Colin was a young player. He didn’t usually stick his head above the parapet. It annoyed Udo when he looked to Shaun for approval.
“Do you really find that hard to understand?”
Steven stood in the doorway. To Udo’s astonishment, he looked furious.
“Is he saying we’re crap?” Colin asked, his voice faltering.
The poor lad went crimson when Steven walked up to him.
“The idea never crossed my mind. Should it have?”
Steven didn’t wait for an answer. He addressed all the players.
“If I choose to take any of you for individual coaching, that’s my prerogative. Is that clear?”
“Yeah but you don’t need to, do you?” Shaun piped up.
Udo watched. His mouth dry.
“Shaun, why are you being like this? It’s not like you.”
“I don’t think it’s fair.”
Steven nodded. “Duly noted, Shaun.”
He began to walk away.
“Is that it?”
“What do you want? For me to say that I’ll not help a player?Your opinion isn’t needed. You kick the ball and let us worry about the rest of it.”
He turned to the room.
“We shouldn’t be talking like this, guys,” he said, opening his arms. “This is a game that we can win. It won’t happen if you go out there divided.”
Edi stood up from the bench. He’d come to Brockton from Nairobi three years ago and was still finding his feet.
“Steven helped me when I first came to the club,” he said. “I asked him to keep it to himself. It’s not right the way you’re going after Udo.”
Udo’s heart almost burst. Edi caught his eye and nodded.
“There we go,” Steven said. “Now can we put this behind us and go and smash the fuck out of Winterbourne?”
The lads cheered. All except Shaun.
As they filed out, Adam swooped on Shaun. Udo couldn’t help but overhear.
“How did you find out, Shaun?” Adam asked.
“Chill out, Skipper. You know Amy. She can’t keep anything to herself.”
Amy was one of the physios. She’d always been kind to Udo. Then again, she probably didn’t realise what an arsehole Shaun Riggs was. He couldn’t blame her.
The crowd roared as they strode through the tunnel and onto the pitch.
There were bigger things to worry about than where Shaun got his information from. Thousands of people depending on him. For the first time in ages, the rush came over him. It wasn’t as strong as before but it was there.
The first half was drawing to a close and both teams were yet to score. Udo had tried every which way but Winterbourne’sdefender, Noah Farman, was every bit as good as Steven had warned.
