The Foxhole Court

The Foxhole Court (2013) is an adult contemporary novel by Nora Sakavic and the first book in the All for the Game trilogy. The novel blends the genres of sports fiction, crime thriller, and LGBTQ+ romance. Sakavic originally published the series online before self-publishing the books, which subsequently gained a significant cult following through internet fandom. The story follows Neil Josten, the runaway son of a murderous crime lord, who risks exposure by joining a dysfunctional university team for the violent sport of Exy. The novel explores The Conflict Between Pure Survival and Living a Meaningful Life, Redefining Family as a Conscious Choice, and The Malleability of Identity and the Performance of Self.

This guide refers to the 2013 self-published eBook edition.

Content Warning: The source material and this guide contain depictions of graphic violence, physical abuse, emotional abuse, child abuse, substance use, suicidal ideation and/or self-harm, and cursing.

Plot Summary

Neil Josten, a high school senior and talented Exy player, lives on the run. He is the son of the murderous crime lord known as the Butcher, and he hides his identity by squatting in abandoned houses and sleeping in the school locker room in Millport, Arizona. After his team’s final game, Hernandez, Neil’s current coach, introduces him to David Wymack, the coach of the Palmetto State University (PSU) Foxes. Wymack, who exclusively recruits athletes from broken homes, offers Neil a spot on his Division I team. Neil is terrified of the public exposure, especially when he learns that Kevin Day, a former national champion and a figure from his past, is on the team. Initially, Neil declines the offer and tries to leave. However, his introduction to the Foxes is violent; the team’s volatile goalkeeper, Andrew Minyard, attacks him with a racquet in the locker room to stop him from running off. Wymack apologizes for Andrew’s behavior but insists Neil listen to his proposal. He offers him a contract with a confidentiality clause and a safe place to stay in South Carolina until the dorms open. Torn between his survival instincts and his love for the sport, Neil accepts, knowing he must flee the moment his identity is compromised.

Upon arriving in South Carolina, Neil is picked up by Andrew, who impersonates his twin brother, Aaron, to test him. Neil is introduced to Andrew’s insular group, which includes Aaron, their cousin Nicholas “Nicky” Hemmick, and Kevin Day. Neil temporarily moves into Coach Wymack’s apartment, where Wymack gives him a key to a locked desk drawer to secure his few possessions, which include a binder containing large sums of cash and forged documents. Neil begins practicing with the small group of Foxes present for the summer. He learns that Kevin, recovering from a severe injury to his dominant left hand, is retraining himself to play right-handed. Over time and during these practices, Neil continues to keep secrets from the team. He lies about his parents, attempts to conceal his true eye and hair color, and initially hides his fluency in German and French, especially when other members of the team assume he cannot understand and talk about him in these languages. Neil also struggles to meet Kevin’s impossibly high standards and endures his harsh, impatient coaching.

The rest of the Foxes arrive for summer practices, revealing the team’s fractured dynamics. The group is split into factions: the upperclassmen alliance of captain Dan Wilds, Matt Boyd, and Renee Walker; Andrew’s insular group; and the combative duo of Allison Reynolds and Seth Gordon, whose rivalry with Kevin increases the tension between team members. Neil moves into the dormitory with Matt and Seth. Soon after, he discovers someone has searched through his belongings. He confronts Andrew’s group by speaking to Kevin in French, provoking a physical altercation. 

The hidden danger of Neil’s past becomes more immediate when Wymack reveals Kevin’s: His supposed adoptive family, the Moriyamas, are a yakuza clan, and his hand injury was intentionally inflicted by his “brother,” Riko Moriyama. Neil’s father and Riko’s father were partners, and Neil hides many physical scars that remind him of how violent their business could be. When the national Exy committee moves Riko’s top-ranked team, the Edgar Allan Ravens, into the Foxes’ district, a future confrontation with the gang becomes guaranteed. Faced with this direct threat, Neil resolves to stay only until the match against the Ravens is complete, at which point he plants to run away.

To test Neil’s loyalty and resilience, Andrew’s group takes him to a nightclub in Columbia, where Andrew orchestrates having his drink drugged, and Nicky later gives him more of the drug via an unwanted kiss. After a night of fragmented memories, Neil escapes the group and hitchhikes back to campus, though Nicky later tells him that he supposedly paid a busboy to knock him out. 

As full team practices begin, Neil learns more about the team’s dysfunctional but fiercely protective inner workings. Dan and Matt explain that Andrew, with the team’s secret complicity, goes off his court-mandated psychiatric medication before games. This allows him to play unimpeded by the drugs’ effects, but he suffers from severe withdrawal. As a result, Andrew’s behavior is often unpredictable. To end Andrew’s relentless probing into his past, Neil tells him a carefully constructed half-truth: that his father was a criminal associate of the Moriyamas, that he was executed by them, and that Neil is now on the run from his father’s former boss. Andrew accepts this story and agrees to keep Neil’s secrets.

The Exy season begins, and Neil’s identity as the Foxes’ mysterious new recruit is made public. In the first game against the Breckenridge Jackals, Seth is injured, and Neil is substituted in. He scores two goals, earning a sliver of respect from his teammates, though the Foxes ultimately lose. Shortly after, the team travels to Raleigh for a live television interview on the Kathy Ferdinand Show. During the broadcast, Kathy ambushes them by bringing Riko Moriyama on stage. After Riko verbally torments Kevin, Neil confronts Riko on national television, accusing him of being afraid to face Kevin as a true rival. The confrontation turns physical backstage, where Riko attacks Kevin, forcing Andrew to intervene.

Upon returning to campus, the team receives devastating news: Seth has died from an apparent drug overdose while out with Allison. Andrew immediately suspects Riko orchestrated Seth’s death as retaliation for the televised humiliation. He confronts Neil, telling him that running is no longer an option, as Riko will now actively investigate him. Andrew offers Neil a deal: He will protect Neil from the Moriyamas for one year if Neil commits to staying with the Foxes and supporting Kevin, arguing that the public spotlight from Exy stardom will help shield him from harm. As a symbol of this pact, Andrew gives Neil a key to his house in Columbia, formally accepting him into his protective circle. Caught between his lifelong instinct to flee and an unfamiliar desire for belonging, Neil accepts. Now a starting striker, he resolves to stay and face the consequences, embracing his new, precarious home with the Foxes.