Additional information
by Phil Knibbs (Illustrator), Mark Newnham (Illustrator), Martin Smith (Author)
The Worst Football Team - a brand new football comedy from bestselling Football Boy Wonder author Martin Smith.
This is a football story with a difference. A funny football book that children will love .. and will make the adults reading with them laugh out loud too. Because who doesn't love an underdog soccer story?Meet Pellie, Hildy, Dribbler, Bolo, Stevie, Dazza, and Brendan.
These are the players for Lane FC Meerkats Under-7s.
Once you've seen Meerkats play, you won't forget - because they're the worst football team the world has ever seen.
I know. I know.
They can't be that bad.
I'm being harsh. Or too dramatic.
Trust me.
I'm not.
They are TERRIBLE. No, they're even worse than that.
Most of the team can't kick the ball, or run in the right direction.
Half of them don't even like football.
One of the team does like spiders, though.
And he talks about them - ALL OF THE TIME.
Coach Mark is great. He's been training Meerkats for a year.
And he has high hopes for them.
They still can't attack, defend or pass.
But they are great at causing trouble in all sorts of different ways.
The football season is here, and the first big match is nearing close.
Can Coach Mark inspire the Meerkats to glory?
HA HA HA!
Good one.
No, just no.
Don't be so silly.
But Coach Mark hopes they might score a goal - someday.
The Worst Football Team is aimed at children aged 5-8. It is a hilarious story of being part of a team, fun, poop, football, and spiders. Children will love the crazy characters - and parents will chuckle at poor Coach Mark's despair as they read along with their kids. So many kids' football books are serious. Not this book. In fact, it is the exact opposite. Funny soccer books for children are hard to find. This, I hope, fills the gap. An absurd number of boys and girls play football every week. They're all better than Lane FC Meerkats Under-7s, I assure you. But it's not always about the result, is it? Half the time, it's the adventures that a team has before, during and after a match. And I hope - in some small way - everyone, whether child or adult, can relate to The Worst Football Team. ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Martin Smith wrote The Football Boy Wonder, the first part of the bestselling Charlie Fry Series. It tells the story of a boy with cystic fibrosis who becomes the world's greatest footballer after a freak accident.
Aimed at children 8-11, the series has fans across the world - raising awareness about living with cystic fibrosis with every copy sold.
Now a retired journalist with advanced CF himself, Martin writes kids' stories in his spare time, mainly to keep away from the fridge.
