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‘But until then, they’re head-to-head?’ I check.
‘Not only that,’ he replies. ‘We’re at the play-offs stage – and it’s looking like it’s going to be a Leeds vs Manchester Grand Final.’
‘Oh boy,’ I say. ‘That will be fun.’
‘We still need to get there,’ he points out. ‘But everyone is excited about seeing the two clash in the final.’
‘We should make more of it,’ I suggest.
‘In what way?’
‘Social content,’ I reply. ‘Build-up. Their best moments against each other. Split-screen statistics, old footage, quotes. The things people are already talking about – let’s make it our conversation.’
‘Hmm,’ he says as he mulls it over.
‘They’re opposites, but they’re both stars. It gives people a story to follow beyond the match itself.’
‘The old guard and the new.’
‘Exactly. Is Jamie really trying to replace him, or is Eddy still the man to beat? That sort of thing.’
Bryan nods slowly, considering it.
‘We’ve leaned into it before, but not as much as we could – let me think it over.’
‘Okay, sure,’ I reply.
‘The way it goes this year is, top of the table – us – plays fourth. Second – Manchester – plays third. Short of an absolute upset, it will be a Leeds vs Manchester final, and if it is, Eddy vs Jamie is going to be the conversation, so I think you might be right.’
‘Take the weekend, think it over, and we’ll come up with a plan on Monday,’ I tell him. ‘So, do the team go out to celebrate now?’
Bryan laughs.
‘Not this close to the semis,’ he replies. ‘They’ll be celebrating in the dressing room – I’m surprised we can’t hear them singing from here, but then it’s home to bed for the lot of them.’
Ah, so Eddy was just leaning into the fake relationship when he told Jamie we were going out after. Ah well, it’s back to my room for me – I’m already firing up Deliveroo as we speak.
I am here to work, that’s what all of this is in aid of, so I just need to focus on doing a good job. And forget that I’m surrounded by fit men.
11
By Monday morning, I have convinced myself that I am beginning to understand rugby league. I probably couldn’t explain it to anyone, and I’d make a terrible pundit, but I’ve rewatched Friday’s match twice and I’m finally starting to pick up on things.
To be honest, though, I mostly watched it to see Eddy and Jamie in action again, because the more I think about it, the more convinced I am that their storyline is one of the most marketable angles in the league. I know, this isn’t a soap opera, or wrestling, but a bit of a narrative could be good.
Megan waves as I pass her desk. ‘Morning.’
‘Morning,’ I reply.
‘Bravo’s waiting for you in his office.’
‘Oh, okay, thanks,’ I reply, trying not to be nervous that my first order of the day is talking to my boss.
It immediately makes me wonder whether I’ve done something wrong, even though I’m sure I haven’t, it’s just the way my anxious brain works.
The door is already open. Bryan is sitting behind his desk, coffee in one hand, but there’s someone else in the room too. A man, probably late forties, maybe early fifties, wearing a white polo shirt with the England Rugby League crest embroidered on the chest.
He stands as I walk in.
