Soccer Hero by Matt Christopher has been reviewed by Focus on the Family’s marriage and parenting magazine.
Soccer Hero by Matt Christopher has been reviewed by Focus on the Family’s marriage and parenting magazine.
Rob Lasher plays on a soccer team called the Pirates. One day at practice, Coach Brennan has a heart attack. Rob knows CPR and performs it on the coach until the paramedics arrive. His team members are awed by his quick thinking and say he saved the coach’s life.
Everyone starts calling Rob a hero. The thankful Mrs. Brennan tells Rob her husband is improving, but he will need an operation on his heart. He won’t be able to coach the team anymore. Rob gets the players together to brainstorm. They have to find a new coach so the Pirates won’t be split up. Many of the players defer to whatever Rob says, now that he’s a hero. But one player, Dmitri, doesn’t like seeing Rob get all the attention.
A local reporter asks to interview Rob. Rob is still embarrassed by the attention, but the reporter reminds him a newspaper story might help the team find a coach. She also says it may encourage families to get their kids trained in CPR. The article about Rob makes the front page. A new coach, Stan Benoit, signs up to lead the Pirates.
Coach Benoit makes Rob team captain. But Dmitri and another player, Scott, are clearly unhappy with his choice. During the scrimmage at practice, more players take Dmitri’s side. As the season continues, the team becomes more divided.
Rob finally realizes he needs to do something. He makes a difficult call to Dmitri. Together, the two convince the others that a player named Benji, who has always promoted team unity, should be the captain. Under Benji’s leadership, the Pirates begin to get along and win games. Coach Brennan comes to watch and thanks Rob again for his heroism.
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Rob’s dad works for a disaster relief organization and travels all over the world. Rob’s mom supports and encourages him. Coach Brennan demonstrates his gratitude for Rob’s heroism. Coach Benoit only signed up as coach to help promote his business, but he gets more excited about soccer in the end.
The words heck and gosh appear.
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