Chapter Text
In conclusion… by Trent Crimm (2026)
The calendar page on my desk today, 26th September 2026, proudly displays a random inspirational quote, and one that is more than likely misquoted. I used to enjoy these quotes. I’d peel them off and pretend that somehow they’d change my life, that I’d insert them into everything I do and that it would make me a better sports journalist or a better man.
My time with the Richmond Greyhounds and a certain American coach has led me to reconsider my thoughts on these now. The quips and speeches given by Ted to his team everyday far outweigh them. The speech he’s tearfully giving in the locker room as I write these final few pages following Richmond’s dramatic 2026 Grand Final win
Ted told me he loves a locker room once, a couple of years ago, and it’s easy to see why. Ted told me the smell like potential and while he may have been right at the time, the locker room today looks and smells like potential realised. Well, that and sweat.
Ted and his right-hand-man Coach Beard stand at the front of the room, pride on their faces as they look over their players.
As I sweep the room I notice the rest of the players. These are people I’ve come to know, understand, and care about in a far greater way than I ever did as a reporter. It’s as I scan the room that I notice them.
These are two men who could have easily decided that being the first - and only - openly gay Australian rules football players was too much. They could have waited until they had both retired and they were far enough from footy to exist comfortably. Yet, they didn’t.
Jamie Tartt and Roy Kent came out to me in the final weeks of their first season at Richmond.
I watched as they learnt who they were as they worked out what it meant to be with each other.
I watched as they wrestled with their public image of rivals turned ‘teammates-slash-maybe-friends’ and the image their friends had of them, versus the versions of themselves they could only be in private.
I watched as a year later, almost to the day, they stood in front of the MCG before a media pack that could have rivaled that of a grand final and told the world who they are.
Mostly, I was watched as two admirable men showed the country that football is more than a game. I was honored when they allowed me to turn this book into an exploration of their journeys, as well as that of the clubs.
Through the window of my office now, I watch them. The only two people left in the locker room as Richmond celebrate their first grand final win, just two years after joining the league. They move together, almost dancing but there is no music.
They’re calm, their bodies meld together as one, and they look just right.