Nate’s Case of the Vanishing Goalposts
On Saturday morning, the goalposts have disappeared! Time for the Football Detectives.
On Saturday morning, Nate arrived at Bluebell Common with a football under one arm. But something was wrong. Something was very wrong. The goalposts had vanished!
‘Who would steal goalposts?’ said Benji. Nate took out a notebook and magnifying glass. ‘Time for the Football Detectives,’ he said. ‘First, we need clues.’
They looked at the grass. There were two big dents where the goalposts had stood. And next to them, Nate found a bucket with a little blue paint inside. ‘Aha,’ he said, writing it down.
‘Perhaps it was a sneaky fox!’ said Benji. Nate shook his head. ‘The tracks go this way,’ he said, pointing at the path. The detectives followed them past the swings and the old oak tree.
They crept up to the little shed behind the pavilion. The door was open a crack. A strange sound came from inside. Scrape, scrape, scrape. Benji gulped. ‘Ready?’ whispered Nate.
They pushed the door open. Inside was Dexter the deer, the groundskeeper, holding a paintbrush! And there, laid out on the floor, were the goalposts, gleaming with fresh white paint.
‘Surprise!’ said Dexter. ‘The big match is tomorrow. I wanted the goalposts to be sparkling clean.’ Nate burst out laughing. Benji laughed too. The mystery was solved!
They helped Dexter carry the goalposts back to the pitch and set them up. The Football Detectives had solved their first case. ‘And now,’ said Nate, ‘who wants to play?’
The little lesson
When something puzzles you, look for clues and ask questions before you decide.
Let’s talk about it
- Which clue helped the detectives most?
- What do you think the surprise was for?
Finish stories to collect Nate as a sticker in your Sticker Book.
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Lily and the Missing Goals
On Saturday morning, the goalposts have disappeared! Time for the Football Detectives.
The Day Oscar Kicked the Ball
Oscar the mouse has never kicked a ball before. Today is the big day!
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