Froggy the Gator

The Soccer Minotaur!

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Froggy the Gator and his friends have their first soccer practice of the season. And guess who is their coach? That's right, Daddy the Gator! And guess what ELSE? If you guessed, Froggy imagined a wild adventure at the soccer field, you...are...correct!

Duration:: 8m
Broadcast on:: 28 Aug 2024
Audio Format:: mp3

Welcome back, everybody, to another episode of Froggy the Gator, your favorite kids' podcast. And like we always say at the beginning of these, if you want to help the show grow, the best things you can do are to first tell your friends about Froggy the Gator, and to second, make sure you've rated us five stars, of course, if you think that's what we deserve, and if you have your parents' permission, on your podcast app of choice. And if you do those two things, we're going to keep growing nicely, thanks to you, thanks to your friends that you told about Froggy the Gator, and thanks to your parents. Let's start it out today with a big happy birthday to Sam, who is going to be six on September 2nd. And there won't be a show this Friday because I'm going out of town with my family to celebrate Labor Day. So let's go ahead and wish Sam a happy birthday now, happy birthday, sir. And Sam and his brother Connor, who is three years old right now, also wrote in a joke for us today. And their joke goes like this. Why did the horse dislike living in the city? Why did the horse not like his urban home and his urban dwelling? The answer is because he had too many neighbors get it because horses may, but also cities are generally more crowded with people than other settings. So he has more neighbors in the city. Well done, fellas. Thank you for that. And our story today is incredibly exciting, and it starts right now. Even bright Saturday morning, froggy the Gator and his friends, Mr. Hummus, worm bird, and tomato hedgehog, gathered at the park for their first soccer practice of the season. They were all really excited as they saw the freshly painted white lines on the soccer field and the gleaming new white goalposts. The what made this practice even more special was that Daddy the Gator was their coach. Alright team, Daddy the Gator called out, clapping his hands together. Today's practice is all about teamwork, passing, and most importantly, getting better. Are you ready? Yeah, froggy and his friends cheered in unison. A froggy couldn't contain how excited he was. He loved soccer so much and was so excited that his dad was his coach and he couldn't wait to show off his skills. "Let's start with some warm-up drills," Daddy the Gator said. "Froggy, you lead us in the stretching." And froggy was really proud as he got to lead his friends in the stretching. They did toe touches, they did jumping jacks, arm circles, all while chatting about how great their team was going to be this season. After the warm-up, Daddy the Gator set up cones for dribbling drills. As froggy practiced weaving in and out of the cones, his mind started to wander. And he imagined himself on the field during a big championship match with thousands of cheering fans in the stands cheering his name. But suddenly, his daydream took a surprising turn. As he dribbled past one of the cones, it was no longer just a regular cone anymore. And froggy's mind, the field had transformed into a massive arena with towering stone walls. And in the center of the arena stood a gigantic ferocious creature, a soccer minotaur. The soccer minotaur was an enormous beast, half-man, half-bull, with big horns and fiery eyes. It wore a jersey and soccer cleats just like froggy, but its horns gleamed in the sunlight and it snorted steam from its nostrils. The minotaur stood on the opposite side of the field, ready to challenge froggy in the ultimate soccer duel. Froggy gulped and steadied himself. "I'm not afraid of you, soccer minotaur," he declared in his mind. "This is my field, and I'm going to win." In his imagination, Froggy took the ball and charged toward the minotaur. The minotaur let out a mighty roar and began dribbling the ball back with lightning speed. The ground trembled beneath his powerful hooves as he advanced toward froggy. And back in the real world, Froggy's friends noticed that Froggy was lost in his own thoughts. "Froggy, are you okay?" Wormbird asked. "Yeah, you look like you're facing some kind of giant or something," tomato hedgehog added. Froggy snapped out of his daydream for a second and just smiled. "Oh, I'm fine, I'm just imagining some fun challenges ahead." Daddy the Gator blew his whistle, signaling the start of the practice scrimmage. "Alright team, let's divide into two sides and play a quick game. Froggy, you're the captain of one team, and Mr. Hummus, you'll be the captain of the other." As the match began, Froggy couldn't help but let his imagination run wild again. The soccer field once more became the grand arena, and the soccer minotaur was now his opponent in this epic battle for the championship title. The minotaur charged forward with the ball, his powerful legs propelling him across the field like a freight train, but Froggy was quick on his feet. Starting left and right, anticipating the minotaur's every move. "You won't get past me, soccer minotaur," Froggy shouted in his mind, of course. His determination was burning brighter than ever, and the minotaur just grinned as he dribbled the ball with expert skill, trying to outmaneuver Froggy. But Froggy was fast, faster than the minotaur had expected. He timed his slide tackle perfectly and stole the ball right out from under the minotaur's hooves. The crowd and Froggy's imagination whirled roared with excitement as he sprinted down the field with a minotaur hot on his heels. Froggy could feel the minotaur's steam breath on the back of his neck, but he didn't let it scare him. He kept his eyes on the goal, determined to score the winning point. And then again, back in reality, Froggy's team was working together, just fine. Mr. Hummus passed the ball to worm bird, who quickly tapped it over to Tomato Hedgehog. Tomato Hedgehog saw Froggy in position and kicked the ball over to him. Go for it Froggy, Mr. Hummus cheered. I know this is a scrimmage, and we're on the opposite teams, but I still want to see a score. Froggy took the pass and dribbled toward the goal, but in his imagination, he was actually dodging the minotaur's massive horns and avoiding his crushing tackles. The minotaur was fierce, but Froggy was faster, more nimble, and more determined. With one final burst of speed, Froggy imagined himself outmaneuvering the minotaur, leaving him stumbling behind him. He lined up his shot, aimed for the top corner of the goal, and kicked the ball with everything he had. In his imagination, the ball soared through the air, and slow motion as the crowd held its breath. The minotaur leaped to block the shot, but it was too late. The ball flew past the minotaur's outstretched hands and into the back of the net. Goooooo! Froggy shouted aloud, snapping back to reality just as the reel ball hit the back of the reel net in the reel game. His teammates cheered, and Daddy the Gator gave a proud smile and a high-five. Great shot Froggy, that's how it's done. Froggy felt really proud and accomplished as all his friends gathered around to celebrate. The soccer minotaur may have been a fierce opponent in his imagination, but in the real world, Froggy had proven himself a soccer star. After practice as they all gathered for a snack, oranges and crackers of course, Froggy couldn't help but share his daydream with his friends. "Guys, you won't believe what I imagined during the game," Froggy said. "I was actually playing against a giant soccer minotaur." It was crazy, but I outplayed him and I scored the winning goal. "A soccer minotaur," Warren Bird said, flapping his bug wings, "that sounds incredible." You sure do have some wild imagination, Froggy, Tomato Hedgehog laughed, but I have to admit, it does sound like a fun challenge. Daddy the Gator, overhearing the conversation, smiled and walked up to Froggy. Imagination is a powerful tool, son. It helps you dream big and face any challenge that comes your way. Just remember, whether it's a soccer minotaur or any other obstacle, you've got what it takes to succeed as long as you keep trying. Froggy grinned up at his dad, "Thanks dad, I'll keep that in mind." As the sun began to set, casting a warm glow over the empty soccer field, Froggy and his friends had packed up all their gear and were heading home. They were tired, but they eagerly anticipated the exciting soccer season ahead of them. Froggy knew that no matter what challenges came their way, whether real or imagined, they would face them together as a team. And who knows, maybe one day they'd encounter that soccer minotaur again, this time for the championship title.