Today was the day! Will Taylor, age 12, from Houston, TX, still couldn’t believe he had been lucky enough to win the big soccer sweepstakes. The grand prize had been tickets to watch his favorite team the Spartans at the stadium. Will was especially excited because as the big winner he was going to get to sit on the bench with Phil and Raphael! Also, Will could take Nancy and Robert to the game, too.

Once inside the stadium, Will, Nancy and Robert were ushered to the Spartans locker room
“Will, you’ve been such a big fan of ours that we’d like to make you an honorary member of the Spartans,” the coach said. “Here’s your very own uniform.”
The coach then turned to the players. “Okay everybody, let’s win this one for Will!”
The team all cheered and ran out to the field.

Will, Nancy and Robert hurried to their seats on the bench. They didn’t want to miss the opening kick off.
As they sat down, the referee tossed the coin. The Spartans won the coin toss, and decided that they would kick off.
The ball was kicked into play. The players dribbled the ball down the field.
“Go team!” yelled Will.

Will watched excitedly as the ball went up and down the field. His team kept making runs at the goal but hadn’t been able to score yet. The opposing team was the Panthers and they had already scored once.
Suddenly, Will heard a whistle. One of the Spartans had been fouled by the other team and was lying on the ground clutching his leg.
With all the excitement on the field, no one noticed that the ball was zooming through the air right towards Will. What could he do? Thinking fast, Will gave the ball a mighty kick. Up, up in the air the ball went.

That was quite a kick.” The coach said to Will. “We have an injured player and the team needs a player to kick the free kick. Have you ever kicked a free kick before Will?”
“Sure! I love playing Soccer! I know I can score on the free kick for you,” Will said.
Will could not believe his good luck. He was actually going to get a chance to help the Spartans win the game!

Phil and Raphael walked up and said, “Glad you are going to try our free kick, Will. We know you can score.”
Will lined up in front of the goal to kick the ball.
The coach yelled, “I know you can do it, Will.”

Will looked at the soccerball lying on the field. With all of his might, he kicked the ball straight at the goal.
The goalie from the Panthers jumped towards the ball as it flew through the air. The soccerball sailed by the goalie’s hands and into the net.

Now the score was tied, but Will wanted the Spartans to win.
Will used all his soccer skills. He dribbled the ball down the field, he trapped the ball with the top of his foot. He even used his head to pass.
“Way to go Will,” yelled the coach from the sidelines. “That was a great header!”
Will kept looking for the shot but hadn’t scored another goal. There was less than a minute left in the game and Will was getting tired, but he couldn’t disappoint his team.

The ball came towards Will but he was far from the goal. Suddenly, he saw an opening.
“Do I really have the shot?” wondered Will.
There was only one way to find out. Will used all his strength and tried a long kick. The crowd grew silent as the ball flashed through the air. The ball hit the edge of the goal for just a second, then bounced into the net. Score!

Will had scored the winning goal! The Spartans had won the game! The crowd started chanting, “Will, Will!” The other players hoisted Will above their shoulders and marched him around the field.
“This has been the best day of my life,” Will said to Nancy and Robert.
As the coach handed Will the Most Valuable Player trophy, he said, “Will, you can play on our team any day. You’re a real soccer superstar!”