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Poor Jamie. Eddy had every right to say what he said, and Jamie has been happy to give it all season, so his only choice is to take it now. He’s a great player too, with years ahead of him. His time will come too.

It is easy to dismiss him as arrogant. Yes, he encourages it, and he acts as though the whole sport is a stage built specifically for him, but I’ve seen his softer side.

Eddy returns to the table carrying the award, placing it between us before sitting back down.

‘Thanks for tagging that on,’ I say quickly as I give his cheek a kiss.

‘Tagging what on?’ he asks.

‘The thank you, to me,’ I reply.

‘Oh, right.’

People instantly flock to the table, wanting to talk to him, which is when Sol taps me on the shoulder.

‘Can I borrow you for a moment?’ he asks.

‘Of course,’ I reply.

I follow Sol out of the ballroom and into the quieter hotel corridor. The noise fades to almost nothing as the doors close behind us.

Sol gestures towards a small seating area near the lifts.

‘I’ll get straight to it,’ he says. ‘The England squad fly to Australia soon.’

I nod, because I know that. I’ve been vaguely aware of the fact that Eddy will soon be on the other side of the world, and I’ll be alone in my Headingley hotel room.

England are travelling early to train, acclimatise and play warm-up matches before the World Cup games begin. Now that the awards have taken place, the season is over.

My trial period at Leeds is nearly finished, but Bryan has already started talking to me about next season. He has copied me into planning meetings and asked my opinion on long-term campaigns. So I’m fairly sure I am going to keep the job, but not certain. Not yet.

I do not know whether Eddy is retiring from Leeds – or if Jamie is joining. The rumours are still there, but nobody has confirmed anything, and neither of the boys has said a word to me.

If Eddy retires after the World Cup, will he come back to the club in some capacity? Or will he go to work at the bakery? I could tell that he enjoyed baking, don’t get me wrong, but I can’t see him doing it full time. I’m not sure he loves anything more than he loves rugby.

Either way, our fake relationship is coming to an end. The thought should feel like relief but… I don’t know.

‘Which brings me to the problem,’ Sol continues.

‘What’s that?’ I ask.

‘Eddy and Jamie – the rivalry,’ he replies. ‘At first, it was great, a fun marketing angle, but the final made it worse. Jamie won the trophy, but Eddy took the headlines, Man of the Match and now Man of the Season. Every interview Jamie gives turns into a question about that try, and every question Eddy gets is about Jamie failing to take his place… and now the two of them have to play for the same side.’

‘Yeah, that’s not ideal,’ I reply.

‘In the league they can spend most of the year avoiding each other. In Australia, they’ll train together, travel together, eat together, share a hotel… We need them working together, playing for the same side, not trying to one-up each other.’

I think about our day at the arcade. He’s got a point.

‘So, what’s the plan?’ I ask.

‘I want you to come with us,’ he tells me. ‘To Sydney. For the preparation and the tournament.’

‘Really?’ I reply – I don’t know why I say that. I think I’m in shock.

‘I need someone who knows them both and understands exactly how they push each other’s buttons, so that you can get between them, smooth things over,’ he says. ‘We’ve made this rivalry. Now we need to walk it back.’

‘Do you really think they can be friends?’ I reply.