Caroline and Hayley pulled me up and patted me on the back. ‘Nice one, Pheebs, keep that going,’ Caroline said.

I felt pumped, but I was also starting to get pissed off that Mum wasn’t there, especially to see that last shot.

I was starting to feel a little more relaxed on the court, getting a sense that while the other team were maybe more aggressive than us, we were more skilled than our opponents. So when I next got the ball, I brought it down the court more calmly, rather than breaking into a sprint. I indicated with my free hand for my teammates to get into position and slow things down a bit, then passed the ball to Ashley at the top of the key and shot around the three-point line towards the baseline. I momentarily thought about putting up a three-pointer but saw that Caroline had prime position beneath the net, so I got around my opponent and shot her a pass for an easy lay-up.

As we ran back to our defensive positions, I told my teammates, ‘Guard hard and make them shoot deep. And when we’re attacking, slow it down until we see a clear shot.’

I think my teammates knew what I was getting at: we needed to outsmart our opposition, rather than taking them on physically.

Then Matilda got the ball and as I made a break for it to our end of the court, she perfectly lobbed a pass to me. I was sprinting towards the net with the huge footballer running alongside me on my right. I knew that I had three options: either lay it up with my left hand, which would mean my opponent would be jumping up beside me; do a crossover to my right hand to create space; or pull up and do a jump shot. I chose the first option.

Leaping off the ground with the big footballer looking like a brick wall leaping next to me to block was the last thing that I remember about the game.

I woke up in darkness, not knowing where I was. My head was killing me, as if I’d been stabbed through the top of my skull. And then I started vomiting. And the more I spewed, the more it hurt.

Someone was holding my hand, someone was holding a bucket beneath my mouth and I could also feel someone holding my hair back. I didn’t know if it was the same person and for a while I thought that I was still drunk at Caroline’s party.

Finally, I recognised Jamie and his mum Lydia. That convinced me I was still at the party.

‘Where am I?’ I croaked.

A nurse swam into view and told me, ‘You’ve hit your head, Phoebe. It’s going to hurt for a while. You’re okay though.’

And then I started spewing again.

‘Mum,’ I cried, but she wasn’t there.