Muffy's Soccer Shocker

Summary
Muffy is proud that her father is the new coach of the soccer team—until he starts exhausting everyone on the squad with drills like the Piston, the Muffler, and, worst of all, the Shock Absorber.

Plot
The episode opens with Arthur saying how soccer practice hasn't been the same ever since Mr. Crosswire took over as coach. He has been shouting out pump-up phrases during the drills that no one really seems motivated about. After a while, Arthur is up next in the drill and gets hit in the face with a soccer ball.

TITLE CARD

The kids reflect about last year's coach, Trevor, who was a young man that cared more about having fun and great efforts rather than the actual game of soccer itself, which didn't impress everyone because they lost every game that season. Meanwhile, at the Crosswire Motor dealership, Mr. Crosswire meets with the parents to inform them that Trevor quit coaching, much to David Read's delight because he thinks that the team will hopefully win a game this year. Instead, he will be the coach and demonstrates how powerful the team will be by using motors as an example. The parents willingly accept the offer. Everyone seems nervous about Mr. Crosswire being the new coach, but Muffy seems very confident, thinking that there will be no way that he will embarrass her. The practice begins with Mr. Crosswire leading the kids in a cheer, which doesn't seem to motivate everyone. The Brain wonders what the cheer is supposed to mean, but Mr. Crosswire tells him that the team is meant to be unstoppable. The drills then begin, but Muffy misses the ball when passing it to Buster. Then, she struggles with the other drills, feeling worn out. In the end, the first practice turns out to be not to good for the kids and Arthur thinks that Mr. Crosswire treats everyone like cars. Buster agrees and wishes that he could be an "air bag". The Brain also feels sorry for Muffy, considering the fact that she had to do the drill twice. The comment upsets her and believes that her father can make this team a winning team. Mr. Crosswire praises everyone for their efforts, including Muffy. Because of her "strong" efforts, Muffy is chosen as the team goalie, which surprises her. Then, Mr. Crosswire tells everyone to sprint to the tree, which tires them out even more.

The next day, Muffy claims to her father that she has a fever. He takes her to the doctor and it shows that she doesn't have any signs of a fever, but she gets a measles shot. At the next practice, Muffy's arms still hurt, which causes her to miss shots. She has difficulty positioning herself and stopping shots, which upset her. Mr. Crosswire tells her that goalies are meant to stop shots when the balls come directly to the goalie, not to dodge away from them. At school, things get worse for Muffy, considering how tired and weak she feels. Arthur believes that Muffy isn't fit to be a goalie, but each time she communicates with her father, there's always a new drill to do. Buster, on the other hand, feels motivated after learning the team cheer. Francine is worried about the first game of the season and feels that Trevor would've stayed. Muffy finally accepts going in as goalie for the first game and manages to eat her lunch.

Back at the Crosswire residence, Mr. Crosswire is watching an old video of when he played soccer at Muffy's age while getting ideas for the game. Muffy wishes to talk to him and she sits on the couch with him. In the video where game Mr. Crosswire played, his team got drubbed 12-0. Back then, he wasn't much of a soccer player. Muffy once again considers not being the goaltender because she's afraid of losing. Mr. Crosswire believes that she did much better today, considering she stopped two shots. As a result, Muffy is appointed as substitute goaltender and she feels much better.

The next day, Lakewood squares off against Mighty Mountain. Buster, worried, thinks that they're history. Arthur believes that they'll be ancient history while the Brain thinks pre-history. Mr. Crosswire asks who's ready to play, but the kids say the cheer in a tired and unconfident way. Then, the game is underway. Buster is afraid about Mr. Crosswire quitting if the team loses. Buster, uses his "muffler" to pass the ball to Francine, but he gets knocked down. Francine gets the ball while Muffy cheers and coaches with a megaphone. Then, Francine scores a goal to make it 1-0 for Lakewood. Arthur believes that they're losing, but Buster corrects him by saying that they are in the lead 3-2. Arthur loses track of the ball and Mighty Mountain goes for a shot. The Brain stops the shot, but he gets injured on the play, spraining his ankle. It's up to Muffy now to be the goaltender. She seems very nervous as play continues. She attempts to stop a Mighty Mountain shot, but it trickles into the net, tying the game for Mighty Mountain at 3-3. With ten seconds to go, Mighty Mountain attempts to get the ball on goal, but Muffy stops the shot, ending the game in a 3-3 tie. Muffy believes that she got scored on, but Mr. Crosswire tells her that she stopped the shot and is very proud of her. Then, the team celebrates as Mrs. Crosswire takes her video. Finally, we see a future scene of when Muffy is a grown up and has kids and a soccer team of her own, showing them that moment of when she saved the game. Then, she teaches everyone the cheer that her father taught her, which tires them out as well.

Characters
Minor Characters Background Characters
 * Muffy Crosswire
 * Ed Crosswire
 * Arthur Read
 * Buster Baxter
 * Francine Frensky
 * Binky Barnes
 * Alan Powers
 * Trevor
 * David Read
 * Jane Read
 * Oliver Frensky (does not speak)
 * Mr. Powers
 * Millicent Crosswire
 * Sue Ellen Armstrong
 * Fern Walters
 * Bitzi Baxter
 * Mr. Barnes

Trivia

 * This episode marks the first and last full appearance of Trevor; he is in the background of "Waiting to Go".
 * This episode marks the debut of Ed Crosswire as coach of the Lakewood Elementary Soccer Team.
 * This episode was made into a song called "Muffy's Soccer Song" and was featured as the tenth track on Arthur's Really Rockin' Music Mix.
 * In the last scene, Muffy is the mother. This actually takes place in the future.
 * The Justin Bradley version of this episode story is available on the VHS and DVD editions of The Good Sport.
 * The car Ed is bouncing up and down is modeled after the 1996-2000 Chrysler Town & Country minivan.

Home Video
DVD: VHS:
 * The Good Sport (video)
 * Arthur's Music Jamboree
 * The Good Sport (video)