There’s brilliantly paced football excitement on and off the pitch in this fast moving adventure. The future of Hatton Rangers is resting on Nat Dixon, their mysterious new signing, but what neither the club nor the fans know is that Nat is only 13! Nat’s been busy learning a new past but there is nothing that can prepare him for the high octane excitement of what lies ahead. Will he be able to save the club’s fortunes?
Click here to link back to a page featuring all of our World Cup selections.
Nat has grown up travelling around the world with his Dad. He's played football everywhere they've lived and honed his skills on the beaches of Rio de Janeiro. Now they are settling back at home in England. Then at a 'community' day at his favourite football team, Hatton Rovers, currently struggling at the bottom of the Premiership, Nat's talent is spotted by the club's scout. To his and his father's amazement, he finds himself talking to the manager about a place on the first team squad. There is just the little detail of his age - he's big for 13 but surely they can't get away with him posing as a 16-year-old, the minimum age for a professional player? The club's veteran striker takes an immediate dislike to Nat and warns him off trying to get a place on the team. Nat's suspicions are aroused and soon he begins to think there is something more to Hatton Rovers' poor performance, and a local reporter begins to have suspicions about Nat. What seems like every boy's dream is quickly confronted by the tough reality of the world of professional football in this superbly exciting thriller.
Jonny Zucker has worked in radio, played in several bands and has worked as a stand-up comedian and a teacher. He started writing full-time and has now written over thirty books for adults, teenagers and children. These include the Venus Spring books for Piccadilly Press and the Max Flash for Stripes. He also wrote the Festival Time! series for Frances Lincoln. He lives in London with his family.
