pumped for Saturday’s showdown with Muranjuda. The coach Mark Chubb, and assistant coach, Tom Drill, were strolling over, both looking at me strangely. Once Mark rounded the boys up and was about to read the side out he mentioned that it was between Spike and I who was going to play. Mark started to read out the side and when it came to the last player to be read out he paused, he pulled both Spike and I away from the team and whispered in my ear sorry mate you’re not in the squad. I was furious! I was not going to live this down. I could have smacked Spike in the kisser and stormed off but I held myself back and didn’t
That night I went marching home from football training. I went straight to the basement to work on a potion to make Spike smell bad so he would be kicked off the team for stinking. So I set to work, and worked on it all night. The next morning I rode to school, the quickest I have ever gone. I spied on Spike all day until it was time to take action. I was going in for the kill (at least I thought I was) until Spike came up to me and apologised “sorry mate, I didn’t mean to take your spot.” I was speechless! I sprayed Spike with the stink potion and legged it. I was so confused. I was happy that I sprayed him with the potion, but I was angry with myself because he apologised to me. I didn’t know what to do. As soon as I got home that day I went straight to bed to sleep. I was exhausted.
I woke up at 10:00 am the next morning and spent the day contemplating whether I should go to football training or not. I ended up at training that afternoon and I saw Spike all by himself. I asked Jim why? Jim giggled “he stinks.” My planned had worked! He was the smelliest on the team! The training went well until Knackers leapt up for the ball and came down on his ankle and crushed it. It was the grossest thing I have ever heard. They had to take him out in an ambulance.
It was time to hear the side, Mark read out the list. He got to the interchange “on the bench we have Jim, Fred, Spike and in for his first game Travis. Everyone clapped for the first gamer. Travis you can have Knackers’ locker next to Spike. Good luck.
I went and got changed. I needed to get home and make another potion. I got home and started working. The next day I sprayed Spike with the potion and it made him smell normal again. Everything was back to normal except for Knackers. I played every game of footy that season after that.