Author’s note

Many years ago, long before writing took over from teaching – thank goodness – I used to be a goalkeeper. Not a very good one, I admit, but like the reluctant hero, Simon, in this new story, I was better with my hands than my feet, so I usually played in goal. Lots of my soccer stories, like Black & White, feature goalies as main characters. A keeper can go from hero to zero simply by dropping the ball, then back to hero status again after making a great save. No wonder they often say that all goalies are crazy! I think you have to be if you want to wear the No.1 jersey for your team. Best of luck!