Rivermouth made five yards on the very first try, and the onlookers were delighted or dejected, according to their sympathies.
"It’s a snap!" declared a Rivermouth man. "Fardale never could play real football. This is the first time in four years she has dared play us, and we’ll show her to-day what football really is."
It was true that Fardale had declined for four years previously to play with Rivermouth, but that was because Rivermouth had no real standing as a school team, being made up of both high-school players and outsiders. This year, however, Rivermouth had seemed to comply with the requirements. Eaton had stood by Fardale in barring Rivermouth, but Eaton agreed to play the barred team this year, and so Fardale was brought to consent, not wishing to seem afraid.
But all the time it was known that several of the players on the Rivermouth team simply attended the high school there in a perfunctory way in order to get onto the team. They took no regular course of studies, and made little effort to progress in any superficial course they pretended to follow. At least one of them, Dolby, the left half-back, had played on a semi-professional baseball-team and received money for his playing. His home was in Rivermouth and the baseball season was over, so he went in for football.
The first gain of the home team was of a nature to make it seem that Rivermouth could walk right through the visitors.
Newton had made the first advance. In the second trial the ball was given to Dolby, and he went smashing into Buckhart.
Buckhart was right there this time, and he stood "with his hoofs planted," as he expressed it. Rivermouth was held without gaining an inch.
Thinking this might be the fault of Dolby, the ball was given to Newton again, and the red-headed half-back of the home team went at Buckhart with his head down.
"Whoa, dang ye!" snorted the Texan, as he crouched, got Newton round[round] the legs, and slammed him to the ground, unmindful of the interferers who had tried to butt him aside.
"There!" puffed the "Maverick," with keen satisfaction. "I reckon mebbe that’ll hold you for a while!"