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Twelve-year-old Jennifer had one dream: to be a professional football player. But as the only girl footballer in her school, the boys often pushed and kicked her, making fun of her and telling her to play with babies.
Fortunately, Jennifer was not a good listener. She often told her mum: “I don’t really care what they say. They are just trying to discourage me, which is not going to work.”
One year later
“I did it! I did it!” Jennifer screamed after getting an offer from a major football academy.
When training began, she was glad to play with other girls, but their coach was not.
“Now I have another stupid girl to handle! I wish I coached the boys’ team,” the coach said.
Jennifer’s happiness faded as the weeks went by. When her mother asked about training, Jennifer could not hold back her tears. “I want to quit,” she sobbed as her mother tried to comfort her.
“You don’t have to keep playing,” her mum said. “But try one more week and then decide if you want to quit.”
During the next training, Jennifer saw an unfamiliar face setting up cones for drills.
“My name is Coach Craig. I am a retired footballer,” he said.
As he led the team through drills, Jennifer noticed how kind and supportive he was, and her heart felt at peace. This could be the coach to carry her to her dream.
Four years later
It was Jennifer’s first match in the starting 11.
“I believe in you, Jennifer. Show the world what you can do,” Coach Craig told her with pride.
During the game, she made good tackles and passes. But in the last 10 minutes, she got the ball a few metres away from the halfway line. Everyone expected her to dribble or pass the ball.
Instead, she kicked the ball with all her might. Goal!
The fans screamed, and her teammates gave her high fives.
This was the same young woman who was a step away from giving up on her dream. And Jennifer was just getting started.
