Dates: Monday 1 March – Friday 6 March, 2026
The boots came on last. Roney didn't rush it.
He sat in the corner of the changing room at Apperley Bridge, one knee raised, the laces running through his fingers like thread. The sound of studs on tile echoed around him—early, quiet, clean. Outside, the pitch waited. Frosty grass. Northern wind. Yorkshire grey.
A soft first touch off the rebound wall. Then another. No coaches, no teammates yet—just the ball returning as true as he sent it. His eyes flicked up once, toward the horizon, where the morning sky hung still and silent.
Voiceover—his own, not performed, just real:
"People think I play with noise. But really… it's rhythm. Not chaos."
The ball rolled back again. He caught it, stilled it under one sole, and held it there.
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