Page 94 of How To Tackle A Crush
Which is probably a bad sign.
After the press conference I'm still pretending to be very interested in organising my notes when Martin appears again at my shoulder like a very polite ghost.
“Ava.”
I look up.
“Jack asked if you could come through. He wants a quick word about the article.”
“Now?” I ask, trying for neutral and probably landing somewhere near hopeful.
“If that’s alright.”
It very much is not alright for my heart rate, but I stand anyway.
“Of course.”
I follow him through a side corridor, away from the media area. The noise fades quickly. Concrete floors. Fluorescent lights. The faint smell of deep heat and wet grass.
We stop outside a door and Martin pushes it open slightly, then gestures for me to wait just inside.
Jack is standing in the middle of the changing room.
Manager Jack again.
But different from the press conference version. Less polished. More direct.
The players are half dressed. Some already in hoodies. One still pulling a shirt over his head. Someone sitting on a bench with an ice pack balanced on his knee.
No one looks surprised I’m there. Just a few quick glances before their attention goes back to Jack.
“Right,” he says, voice calm but carrying easily. “That’s a good result. Not because of the scoreline. Because of the response.”
A few nods.
“We weren’t good enough first half. You know that. I know that. But you fixed it.”
He points briefly towards one of the defenders.
“You kept your head when it would’ve been easy to panic.”
Another player.
“You kept running when your legs had every right to stop.”
A small grin from someone at the back.
“And whoever decided we were losing before the ninety minutes were over, clearly doesn’t know this team.”
That gets a few quiet laughs.
Jack’s expression softens slightly.
“That’s what I want from you. Not perfect football. Proper reactions. You trust each other, you trust the work, you get results like that.”
He pauses to give them time to feel proud of themselves.
“Well done. Travel safe. Recovery tomorrow. Then we go again.”
