— Well, you see, the English winter isn't very severe as a rule, and we don't often have the
chance of skiing, skating or tobogganing, but winter is the great time for hunting, provided the
ground is not too hard.
— Is there any golf to be had near London?
— Oh, yes, any amount. There are dozens of good golf-links within an hour or so of London.
You ought to join a golf club if you're keen on the game.
— I think I shall if I get the chance. What about indoor games?
— Well, there's chess, billiards, cards, table tennis... By the way, do you play billiards?
— Well, I do, but of course, I'm not a professional or a champion, just an ordinary amateur,
and not a very good one at that,
TEXT C. THE FOOTBALL MATCH (A Conversation)
Characters — Mr. Priestley, Lucille, Frieda, Pedro, Olaf, Hob.
L u c i l l e : What splendid seats! We'll be able to see everything from here.
P e d r o : Yes, Jan has certainly looked after us well. We'll have to take him out to dinner
after the match.
T h e o t h e r s : Good idea, Pedro, we certainly must.
H o b : And we must shout for his team. I hope Jan is in form today.
M r . P r i e s t l e y : Ihope he is. I hear they are to choose the players tomorrow for
the international match and if he plays well today Jan may be chosen.
P e d r o : Yes, I heard that the Selection Committee would be at the match and I told Jan
he was to play his best today because they were watching him.
О 1 a f : It must be exciting to play in an international match.
P e d r o : Here are the teams coming out. Jan is leading the London team. He must be the
captain.
F r i e d a : Yes, he is.
H o b : Jan must be a good player.
O l a f : He is; you have to be a good player to be captain of London team.
L u с i l l e If Jan is chosen for the international match, will he have to give up his studies
and go into training?
F r i e d a : He mustn't do that. He must go on with his studies. They are more important
than football.
M г . Р г i e s l l e y : He needn't give up his studies. He has been playing regularly
and is in good form.
H o b : Jan's lost the toss and the Oxford captain has decided to play with the wind.
O l a f : Oh, well, they'll have to play against the wind in the second half. I see Jan is
playing centre-forward. He's just getting ready to kick off. There they go.
H o b : Come on, London!
(About an hour and a half later)
M r . P r i e s t l e y : This has been a grand game. I hardly remember ever seeing a
better one. Jan has played the game of his life.
L u c i l l e : I've nearly lost my voice with shouting "Come on, London!" Oh, I wish
London could win.
M r . P r i e s t l e y : I don't think they can. It must be nearly time now. It's one goal
each, and the Oxford defence is magnificent
O l a f : Yes, if my watch is right, they have three minutes to go.
F r i e d a : Look! Jan has got the ball. He's going like lightning towards the Oxford goal.
Oh, go on, Jan!
P e d r o : That Oxford centre-half is trying to stop him.
L u c i l l e : Go on, Jan. You mustn't let him stop you.
M r . P r i e s t l e y : Jan passed the ball to the inside right, a wonderful pass.
L u с i l 1 e : Oh! The inside-right is down; he's had to part with the ball.
O l a f : Look, Jan's got it again, he's beaten the fullback and is racing towards the goal.
H o b : Shoot, Jan, shoot! It's a goal!
P e d r o : Oh, what a shot! The goal-keeper hadn't a chance.
M r . P r i e s t l e y : And there's the whistle for full time, and London have won.
Well, they have to choose Jan for the international match now.
(From "Essential English for Foreign Students", Book 4, by C. E. Eckersley. A bridged)
ESSENTIAL VOCABULARY (II)
Words
Some popular sports
archery
skating
artistic
gymnastics (callisthenics)
skiing
boxing
cross-country skiing
car (motorcycle) racing
down-hill skiing
cycling
ski-jump
diving
slalom
fencing
sky
diving
(parachuting)
figure-skating
swimming
gymnastics
weight-lifting
gliding
windsurfing
hang gliding
wrestling
mountaineering
arm-wrestling
rowing and canoeing
yachting
athletics (track-and-field)
marathon (race)
discus (hammer,
javelin)
pole vault (vaulting)
throwing
race/run
high (long, triple) jump
shot putting
hurdle races
steeplechase
Some popular games
Open-air games
badminton n
net-ball n 56
56 net-ball: an English game, basically the same as basket-ball (played by women)
basket-ball n
rugby n (colloq. rugger)
cricket n
(lawn) tennis n
football n (colloq. soccer)
volley-ball n
golf n
water polo
hockey n
Indoor games
chess n
squash n
draughts n
table-tennis n
Sports Terms
amateur (professional) sport
cup (final, semi-final) match
indoor (outdoor or open-air) sports
championship n, е.g. national
football championship
sport n
compete v
sports n = events
competition n, е.g. inter-
sports adj, е.g. sports jacket
college cup competition
(shirt)
con'test v
sporting adj
'contest n, е.g. world gym nastics
tournament n
contest (rivalry in singing, beauty)
Participants
crew n (used for sportsmen
opponent (rival) n
rowing or sailing a boat)
sportsman (athlete) n
national (Olympic, college)
sportswoman n team
official (umpire, referee, judge) n
Audience
fan (colloq.) n, е.g. a foot-
spectator n
ball fan
sports enthusiast
shout for v
support v
Scoring system
best (record, fastest) time
point n, е.g. How many
defeat v
points have they won?
draw n, е.g. The match
runner-up n
ended in a draw.
score n, е.g. The score of the
draw v, е.g. The two teams drew.
game was 6:4 (six to four).
goal n
score v, е.g. He scored
lose v
20 points. Neither side
loser n
scored in the game (нe
victory n
забила гол).
Competition sites and sports equipment
barbell n
net n
beam n
play-ground n
chessboard n
puck n
chessman n
racket n
club (stick) n
rings n
discus n
ski jump
draughtsman n
sports hall
gym n
boxing gloves
javelin n
trampoline (батут) n
jumping (spring) board
uneven (parallel), asymmetric bars
Word Combinations
athletic training
to win the team (personal,
to follow a tournament
national, world) champion-
(competition, etc.)
ship
to kick the ball
to win by 2 (3, etc.) goals
to score a goal (20 points)
(points)
to keep the score
