The Team Manager
A free A2-level English story for language learners, readable online in 4 languages, with an option to listen via the free Storyteller app.
Cillian does not make the basketball team, so the coach offers him a different job and he must decide.
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Cillian reads the list on the gym door twice. His name is not on it. He does not make the basketball team.
He turns to leave, but the coach calls him. "Cillian, wait. Do you have a minute?"
"Yes, coach."
"I need a team manager," the coach says. "You carry the water, write the scores, and bring the balls. You come to every practice. You sit with the team."
Cillian says nothing. He wants to play, not to carry water.
"Think about it," the coach says. "Tell me on Monday."
At home, his sister listens to the story. "You can say no," she says. "You like running. You can try a different sport."
She is right. But all weekend, Cillian thinks about the gym. He thinks about the sound of the ball. He does not want to leave it.
On Monday, he finds the coach at the gym door. "I will do it," he says.
"Good. Practice starts now," the coach says.
Cillian writes every score on a paper. After a game, a tall player takes a bottle from him. "Thanks, Cillian. What is the score?"
"Twelve to ten," Cillian says. Everyone knows his name now.
At the end, the coach throws him a ball. "Take a shot." Cillian shoots, and the ball goes in. The team shouts. He picks up the empty bottles and goes to fill them again.
