Trial (3)

"It may rain in a few hours," Adam intoned as he withdrew his gaze from the sky.

"What are you worried about." Marcus stone gave a slight smile and said, "We'll be done with the trials by then. The scouts will only stay here a few hours."

They were at the center of the pitch amongst the 26 other players that had passed the physical fitness test the previous day. It was already 8 AM. Every single player on the field had already donned their soccer attire. They were only waiting for the arrival of Coach Aston and his team to start the official soccer trials. Adam wasn't bored since he was accompanied by his new friend.

"That makes sense," Adam concurred as he took a look around the stadium. "Are you sure the scouts will be coming today?" He inquired, creasing his brows. There were no coaches or scouts to be seen anywhere on the field or in the stands. He was beginning to think he had misheard the actual date of the trials.

"Relax," Marcus stone stated confidently. "They'll be here. I'm sure," he laughed.

"I forgot to ask," Adam intoned, locking gazes with Marcus stone. "Did you move out of the hotel yesterday?"

"Of course," stone patted his chest. "I have already moved into the Rabi Hotel," he said, looking pleased with himself.

"What the f**k!" Adam eyes widened. "What difference is there between the Rabi and mark hotels?" He yelled, attracting a few gazes from the surrounding players.

"One is named Rabi, the other Hollybum," Marcus stone replied seriously, counting on his fingers to emphasize his point.

"For Christ's sake," Adam took a few steps towards the short guy. "How many four-star hotels are in New York? Your father only has to check those that charge more than 100$ a night to find you. Can't you see that?"

"That is indeed true," Marcus stone blanched. "I'll move to a different one after the matches conclude today," he assured.

"Forget it, man," Adam sighed. "I'll help you select a hotel after the trials. I don't understand why I'm even helping you." He grumbled. He didn't want to see a talented player die prematurely.

"Thank you," Marcus stone laughed. "From the moment I saw you, I knew that you were an honorable person. What can I do to repay you? Should I link you to my sister? She is cute." Marcus stone whispered.

"If she's not as annoying you, don't bother," Adam joked

He was about to continue his conversation with Marcus stone when he heard a few players on the field yelling. "The coaches are here. The coaches are here..." They sounded like kindergarten kids that had just seen an ice cream truck.

He noticed that there were about twenty Caucasians in the crowd followed with cameras lots of them about twenty. They wore sunglasses and large hats to shield themselves from the non-existent sun.possibly from the teams in the MLS . He could recognize a few from New York City Philadelphia and NY Red Bull. All the scouts he had been expecting were finally here. His mood lifted.

"I told you they would be here," Marcus voice sounded from behind him

"Ok but why did they bring cameras". Adam said acting like he didn't know why

"They brought cameras to put this in the sponsorship video to promote there organisation for youths so we're probably gonna get lots of fame because of this". Marcus said energetically with a big grin

"You better perform your best today," Adam warned. "I don't think they will return here after today."Adam said

After Coach Aston led the group of scouts to the stands, he jogged to the pitch together with his fellow coaches and the camera crew.

The scouts were all seated close to the running tracks of the stadium. The Caucasians amongst them held very high tech cameras. Some had binoculars and notebooks.

After the coaches returned to the pitch, they led the twenty-six players through light warm-ups before anything else. Everyone stretched and ran short distances to warm their muscles. When they finished the exercises, they returned to the center of the field to listen to instructions from the coaching staff.

"A good morning to you all," Coach Aston greeted, smiling.

"Good morning, Coach Aston," the voices of the players boomed in a chorus, returning the salutation. They all seemed enthused by the presence of the scouts in the stands.

"I see you're all on time," Aston grinned. "Keep up the good spirit of sportsmanship," he urged solemnly before continuing.

"We will begin a trial match shortly. We've grouped you into two teams that will face off."

"Please note the match will only last sixty minutes. So, you will get less than forty minutes to impress the scouts if we factor in time for substitutions. Try to do your best within that timeframe also be aware you are being recorded as are front page to show over countries that the youth organizations is the best" He concluded.

The coaches had already separated the players into the green and red teams. Coach Mand laid down the charts with team formations on the running track, giving a chance to the players to learn their positions before heading to the pitch to commence the match. Adam squeezed through the crowd of players to glance at the team charts.

GREEN TEAM (4-4-2, Diamond.)

Goalkeeper; No. 1, Jackson Luna

Right-Back; No. 2 Cameron Carter-Vickers , . Left-Back; No. 3, Daniel Jackson.

Center-Backs; No. 4, Quincy quick. No. 5, James Charles.

Defensive-Midfielder; No. 6, Francis Oscar.

Attacking-Midfielder; No. 8, . Brenden Aaronson

Left-Winger; No.11, Joel Nottingham. Right-Winger; No. 7,Kaiden Bryan.

Forwards; No. 9, Ben Bellingham. No. 10, Ben Allison.

{*Subs; Leonard Busibwe, Dan Lusaka.}

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->RED TEAM (4-4-2, Diamond.)

Goalkeeper; No. 1, Samuel Barks.

Right-Back; No. 2, Alex Williams. Left-Back; No. 3, Jamal Liam.

Center-Backs; No. 4, Darren Michael. No. 5, Frederic Luamba.

Defensive-Midfielder; No. 6, Christopher Luya.

Attacking-Midfielder; No. 8, Tyler Adams

Left-Winger; No.11, Tony Maguire. Right-Winger; No. 7, Adam strong

Forwards; No. 9, Marcus stone. No. 10. Emmanuel Guts

{*Subs; Bobby Mohamed, Nathan Blake.}

****

"Come collect your bibs and head to the pitch," Adam heard Coach Mand yelling from the sidelines. "The substitutes should also come here. They'll get a chance to play later in the match."

All the players hurriedly rushed towards Coach Mand. They picked up their bibs before positioning themselves on the pitch in the 4-4-2 diamond formation. Coachability and following instructions were some of the required qualities in soccer. So, all the players arrayed themselves properly in their assigned positions, waiting for the whistle.