Ruth Wiseman, of Jewish descent, married a much-older man and the couple now lives in 1960s Britain with their son and daughter. Their Caucasian neighbors tend to look down on them, and they receive threatening handwritten notes. Their son David loves cricket, but his playing lands him in charge of the scoreboard at his school. When the Samuels from Jamaica move in next door and set up a net so they can bowl cricket balls in their backyard, David meets them, and through Dennis and Loretta, he learns how to bat and bowl. He then requests to be included on his school team, and after being put through a preliminary test, he succeeds--as a tail-ender. In the very first match, David proves his worth and is promoted to middle-order batsman. He subsequently fares even better and instantly becomes popular. His popularity increases his awareness and he decides to forsake his friendship with his mentors, while some neighbors decide to take matters in their own hands to show the supposedly undesirables of their neighborhood that they are not wanted, in the neighborhood or in Britain in general.