Alice Henderson On Debut

Twenty-nine

Shari turns out to be more skillful than she looks. Her height and slight frame are deceptive and she's only missed one throw in the ground-pick-up station. I'm all over her in the one where have to hit a single wicket though, not missing a single throw. It makes me feel good until a coach corrects my throwing technique, informing me that if I keep throwing the way I am, I'll end up doing damage to my shoulder. He tells me to see him after so he can give me some exercises to fix it. Shari looks at me with a self-satisfied grin on her face. It gets wiped off when we do a drill on running between the wickets and she's chastised for not grounding her bat properly. I guess being a bowler has made her forget to work on her batting skills.

After training, we have a recovery session in the pool with the Brisbane squad and then they head off to the gym. Since we still have an hour before lunch, Karen suggests we split up and play a game of water polo. We're using the shallowest end so at least we don't have to tread water. It's more like a game of handball but in the pool.

Somehow, Charlie and I end up on opposite sides as goal keepers, and we throw taunts at each other across the pool. The game is fast and fierce, and I notice that Paris cops quite a few dunkings from Hannah. Maybe Charlie and I aren't the only ones she's been trying to put off our games.

At four-all, Karen tells us that the next goal wins, which makes everyone step up their game. Charlie pulls off a great save off Hannah, and tosses the ball out to Dee. Dee pushes the ball in front of her and takes off swimming but is quickly caught by Nicki. Dee manages to keep the ball, even though Nicki's doing her best to jump high out of the water to block her. Dee passes off to Regan who's close enough to have a shot but luckily for me, she misses.

I grab the ball and get ready to throw it back in. All my players are marked and no-one's moving so I decide to go for a bit of a swim out myself to try to draw someone away. It works. Paris breaks away from Hannah, and as soon as I have her committed to me, I toss the ball over her head and straight into Hannah's hand. Paris slaps the water and turns back to chase Hannah down. I watch as my team tosses the ball between themselves before Shari finally has a shot which is again blocked by Charlie.

I slowly start to make my way back to the goal while Charlie sets herself and then all of a sudden, she looks up, jumps high up out of the water and tosses the ball towards our goal. I realise I'm way too far away after my swim out and try to swim back, but the ball bounces once on the water and cannons through the markers for a goal.

Charlie celebrates wildly, as do her team mates but Shari yells at me. "What the hell, Alice? You're supposed to be the goalie."

"It was a lucky shot," Hannah says.

"It was just a game," I say, pulling myself out of the pool and heading over to the towels.

"It's never just a game," Shari says. She's standing way too close to me and giving me a look of death.

"God, Shari, it's not like this will count towards whether you get picked for the Brisbane squad or not," Charlie says, standing beside me.

"Don't you get it?" Shari says. "They're watching everything."

Charlie leans in a little and lowers her voice. "They probably are. And you know what they'll see right now? A spoiled brat who cracks it whenever she loses."

Shari huffs and turns and walks away.

"She's so intense," Charlie says as she dries herself off and wraps the towel around her.

I watch as Shari heads off with Paris and the rest of their little group, obviously bitching about me and probably about Charlie too.

"She's right though," I say. "The coaches will be watching everything we do."

Charlie sighs. "Of course they will, Alice.That's what they do. The trick is to not get caught up in their crap." She takes me by the arm and pulls me to the showers. "Come on. I want to go see what we've got for lunch."