"Vitaju! My name's Nika Kozak and I'm from Ukraine. Living in a strange country is hard sometimes but playing in a football team has helped me settle in. I am even going to a World Cup Tournament. Here we go!"

Review The footballers may be 10 year old girls but the story is as hard and gritty as any professional match. Sugar coating is the last thing you'll find in this tale of an under 11s team in a very special tournament.

When her team is drawn to represent Ukraine , Nika is overjoyed but another team member is enraged and just can't seem to accept anything other than representing England. Is this a clue to her cold, standoffish behaviour towards Nika? When she shares the story of the famous "Match of Death" with her team mates Nika begins to uncover the truth behind Jenny-Jane's behaviour. This true story of the football match between the Ukrainian team, FC Start and a Nazi-backed German team in the Second World War, had a deep effect on her friends. Pride in her heritage gives Nika the courage to tackle prejudice. The final score is not at all what she expected.

The World War Two references are hard-hitting but sensitively handled. In the Acknowledgements details of where to find out more are provided.

2010-01-29