Goal

Chapter One:

Now, I bet you opened this report, saw my name and thought, 'why in Gods name is Isla Pierce, of all people writing about Football?' and to be honest, I dont blame you. When I first got given this task I laughed and didnt believe poor Mr Potter who sat there wondering why I nearly spat in his face out of shock. Ladylike, I am very aware. But this report isnt simply just about football. Sure, there is football in it, but trust me when I say that even after the year I spent writing and planning this, I still dont understand the offside rule or why referees must have their polo shirts tucked into their shorts that always look ridiculously big for them. This report is more of an educational diary and blog about my journey than a report about the changes in St Johns since the opening of the Prestigious Football Academy five years ago.

At the beginning of the school year I was invited to a meeting with Mr Potter (who everyone knows hates meetings) and our Headmaster Sir Beau. I was petrified. I thought perhaps my grades werent as good as I thought they were, and they were taking steps with me before they had to write to my parents to tell them they were going to remove me from our college. Again

Im sure you can all imagine the horror that our parents would feel knowing we had to come home because we were kicked out of St Johns. I mean, what on earth would they tell their work colleagues next time they hosted a dinner none of us were invited to?

Anyway, back to the meeting. I walked in, smartly dressed as usual with my hair tied back simply because I was sweating more than the boys do in their matches. And trust me when I say thats a lot - I've smelt it. There was a slow introduction, an overview of my grades, reports from my teachers, if my fees had been paid for the year, my behaviour in Houses and if I had missed my curfew since I joined the college. Meanwhile, i'm sitting there shaking in fear for at least 20 minutes, only to be asked if I wanted to take part in an end of year report that would make up to 50% of my final grade in both of my English subjects depending on how good it was, the other 50% being exams. Of course, I jumped at the opportunity, why wouldnt I? I have never been as smart as half of you reading this. You were all shifted through prestigious private school systems since you were born, I came from a mainstream school when I was 12. I wasn't smart enough for one of the few scholarships given out here and the only reason they accepted me was because I was lucky enough to be able to afford the yearly fees and had a good family name. Mr Potter told me if my report was good enough, I could get an A* easily, and therefore I agreed before I even knew what I was getting into.

We all know Headmaster Beau loves the Football academy. It was something he invested in 5 years ago and it had gone on to be one of, if not the most, prestigious and respected football academies in England, combining a high level of education with the sport of football, and even shuffling multiple students into high league clubs, some even making the Premier League. The academy itself is what us students just call the Sports Centre. We can go there in the evenings for sports clubs but during the day its reserved for the Academy. I never really knew what was so great about it, and I didnt understand how someone could play a sport and get qualifications out of it; but now I do. Within my first day I was shown how theres a lot of theory behind sports, and how if the boys didnt do well enough in their theory, they were banned from playing. The rules are surprisingly harsh. So, when Mr Potter suggested that I write a report on how our college has changed since the opening of the Football Academy I knew exactly why. I was scared but figured all I would have to do would be research into our school, interview a few people who were here before it opened and a few who have only known it to be open.

Wrong.

A week after the meeting Mr Potter called me in and explained the terms he had agreed with Coach Mickey. This is when the whole, laughing in Mr Potters face thing happened. I had to write match reports for the team, as they lacked any sort of report for their games which made it hard to review and keep fans updated on games they couldnt make. This was scary, I had never once written a match report and I didnt know anything about the game other than you had to kick a ball and weren't allowed to use your hands. But there was more. If I did this, Coach would allow me to travel with the boys to and from their games, their tournaments, their tours around the country and abroad and their day to day life. I would be allowed into the changing rooms for team talks, interview players and coaches, fans of the team, board members, anyone I wanted. I would get the inside scoop on all things Academy. All I had to do was learn to write match reports.

Simple.

Now, looking back on the year Ive had writing this report I have realised that this task was anything but simple. Because when you get the inside scoop on a group like these boys, boys who even the most prestigious of the school idolise, you dont just get the game. You get their lives, their personalities, their views and thoughts, their pressures, their hardships, feelings, loves and losses and most importantly, you learn to see yourself in a different light.

Now, looking back, its crazy to think that the person I was then and the person I am now are two completely different people.

And its all down to one task, one game, one goal, and maybe even one boy.