Ken84050

Many, many thanks, Graeme. Normally I avoid incomplete serials, but after finishing "Leopard Skin Cover" I was thoroughly hooked on your regular rations of "Leopard Spots". They were highlights of the week. Your wonderful range of characters really do seem like real people worth caring about. A lot. Football held them all together, but so many personal things were going on as well. You do a fine job of weaving all the strands together. Also you have foreshadowed so many things about their futures that all your fans will be queued up when you are ready to begin Book 3. Of course your work takes priority. At the height of your career you have done amazingly well to find so much time for writing already. There's a huge amount of gratitude out here, certainly in my corner of the internet. Sincere respect, Ken.

This is rather off-topic, being the wrong kind of football, but some of you may be interested. There's an annual tournament between gay and inclusive rugby teams in Australia and New Zealand. This year's has just started in Auckland: http://events.stuff.co.nz/2015/purchas-cup/auckland/western-springs

Graeme, you wretch! It was a fair bet that the game would lead up to a nail-biting finish in the fourth quarter, but not that you would postpone it to Chapter 57. How could you tease us poor readers like that? Now we have to wait a week!

Surprises! Jim enjoyed his parents' surprise arrival, and he obviously gets on really well with them. Neil was wise to link them with his own parents. In early chapters Phil Rosewood's homophobia overwhelmed his good qualities, but now we can see him as a better person. He even apologized to Jim. Jessica Henderson has a lively mind. Her little speech on relationships between God's children may have been on exactly the right wave-length for Mary Rosewood. Let's hope so, since Ty later said of Jim's parents: Liam was mischievous with his school football mates in Chapter 54: So that's another surprise coming up. And there may be a third. Kevin wasn't exactly frank with the school footballers: Perhaps Evelyn needs to mention the Sydney Swans to them. Let's just hope there's no nasty surprise at the end of the grand final.

What whole-hearted sponsors Matt and Gary are - certainly not just fair-weather friends. "Next year" means 2015. Jim's parents seem like people whom Neil's parents could respect and like. [EDIT TO ADD. That's not my snobbery, but Phil Rosewood's. I was recalling Chapter 17: So Philip Henderson should meet with his approval.] The Saturday dinner promises to be quite an event. Everyone will be concerned about Ty's fitness. Phil Rosewood's unemployment is unlikely to remain secret. Neil is no longer letting his mother shut her eyes to his sexuality, even though his father wants him to. His time with the Leopards and with Liam has given him a new confidence. Thank you, Graeme, for bringing on stage such a kaleidoscope of people. There's even a new glimmer of hope for Jarrod and Mary.

That's clear in Chapter 53 too. The description of the game was enlivened by all the different points of view: AFL scouts, Ty in hospital, radio commentators, and various young supporters. After all the build-up, surely the Leopards won't lose the grand final? Graeme has dropped a lot of hints suggesting what may happen after that. The players will hear about Peter's leaving, and everyone will be thinking about his replacement. Speculation about AFL drafts will no longer be subordinated to the Leopards' team efforts. Players will have more time for their girlfriends and boyfriends. A foretaste of that was the little scene showing Deon and Clarissa more affectionate than before. And thank you, Graeme.

Chapter 52 is clearly Ty's chapter, or perhaps rather Ty's knee's chapter. The hyperbaric treatment is surprising, but no doubt Graeme has done his research about that. It seems that the Carlton club were right to keep their interest in Ty a secret. The Hawthorn club were interested enough to enquire about his injury, but as luck would have it they were deterred by his father. Lucky Carlton! Robert Flanders may deserve someone's gratitude after all. Of course Patrick O'Malley deserves far more gratitude; and perhaps after Carlton shows its hand the Leopards should celebrate Patrick in some special way. We shall see. Now a minuscule complaint. Chapters 50-52 have given us a feast of football but a famine of flirting. Some other sentimental readers also may be hoping for more about Liam & Neil, Deon & Clarissa, Todd & Lorraine, and even Paul & Teresa (Chapters 20 & 29) if he can finally pay off his debt. Please, Graeme?

Why aren't people cheering for the Upstaged trilogy? There aren't even many chapter reviews. Whether it's by Nephylim or by Stephanie Danielson or both (if they are in fact different people), it's a really absorbing series of tales. The main characters are so sharply defined: Erik, impetuous and passionate; Asher, damaged and deep; Daisy, fiercely protective of her brother; Billy, kind and dependable; Vince, sincerely sweet; Connor, heart of gold in a rough package; Angel, affectionate despite his family. Unfortunately I've caught up with Book 3 (Duet) Chapter 20, so now I must wait for developments in Ireland and Italy. Anyone who hasn't got that far has a treat in store. To say much more would entail spoilers, which I want to avoid.

What a lot of ups and downs in Chapter 51! Dave's delight when his nemesis was arrested distracted him during Wednesday's practice but then he came right in the next game. Ty had enough self-discipline to cope well with Craig Roach's taunting but then suffered a knee injury which could seriously affect his future. The Sydney Swans told Sam that they were interested in Deon but joining them would take him away from Clarissa. Graeme doesn't give his footballers an easy ride.

Yes, but non-subscribers like us can still see the YouTube video.

Another game lost. The Leopards urgently need to win from now on; so Graeme has set us up for a series of football cliffhangers. Deon and Clarissa in the restaurant showed amazing maturity and honesty. They really deserve each other. Luckily some AFL clubs in Melbourne are taking Deon seriously, so he has a good chance of staying close to Clarissa.

I thought cheerful chat too soon after the news about Phil Walsh would have been callous. Chapter 48 was one of the most cheerful yet. In their chapter reviews, Cole Matthews called it "all positive" and Defiance19 called it "feel good". Exactly! Liam's football party brought out the best in everybody. In the evening Liam in Neil's arms, with Clarissa and Doug, chatted happily like four friends. Then the Purple Bombers kept up the warm and fuzzy atmosphere. Clarissa is not only smitten with Deon but seems just a little shy, amazingly enough.

Subtle! Peter hands over a bit more responsibility to Julie and Will, just in case he does disappear off to the Western Bulldogs. Will Deon go with him? Then will Clarissa become a Bulldogs fan? Mary Rosewood understands what is keeping Neil at a distance. But notice the "we". She doesn't yet accept that the prejudice is her own and no longer Phil's. As for the powerful alliance between Doug and Neil - lucky Liam!

Let's not compete, Timothy. There may be quite a few of us who enjoy stories about teenage boys as long-delayed escapism.

I've never been homophobic, but I have had bad attitudes that needed fixing. Haven't you? Phil's attitude is well and truly fixed. From impunity's chapter review: Brilliant! Or even the TV channel could be interested in a follow-up.