All Quotes

"Juan: I can't. I'm sorry."

"Jeffrey: I don't get it."

"Juan: It's a family fashion. [But he can see from their expressions that the children don't understand. His mother will never let him go to Austin to play in the tournament. But if he plays only at school, she may never have to know]"

"[After school, the children hold a special meeting. They need a plan to persuade Juan's mother to let him play in Saturday's upcoming game. It is decided that the direct approach is best, but as soon as evening falls, they all go over to the trailer park]"

"[Kate knocks on the Moraleses' door]"

"Kate: Are you Juan's mother?"

"[Mrs. Morales nods in agreement]"

"Nick: We must speak to you."

"[Mrs. Morales leads the children into the small trailer. Juan sits down next to his mother and the children explain to Mrs. Morales why they have come]"

"[Mrs. Morales shakes her head, no]"

"Mrs. Morales: I don't want Juan going off by himself to the city."

"Polly: He's not among himself. We all go."

"Larry: He'd probably do better without us, Mrs. Morales. But it's a team sport."

"Tak: Austin's really not that far."

"Juan: It's just a game."

"[Sue and Lou burst out with big grins]"

"Anna: Kate, get in there! Tackle him!"

"Tom: Tackle him? This isn't football."

"Anna: Tackle means to get the ball away from him."

"Tom: Does Kate know that?"

"Kate: Tackle him."

"[Just as the Knight dribbles side-by-side, she sticks out her leg. The Knight trips and goes sprawling face-down into the dirt. Kate grins appreciatively. Perhaps I could get into this after all, she thinks]"

"[But on the sidelines, Anna moans]"

"Jay Huffer: Penalty kick!"

"[The referee blows his whistle and signals a foul. Then he places the ball for the penalty shot]"

"[The Elma children line up in front of their goal, and Jay Junior comes up to the ball. Jay Junior has a crazy, insane-scientist smirk on his face. One by one, they step out of his line of fire. Tom and Anna signal for them to get back in formation, but none of them moves]"

"[Jay Junior's kick blows into the net like a shot from a cannon. Then, eventually, the ref blows the whistle and the game ends. The Knights have won, 18-0]"

"[The Knights cheer in victory]"

"Knights: Two-four-six-eight, who did we decimate?"

"Jay Junior: What were their names again?"

"Knight #1: The Losers?"

"Knight #2: The Hicks?"

"Knight #3: The Goats?"

"Jay Junior: They're not even well enough to have a name!"

"Teammate: They're the Nothings from nowhere!"

"[The Knights resume the chant]"

"Knights: Two-four-six-eight, who did we decimate? The Nothings! The Nothings! YE-EE-EE-ES!!!"

"Sophia: We're not the Nothings! We're the Elma Nothings!"

"Nick: Will you shut up?"

"[Jay Huffer ambles up to Tom and Anna with a cocky smirk on his face]"

"Jay Huffer: We're on a high-scoring team. But eighteen to nil? That's big, even for us. [He is enjoying humiliating the Elma team] A suggestion? Lose the girls. On second thought, lose them all. These children aren't cut out for the game. Find some players with talent. [He turns to walk off, but pauses] Of course, I have no idea how you're going to do that in Elma. Victory lap, men!"

"[Huffer jogs back to his team and joins them in a lap around the field]"

"Kate: What a total jerk."

"Tom: Hey, you tried."

"Anna: And we're proud of you."

"Jeffrey: Why not? We stank."

"Tom: Well, technically, speaking yes."

"Anna: But you played. That's what's reluctant."

"Larry: What's reluctant is that we never play again."

"[The children all nod in agreement and begin heading back to the cars. And back to Elma]"