Anything Goes with James English Ep/391
Football – Violence – Prison – Joey Barton Tells His Story
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Joy B Joy how are we I’m good mate good to see you yeah really good to see you mate like I say mad ker great footballer who’s played with some of the world’s biggest teams lot of controversy in your life which we’ll touch on but all in all
Man it’s good to have you on well I’ve been watching from a distance watch watching your uh your your grown and grown and grown mate you’re absolutely smashing it so I’m buzzing for you um and as I say delighted to pop down and
Uh have a have a chat with you oh no I appreciate that taking a time but like I say man great career a phenomenal football player very tough um I think England career what was it one cap one cap yeah it’s mad to think especially Man City Newcastle like a great [ __ ]
Career it’s um yeah like I said good to Lucky mate you know I mean l lucky to play some some great clubs um you know played in a Great era you know grew up as I say wanting to be a footballer and then you know my first World Cup back in
Remembers Italian 90 which was incredible and then I’ve just loved football ever since like you know get you down a bit now with with the the way it’s gone you know the the money’s kind of um changed the game a little bit but you know still remember being a kid on a
Council estate dreaming about changing me life and being on a Telly and um was was one of the few fortunate enough to to make it and and um as I say the cherry on the top of that James for me was was to to play for England even if
It was for only 18 minutes in a friendly against Spain for those 18 minutes I was the best Senter midfielder or wanted them in England um and you know as I say you know you know you can’t help but be proud of that like me little lad winds
Me up now says you only got one cap and I’m like when I die it says England International yeah there’s not many people who can say that before we get into know Joy I always like to go back to the start with my guest where you gr
How it all began well from um a little place outside of uh Liverpool about eight8 and a half miles outside called heighten um which is you know kind of when the slums of Liverpool were cleared in the aftermath of kind of the second world war all the kind of families that
Were in all those um kind of densely populated areas um were were moved out into the um these new Council territories of kind of nossle which is kind of made up of a few different bers but um kind of heighten one of them St John’s is is a is a an estate within
That and kby and you know that’s kind of as I say where a lot of the a lot of footballers from Liverpool come out of those two areas you’ve got um obviously Phil Thompson and and and some big players who’ve come from kby and obviously Stevie Gerards uh the big the
Biggest probably Peter Reed probably the biggest two have come from heighten so fortunate to grow up in a a football household in a hot bed of football in a fantastic football in city so the die was pretty much cast for me James like like yourself MH how was Family Life
Yeah I mean it’s you know you you just know what you know as a kid don’t you we you know went to the to the local school um love playing footy in the street where you know when we couldn’t play football it was you know two man and you
Know uh hide and seek and all that um we lived at the end of a bus Terminus us and and beyond that bus Terminus is um an industrial estate so there was a lot of space to get into you know climbing into trees and building dens and stuff
Like that and when I look back at it you know we had a fantastic childhood we were never in the house um you were either out at school out with your M climbing in you know trees Parks up to no good and as I say because we lived at
The end of a bus terminus um we’d worked out relatively early if you if you waited for the buses to finish the shift and go to turn round and go into the depot and you threw uh mud at the buses the drivers had to clean it before they clocked off and
Would give you an incredible Chase um so we spent a lot of time that’s why I’m I was so fit and had a great engine as a kid getting chased either by the busies or bus drivers on our state for be enough to know good so you know you
Don’t know any difference on you now you look back and you think you know there was you know mad stuff going on around yeah but at the time you thought that’s how everybody lived you know you thought everybody got up on a Sunday morning and you couldn’t have a game of footy cuz
There was a b out car on the footy pitch you thought oh this must be happening um you know to to every kid this age because um you know it was happened to you and your mates what were you like at school I was always I was always um
Switched on I was quite fiery in terms of um I I remember getting sent home um from school or or I’d run home from school so if if the teachers didn’t listen to me or stuff like that I would occasionally kick the classroom emergency xit open and just go home um
To the point where I almost got expelled off the back of it cu the teachers were like you can’t just get off every time you don’t agree with what’s going on cuz that was my thing cuz I got quite emotional about stuff it was I’d uh do
Something stupid um you know throw a chair or a teacher or stu stuff like that which would happen in our school I didn’t do that and I had to channel anger into leaving the classroom um and obviously you know it only got it got to the point where meone was like look
They’re going to expel you from a school cuz they can’t account for your safety cuz it’s like the third time you’ve you you’ve left the classroom and and this was before the age of this is still in junior school so this is before the age
Of kind of 10 11 um and as I say my grandmother said I’ve I’ve just always been dead headstrong so I’ve always been switched on um I’ve always found you know learning and school and stuff like really really simple um and I’ve always known I wanted to be a footballer so I’d
Do me work quite quick and then I’d write out my world 11 and I’d make a 40 kit and then I’d be trying to coers a few of my mates to do it and the teachers would come over and be like you’ve done your work you’re now
Distracting them so then they’d put me in a separate table from my mates and i’ you know acted up a bit more and then I’d get throughout the class and before you know it um my how easy I found School became a deterrent to me because if you ask questions and you you
Finish your work quite quick and you you can get distracted you know this was before kind of ADHD or you know any any kind of stuff was um was spoken about with kids you were just seen as being an um a a kind of energetic kid and their
Way of dealing with you was to send you out the classroom or isolate you which um I found strange but as I say I I found School quite simp Le and I just wanted to play footy so I’m constantly looking out the window going can’t wait
To get on the playground I break time to have a game of footy can’t wait to get on lunch time have a game of footy I can’t wait for school to finish to have a game of footy I can’t really be asked listening to these about R and all that
Cuz I’m going to play in the Premier League I don’t need to be aware of uh you know some of the stories in the Bible and um you know I came from a Roman Catholic background and you know singing songs in school was part of the curriculum and um as I say
You know for me there was better times I felt I could I could be utilizing this singing uh praise hosana you know I could have an extra five minutes on the playground to get the winner in a game of 4 between me m you know mean like
That didn’t didn’t make sense to me I’m like I’m a young boy and and I think you know now I’m a bit older I think to put young Lads in the classroom at that young age and not let them run wild it’s not great for them like young Lads need
To be outside like cuz it’s just such full of energy um and I’m not sure the schooling system um is quite designed certainly on the counsil states where I went to school um quite designed to get the maximum out of the uh the resources that the individuals have available to
Them like my my belief is and we were talking about this on the way over because I’ve been to prison and I told you I was in the Royal enclosure I believe everybody’s got something that they’re brilliant at that if they meet a good uh Mentor or a parent or a
Grandparent or a teacher as I say they can encourage that and Coach that out to them you know for you it’s you thought it was football it’s turned out it’s podcasting lad you don’t know what it’s going to be um for me I was lucky in
Terms of I knew quite early what I was good at and and had good Role Models around me and and people who kept me on the straight and narrow and give me good examples um and I managed to get an opportunity at a at a football club and got a YT and you
Know by the by the skin in me teeth as well and I was a talented kid but had the skin in my teeth ended up to go on and and have an half decent career L yeah was more than half decent career like I say any footballer out bite your
Hand after to be playing like for man cities and Newcastle and playing with the best players in the world that’s an unbelievable career but even with the schooling system that we touch on it’s you’re right is the system is there everybody’s it doesn’t fulfill your maximum potential everybody’s I don’t
Know everybody’s got a genius I think it was Einstein it says everybody’s a genius or everybody’s so much potential but if you’re sitting at a desk and you’re looking at the window and thinking about the Premier League you’re the one who’s getting called crazy or not good enough for making you feel down
And eventually if that goes into your psyche you end up thinking that and where did you end up getting that belief system from though from young kid from Liverpool to then thinking about playing in the Premier League where does that come from I think you’re a product of your
Environment um nature nature kind of arguments you know do you have a certain Constitution as a as a young person you know where and when is your personality formulated I don’t know I’m not smart enough to to answer those questions but I think I think you know
Having good people around you so the first port to call at your mom and dad isn’t it they bring it into the world you know siblings family members um for me I always remember my grandmother Julia on my dad’s mom uh worked in she worked like four jobs to she wanted
Better things you know for for herself and for for the kids um and she worked in Silver Service so she used to do the white and on and she’d do you know all different functions and she’d come back from all the different functions and she she talk about the characters that she’d
Met and you know people who were cous and polite and people who weren’t and the different kind of classes that were were in this country you know she waited on the queen a few times and always spoke about the fact that the queen would kind of Crum up for herself and
What a lovely lady she was and um how polite she was and she said you know they’re no better than us lad you know you know they’ve been born into that um world and you know they are nice people but doesn’t make them any better or
Worse than than us you know we I’m from a family that were kind of um abto where in Liverpool you know as I say we we kind of moved to heighten which is a little bit outside the city center but all my kind of family are all you know
Kind of saly Street and and and the slum clearances of Liverpool but they were I think someone’s doing a family tree or something and I’d love to do um who do you think you are they asked me to do it when I was a player but I didn’t want to
Do it cuz I thought I’ll have Jack to RI or something in my that’s the last thing I need to give to me already on my case last ring and E I seen Danny D pull out Henry the E and I thought God they they’ll pull some right out of my family somewhere
Some BT um so I um but now like I’m I’m interested in it you know since I’ve had kids and that I’m like it’s actually fascinating to understand where you come from and you know is the die kind of cast or how much can the environment and
The nature uh change you know the the nature um and and as I say you know my grandmother gave me that belief that greatness is for you if if you want it you got to work hard at it but if you if you truly dedicate your life to whatever
It is that you you’re passionate about you’re as capable as anybody else and as I say there wasn’t a lot of people around me at that time saying that um you know there was more people around me saying you can’t do it or there was a lot of people people with more Talent
Than me that were getting pulled in by the distractions that life can can throw at you you know you you’ve grown up in in that space so you know when you’re a young kid and it’s pure football’s quite easy you become really good at it then
You get 14 15 and you know if few airs start to sprout in different places and it changes your focus for me it never my focus always remain football and you know Fanny um drifted into the background now some of my mates who are of football you know they got that sense
And it change you know for for many young men I was skinny and small so I didn’t like I was in school at 14 and 15 and like all your mates have got 80 chests and all that and I wasn’t I was like God what’s happening to me yeah so
It I didn’t really I didn’t really have an interest in anything other than football they all started you know started to have a bevy for the first time started having a joint for the first time started taking trips for the first time you know started hanging around with the wrong
Crowd started trying to get into nightclubs and all that and I was lucky in terms of I was unlucky me Mom and Dad divorced but but when they divorced I went to live with my dad because there was three kids two my mom kept me two
Younger brothers and I went with my dad to my n’s and my n was a bit of a disciplinarian my mom was a bit like liberal and whatever goes goes and me n went so if I said I was out at 14 or 15 James she was like where are you where
Are you staying who’s else are you in right I need to speak to their mom so I just had nowhere to go I couldn’t say I’m going to a party like some of my mates could me n had knock on the door pull me out of parties so you know the
Tempt it wasn’t like I was a saint and I had no temptation it was I had a really strong maternal um presence in me life who was like you’re not you’re not getting off the beating track um she take me to football and she just had this belief in
Me and I thought if she believes in me uh I can do it check out was your saving Grace yeah for sure yeah because I I never had that discipline my dad was a bouncer so I used to go to the nightclubs front of the queue tell all
The birds I played for the first team I just [ __ ] loved that I loveed that that pretending to be somebody when you were how old are you there 15 see we’re all like that though everyone wants to be everyone wants to be that everyone wants to be that boss footballer who all
Bs love who gets in the night clubs who people all think are more mature than what they are and when when I think about that I think you’re forgetting to be a kid like they’re the best years of your life then I say to my kids now all
The time these are the best years of your life you don’t pay a bill you just got to get up and go to school in L you get your dinner fed for you your man washes your clothes makes your bed like you smashed saying 5 years time you
Getting a job like well I’m like you getting a job in 5 years you st work he’s gone I went out work for myself you have to go to go work on the roof with me half my uncle Pizza when I was 16 I was doing the yts as well and in the
Summer I’d have to go and get on the on on and this was before before they had bumpers and they were all roofers so you’re having to sling the tiles on I thought after about a week I thought [ __ ] this for the game of soldiers get
Me a 40 I’m having a game of footy [ __ ] doing this for in in the winter and I was doing it in the summer MH to supplement me whts wages and honestly after three weeks me hands like my hands are like Silk pces my hands were cabbaged this episode is sponsored by
Fire away Pizza the fastest growing Pizza Company in the UK with over 150 stores with the fresh quality ingredients and unique pizzas they will have you coming back for more use code James 20 for 20% off that’s James 20 for 20% off I thought [ __ ] this I’m not doing that in
The freezing cold and that that for me I thought right I’m getting in the gym I’m doing me extras if I need to not go out on a Friday night if need to stay out of nightclubs and when I seen all the good players who I had play against and a day
He was out sh Dr he was out laring it I’d just be sitting there going I’m getting ahead and I just seen it as incremental steps are getting ahead cuz of for I’m not the most talented kid I knew I was talented but I knew I wasn’t the the most
Talented and I thought I I’ve got to do everything right here and I’d had an Uncle Tony Kelly who’ played all the way up to division one for like sto and Bolton wonders with like John McGinley when he went on a couple of good cup runs but he never played in the Premier
League and he was an incredible football baller but love the ale the Mad bastard stopped [ __ ] playing and went sober I went you’ve done it the [ __ ] wrong way you crack you should you’d be a multi-millionaire now you done it the other way but like you know some Lads
Are like that I see Lads now I played with who wenten the great greatest Pros who are now into all mad weightlifting and all in like ridiculous body and I’m like if you’d have done that when you played you’d be you’d have about another 50 million
Qu but life doesn’t unfold for you the way you’re you know the way it’s meant to go everybody’s life is unique to them as I said to you you know for me I always remember listening to to Mars he was a big influence on me as a kid I
Always remember the song and in the song it’s you know Irish blood English heart which obviously the the northwest of England is very much um you know I think I’m a quarter Irish a quarter Jewish definitely a quarter English and somewh me Grandad decid I think there’s a bit
Of span you in there so I’m like I’m a proper Mongol like I don’t I don’t no wonder you know you’re a bit you’re a bit tapped terms of you know that’s a combination of all different um people and and all different belief systems but the one thing all of those communities
Share is is is an honesty and a um a fairness and and I think if if You’ have your life a different way you might have grown up in in a better house on a on a more affluent part of of Britain but would you have had the same principles
And you know when I look at it some of the greatest people I’ve ever met with with the you know who you’d stand on are off them Council Estates and you know people have met in prison who you go what a what a what a human being that is
Um some of the biggest Pricks I’ve ever met in my life are people who are meant to be you know people who were smashing life’s heading with a few quid who’ve got a couple of plums in the mouth and and a few titles behind them and they’re
The biggest ball back you’re ever likely to come across so if you if you I I just travel through life that open-minded I think there’s good and bad people everywhere um I don’t see you know you know people’s religion or football team or race or I just think it’s a nonsense
Like surely what we know about the world you know what we’ve watched in the history of you know what what’s been recorded for us you know the documentaries about what happens if we don’t get on you know whether that’s a troubles in Northern Ireland in my lifetime you know I can remember
Northern Island the Falklands uh Bosnia Iraq first war um second Twin Towers to you know then like into Afghanistan Syria now you I’m like when when you know and I grew up reading George O well I’m like when does this ever stop in 1984 you’re from Glasgow
You understand that you know that that that that religious nonsense because that’s what it is um you know seeing kids being killed and you know I’m I’m going I’ve won the be Lottery being born in in Ean which is I think labor Heartland but it’s got the second highest unemployment rate in the
Country no six form provision so once you’re 60 you’ve got to leave the B to get further education or or a different uh chance in life and these these have historically voted for La you know harod Wilson was prime minister of the country and he was um his local constituent he
Was heighten was Nole and they’ve been you know left behind and then we get into brexit we leave the EU well Liverpool the city center Liverpool’s been massively regenerated on about Glasgow but but certainly Liverpool and Mars where I spend time been regenerated from the EU money
And now we’re out the EU what’s what you know I’m lucky I’m a multi-millionaire played footy it’s life’s great for me but what chances of the other kids got sorry mate um and Society grows great when men plant trees of which the fruit they’ll never ever get a sample
Everyone’s just take take taken like this crew who are in government now no one’s voted for them his own part party didn’t even vote for them they’ve robbed the Working Man and of this country you know of of of the British Isles blind and there’s no come up for it you
You you do that in in the business you working or you do that in uh in your local area you going to jail you know you know and these are people who are pontificating about how we should live our lives and you know they’ve been telling people you know what what what
Vaccinations need to stick in the body and you know it’s it’s tough for kids growing up and I think you know I see the way you do and trying to highlight different opinions different voices and think it’s admirable it’s admirable now to take a stance and tell the truth you
Know because if if if we all don’t and we all just sit in silence like what what are we going to leave for the James englishes who were out there now growing up or the young Joey Bartons who are out there on Council Estates who were
Looking for role models and as I say I think what you do is great mate and and um yeah I appreciate that brother ra and awareness to kids and and um you know all the different options and things that are out in in there in life cuz you
Know for us I think once you think everybody thinks the same way as you um you know you start to become a little bit closed in your mind and I think the more openmed you remain I think I think the better and I’m lucky came from a
City of that like the Beatles were big growing up listening to The Beatles And obviously what they got up to in terms of you know and then me grandmother saying to me I could be something and having a talent and ning that talent and and having a bit of bit
Of Lu um and I think we should be out there saying to loads of kids hey you you can be well better than me you you should be kid all kids out there are capable of brilliant like they they just are the problem that you get is teachers
And people going you can’t do this you can’t do that you’re not good enough who who who the [ __ ] are you to tell someone you’re not good enough I remember a creative advisor in in me Secondary School said to me I went in she’s like
What’ you want to be I’m like 13 or 14 I’m like you know you can have a crisis of confidence at that age I said I’m you know I’m want to be a football and be in mind I’ve been in Evon Academy from I’m eight and I’m 13 I’m still in Evon
Academy I almost I got down at the last side for L sh for the national school and um I said to her I’m going to be a footballer and she laughed in me face she was like people from Ria don’t do that I just remember thinking you cheeky
[ __ ] like who the [ __ ] are you ah who the [ __ ] are you you’re working in a [ __ ] secondary Skool in the middle of [ __ ] eting and you’re telling you’re pissing on people’s dreams and luckily I had that mindset but I think of how many kids who’d gone oh
Maybe I’m not good enough like you said you did I thought that yeah um because but that’s what people need to understand people’s opinion of you doesn’t have to be a reality because other people are living shitty lives and they only see one dimensional it doesn’t
Mean you have to and it’s so important for you and N to say you are good enough you can be anything if people could just understand that people can be anything any age any famously said those that are crazy enough to think they can change
The world are the ones who [ __ ] do it if you just think you’re going to work in in the N of five job then you’re probably going to be right on that Steve black one of my great mentors um if you think you can or you think you can’t
You’ll invariably be right so I knew I could be a footballer like it’s just a mindset you know some Lads again you know they they need an influence around them a coach to take them under the wing and go you’re not doing that a parent to
Go no no I’m I’m you’re not getting off the the the the the straight and narrow look at Jude Bellingham he’s I think this kid’s going to be up there on in the pantheon of footballers you know I I would imagine he’s going to be in the
Kind of soonest category you know look what he’s doing at Real Madrid at his age I mean I’ve never seen a kid you know and he is a kid he’s 18 he’s 19 I’ve never seen a kid even Stevie Gerard who was in liol P’s 1 playing right back
At 19 who was a phenomenon Michael Owen maybe um Ryan gigs maybe but this Bellingham to go to Dortmund and Germany’s a big physical league and you know Excel now he’s gone to Real Madrid and you can’t imagine that he an Excel but it’s no coincidence
Isn’t his dad an FBI FBI a MI5 or or a police hostage negotiator you know so and his brother looks like he’s a hell of a talent as well the kid who signed for Sunderland so these Lads have had an incredible talent and then had really strong Parental Guidance that’s developed that
Talent not lots of kids get that um and I look at certainly my sport football it’s historically a working man’s game in terms of a lot of the talent comes out of the working class of the country and you know when when you look at um the hot beds you know whether it’s
Newcastle South South London uh the northwest or kind of Glasgow for for players um you know they all come with with a with a with a right bit of fire and the right Edge them um and we’ve got to be careful uh we don’t TR and sanitize it you know nobody’s
Perfect everybody makes mistakes some of the best people I’ve ever met have made more mistakes than anybody some of the greatest you know psychologists drug alcohol counselors are reformed maniacs and and druggies and and alcoholics because there’s a lot to be said for life experience and the way we live in
Now I think with social media is is trying to make you can only do and say stuff if you squeaky clean well there’s not many people like that about yeah and that’s why I like you like what you are doing and as I say Joe I think Joe
Rogan’s been a huge influence on popular culture but again you’re kind of you’re the British version of Joe Rogan lad aren’t you so it’s it’s enormous responsibility yeah but he’s left a blueprint and it’s only to see what can be done with giving people a voice without [ __ ] talk down at them
Without try to put words in people’s mouth because I tell people question what I say question what you say just question what you’ve been taught what you’ve learned over the years question you can can you do better of course you can everybody can be better to keep
Raising the bar and be a better individual no matter if you’re stuck in the RO addicted abusive relationship whatever the [ __ ] it is you can make the changes to better the life than the circumstances that you’re in and if you keep telling people that enough then they’ll go the right B moment will
Happen and people go well wait a minute you can you can no matter if you’re 20 30 40 50 60 I speak to people in in the 70s and ‘ 80s who learning new languages playing new instruments just constantly try to progress running marathons your life’s not over if you’ve get aing your
Along you’ve got something to give yeah what was it like for you at Aon did you think Boyhood Boyhood team that was it was that your whole life is that you just feel for me yeah obviously grew up in a household of evertonians like me Granddad Peter huge evertonian everyone me dad massive
Evertonian U but obviously played so didn’t really go to the game me Granddad would would would have gone the game um and was bought up on the kind of golden Vision obviously um you know Harvey Kendall and ball um you know the School of Science and you know everon with a a
Big side in me Grandad’s era and then you know they’ obviously had a bit of a spell in the 80s under Howard Kendall but I’m born 82 Everton’s kind of last gr side kind of dispares in around Heisel kind of 85 86 so grew up with DV
Well DVDs when DS do [ __ ] vhs’s I’m actually that all vhs’s of like you know the glory teams of Everton you know your shes your liners um um you know Andy Gray all that kind of ER but never actually seen it by the time I can
Remember Everton kind of 7 87 88 89 it’s not a fantastic version of Everton and then you know you bang into it then I remember the Italian 90 World Cup vividly getting a sticker book you obviously Toto scache Roger Miller bad was more 94 for me scache for
Me 90 um Roger Miller remember the rg’s got beat by Cameroon and maradon was he was he in that world maradon yeah was he in that World Cup yeah maradon he’s famous scored the goal against Napoli didn’t he against Italy in Naples in the semi-final and yeah he didn’t yeah he changed his
Life that that goal but if you remember he played Italy in the semi-final England obviously lost on P to West Germany Chris Chris wadland Stew Pius um Gaza um my bastard I know and and and then I didn’t even watch the final I was that but that was like I remember so I
Can remember um the struggles in terms of England not being that good and it was only watching the Bobby Robson film about his life that you realized how much heat Bobby was getting before the tournament obviously Gaz became a a huge figure in in English football after that
Tournament but but I always remember um Toto Scala was like the he SC he just came from nowhere he was like a periphery figure in the Italian Squad and just scored loads of goals I think he won the golden Bo in it but it was um
Germany won the won the World Cup didn’t he low beat the argies in the final and um obviously there was a lot of anti- Ary feeling I can’t remember 86 Mexico but obviously that was and the god MH um so for me you know I don’t I don’t remember
86 where World Cup I can’t remember any of it you know four at the time Jay so I used to remember the we Italian guy running across when there was a goal used a mad like a mat stick man and dos and [ __ ] so I had the stickers and all that used
To and me got them when me Fellers made Chrissy drest used to do the paper deliveries now in the morning as tranan he Dro all the papers off to the to the news agents that was his job and he used to get the stickers and I used to always
Say [ __ ] rob us a box of stickers and every 6 months or whatever a box of stickers would fall off his wagon and you’d go into school and it was like you’d won the [ __ ] loty cu the badges honestly thing was to complet that’s what I used to carry soon as you got
Your pocket money off your M we had to shop at the top of our road Max and it was 10 P five packs of stickers Bing yeah Bing straight away and you’re like go go but then that’s how you build your football kind of knowledge cuz I you
Know you go [ __ ] Ken Mona B 8 times he had every pack Ken mon or and da well obviously the shinies and all and then swapping them in school and that’s your first real laying out a deal in currency when when my brothers were growing up that was all pokem man
And I’m like what the [ __ ] going on here we were all stickers everything I can remember James was football football football so I’m at Everton then um in around Italian 90 is is about eight I’ve realized 6 seven eight I’m a you know I always I always remember saying to Steve
Black who who’s a great mentor of mine um who’s passed away now got rest the soul who who who was quite close with Johnny Wilkinson and loads of other sport sport and organizations were renowned for the way he done with Johnny and I said to him how’ you become the best in the
World Blacky like how how the [ __ ] does Johnny become the best fly off in like World rugby and he and he said that easy Joe actually when you think about it and we just sat over the coffee and he went through the seven stages to become the
Best in the world and afterwards you were like yeah it actually isn’t that hard you know all right there’s going to be there’s moments where you might need a load of talent here no matter how much you train but actually you’re still going to be really good there cuz he was
Like well first you’ve got to be the best footballer in your street or rugby player in your Street then you’d have to be the best in your school then you’d have to be the best in your B then you have to be the best in the side that you
Get selected for then you have to get selected for like a representational Regional team then that’ll get you selected for your country your country then gets you to a European championship and then a European Championship gets you to a world championship you win that you’re the best in the world like
[ __ ] hell yeah he’s right and and meeting people like that make make you realize how capable everybody is they’ve given the right exposure at the right time for some people their talent might be collecting stamps for some people it might be podcasting for some people it might be teaching for some people it
Might be sport um and and I I think it’s the adults responsibility to find what the young people are good at and help them on the way not the other way around tell them all the stuff they can’t do you’re [ __ ] at that don’t do that well that’s
No good is it tell me what I can do tell me what I can be good at and I think back to the old youth clubs I went to where you played all sports and he were encouraging you at to canoe and kayak on these Council States but you realized
I’m not just good at footy I’m actually good at climbing I’m good at navigating I’m good at leading I’m good at being in a in a canoe and getting a canoe organized and you know we we had the kind of you know that exposure and I can
Build a sense and I can and then you know you realize that there’s more to life than just just the Council of states and and as I say then these T governments and Etc come in and they shut down all these Community stuff and and just take people away from it and
Then you know what what options do the kids get and um it must be a really tough time now to be a young person not just social media and um the challenges of that and the challenges of having to be perfect and and I always say um I
Can’t imagine if I was 15 16 17 and you had Instagram and Facebook you know I was I didn’t get spots till I left school um and I used to laugh at everybody cuz I didn’t have puberty till quite late and all everyone was getting all beards and spots and all that I’m
Buzzing off them and then they got me about 17 18 I became like one of the world’s most Clum us be beekeepers after a at and I just had at this mad outbreak and I can’t imagine if that’s getting recorded in a you know you’ve got to then put a filter
On if you want to get a bed it must be an an incredibly um pressurized situation for these young people um yet you you can pull beds now from Argentina or you can meet friends from you know Australia in a heartbeat but also you know you’re in a global market and
You’re constantly under this pressure where when we were kids we were just just left to your own devices like you kind of had enough space to grow up and make mistakes and I wouldn’t want to live in a world now where my thoughts are being recorded from from being a
Young person I mean I cringe sometimes at some of the stuff I said in the early outset of Twitter was like 23 24 so can’t imagine what bar [ __ ] have been saying at 15 16 like you know what I mean what was it like getting release from Everton tough because I’ve gone
From um as I say when you get to like 13 or 14 and you you start to get like school boy forms don’t know whether you have that in Scotland is the same north of the border so you get school boy forms like 12 so you’re signing onee
Deals from like eight yeah one year one year Center of Excellence one year extension one year extension and you’re evaluated all the time and then about 13 you get your they give you your first two year it’s called the school boy form in England um so they have to make a
Two-year commitment to you so I would kind of sign school boy form so that takes you from 12 or 13 to 14 15 then 15 16 they work out whether you’re going to get a yts when you leave or a pro if you’re good you get a YT to your YT and
A 2-year Pro or something that’s like a Michael Owen will sign a one-year YT but you’d have to sign YT until you’re 17 you can’t sign pro I think until you’re 18 in England so they obviously just give you the yts up until you’re eligible and then once you hit 18 you’re
Right into the pro deals that’s if you if you’re Mega talented so I get to Everton 14 um they sign this contract I think till like 14 and then I go to the National schools trial so they have a Northwest trial in we played at Edgley
Park Stockport County um and I played up front that game and scored two for the northwest of England um and then I got to the north of England trials played off front that game I think that was our crew scored again didn’t um then you get
To the National trial which was now at little Shaw in in Shire so I think it was like 60 of us um our age group from like Arsenal Chelsea like the and Leon n and remember all they all came came in and these Blazers and [ __ ] and tires and
All that big purple Blazer always remember we we in England under 21s always remember saying to Jermaine I can always remember he Ted up with a black shirt black Titus big lime green Blazer and obviously the North and South’s a real big split in our country in terms
Of flash flash ofers and obviously a little bit more humble origin kind of ners and we were all in our Everton sakis or Liverpool sakis or whoever you black b or whatever the Norther LS was and then all these flash cockn are coming in and these [ __ ] big L BL and
You’re like right this is on and you’re competing you’re going to go from 60 of you down to 18 Outfield and three goalies so it’s going to be and it’s on and and the mixing your teams and it’s like games games and the scouts are all there with the notepads evaluating so
You can imagine at the time but I didn’t even feel it you just like you know for me I was just looking for verication hey am I one of the best 18 players my age group in the country I I don’t know um but at that point I’m the last one from
From Everton so there was me two scouters in there Neil Dan who’s Tony bellu mate Dany who was at Liverpool at the time and myself at Everton I never got from the 60 to the 18 I got from the 60 to the 30 and then I got C 30 to 18
So I’ve missed out on it so I go back to Everton then thinking well I’m the best I got the F the start of Everton Dany got in in the school and was at Liverpool and he end up leaving Liverpool and signing a twoyear white and and a threee pro with blackb who
Good given him a right few shill to T Pro cuz he got to the national school and then I think it only ran for one year after us or we might have been the last year of it and then they shut down it was almost like France’s version of
CLA Fontaine I don’t know whether you got it nor of the Border you have like a um kind it’s like a center of excellence for the for for for the international team um and go back to Everton and in the midst of that the ray or was running
The academy and when I was a young kid at everon we had an um an academy director who left to go with the f a someone else had been in his spot in the midst of coming back from Lil Shaw the academy director had changed back to
The fell who who’d been with the fa for four or five years and he’d come back um and there was a different philosophy in place and within six six months I’d gone from the last Everton lad to get to the National trial to getting told yeah you
You’re too small you’re not good enough and uh we’re going to relas you and he always remember the phone rang in minan I was living in minan at the time and um you at that time there was a phone upstairs it was the landline I I talk
Mobiles then so it was a phone in the kitchen and a phone upstairs um but obviously if someone picked it up in the kitchen and someone picked it up upstairs you L you have say [ __ ] put the phone down whoever’s on there but you there the knowsy bastard sometimes
Your phone goes P are living in the council Council house L and um the phone goes and you know just get that feel in your stomach it was like right we’re going to have an evaluation and we don’t want any of the kids to go it’s just the parents and you go [ __ ]
Something shady is going on here and um but never ever thinking what was coming and anyway me Nan’s gone with me Dad to Everton to meet the coaches and have been released but there’s been I think 14 of us got released out of 18 I think
They kept Four Lads on um so there’s been a whole sale uh changing at the guard so obiously mean’s uh phon me soon as she’s come out she’s gone to a pay phone for I need to tell this kid like right now so she’s phoned soon as the
Phone rank me Grandad’s picked the phone up and I’ve picked the phone up upstairs and I’ve heard me n say is J day and I’ve heard him stay on the line and I’ve spoke to me n and she said listen lad they’ve released you and I just remember like
Going like like a that was like crushing you know what I mean cuz I’m like an evertonian like I’m had to play for ever and for nothing I I I was on the Terrace’s H Junior evertonian on the Glad Street trying to Bunk in trying any
Way I could get in games bunking on the trains to get to like Sunderland way with me mates from school um just to watch Everton and then I thought I’m going to play for Everton like I’m defin you know and then all of a sudden I’m
I’m not good enough and then I just remember thinking they’re [ __ ] wrong like the the minute the phone went down I just remember this you know the the the weight of like I’m not I’m I’m not worthy I’m not good enough like hav have told me that I just remember thinking I
Don’t know what came over me but the the wrong these are [ __ ] wrong um and it was me lack of respect for the people who’d made the decision I thought he [ __ ] shitty [ __ ] a footy when he does his demos he can’t get the [ __ ] ball
He’s a [ __ ] P teer he doesn’t know football if I asked him to do keep UPS or if I had to play him now I’d [ __ ] and empty him and he’s a man so why you listen to this [ __ ] he’s nowhere near as good as you he doesn’t know his ass from
His elbow and he’s [ __ ] made a mistake and you can either sulk here and prove that he was right to get rid of a or you can prove this [ __ ] wrong and I just remember I didn’t say anything to anyone went downstairs I mean Grandad’s
Not an um he’s not a man of emotion you I mean if he’s no emotion at all like yeah old school and he he’d been for he kind of formulated differently me Grandad he’d been smart enough to get into a grammar school at a young age but
He come from like seven brothers and as I said he were all waai in the abire and you know a bell had go get rung in the morning and all the lads would have to get up and go out to work and come in and give my granddad’s dad the wages and
Then the house was after the very very old school working class family and two of the youngest Brothers my granddad Peter and his I think his brother Terry were clever enough in the schools they were in they got selected to go to grammar school by uh the whatever tests
It was so they went away from their siblings to this grammar school in Prescott but obviously they were from a really poor family so the teachers are go right Lads we’ve got Cricket tomorrow and you need your Cricket whites well obviously my granddad and my Uncle Terry
The mom and dad haven’t got a to pissing there was no Cricket white so they have to make an excuse to not without getting ridiculed by the other kids and me Granddad was a clever man and grew up hating anybody lifting the head above the pulpit he was like keep your head
Down like didn’t like even when I became famous he didn’t like like everything that came with it he was very much I I always I tell a story James like mean’s the opposite she’s like [ __ ] everybody you’re as good as anybody very proud one big matriarch very like if you work for
It and you’re proper and you principled don’t don’t take no notice of anybody like she’s someone you want on on your side like she’s and if she sees an injustice she takes it on she won’t and she doesn’t even have to say something she just looks at you
Sometimes or she’s just got that presence as all great matriarchs have and me Granddad was so me n tells a story that she wanted the lane to drive and this is this will just give you some pictur to me so my grandfather she wants a lane to drive and my grandad’s like
What why why the [ __ ] do you want a [ __ ] lane to drive what just [ __ ] be happy getting a bus he wored everywhere so she’s like shut up she just didn’t listen to him so she starts getting lessons and all that and he’s gone [ __ ] say [ __ ] she’s going out
Now doing the driving lessons pull and they live in a close mall and new close and he’s like all the [ __ ] neighbors will be looking out the window all that so he’s giving her a tie for these driving lessons [ __ ] she ends up passing a
Test and all that me gets a little car and all that and so she can take the kids around and all that cuz she’s a cracker and um I won’t be going in that car everyone will be looking at me thinking where selling drugs he was
Saying to me cuz she’s got this white um Maestro she bought this white Maestro and he’s saying to her everyone will be thinking I’m selling drugs he’s just the [ __ ] CRA and um I won’t be going in the card and all that anyway two weeks after me I’m passing the test 8 years
[ __ ] about 20 years you couldn’t get him out the see he got F everywhere um but that was his mindset and she was the same when he got the Telly cuz she got the Telly but these were the days when you couldn’t afford a Telly and you had
To sling a pound no a pound coin in the back of it you know remember the boxers to keep it going so you watch for like an hour and or something if youung in the back and obviously scers being scers you’d always find a few there’s a few
Ways to get in and out of it lad you I mean you know where um where there’s a will there’s a way W like that though but you know what I mean but like obviously that that was the that was the mindset and um I always remember um he kicked off about this
This Telly he was like [ __ ] big [ __ ] flash Telly and [ __ ] everyone to think we [ __ ] drug dealers and all that’s all all he used to care about was what what the neighbors thought of him I mean I say don’t care what anyone thinks who cares like why why shouldn’t you
Want to do well and as I say she went out and got extra jobs she she worked for for jobs Manan to make sure their kids had everything they wanted in the life and and then she did the same for us as as a as as a grandmother and as I
Say um she just set you on that course grandfather was always design I like play it down and didn’t and I was never me and my granddad never would never overly close me and my n would always Mega close and I think she’s natured um that kind of Headstrong
Self-determined um personality in me she’s seen something in me and natur it and as I say I think you know I’m very very fortunate to to have had that that influence and I think I think we all need that in our lives you know certainly if you’re going to go on to
Fulfill your potential and I think the more of that we’ve got and that doesn’t always have for me that doesn’t always have to be family members like I see they call it Fai Facebook like Instagram or oh yeah I’m having a [ __ ] great day today look at these [ __ ] sick
Pictures of me yeah and then then pictures get sent in and then they’re just sitting there thinking right I might have to slip me wrist here and it’s just that this nonsense world people living the good stuff is now loads of people are doing you know these
Podcasts and and and people are talking like openly and honestly about the life experience and I think the more people do that it just brings down barriers everyone realizes they’re as troubled as anybody else and if you don’t pay the rent on it you know for me my mental
Health is massively intertwin with um having a purpose in the morning keeping myself active keeping myself fit learning trying to learn as much as I can whether that’s reading a book watching a documentary tuning into um all the different various media sources that are out there or actually getting
Out and just meeting people like Steve black always said to me you know smile at people when you walk around and watch the world reflected back at you so whenever I’m out running or Ming about I just make high contact with people and and go all right M you’re okay and you
Can see and then you just watch all the other people who are walking around with the other heads in the phone or the heads on the ground taking part in the rat race and and just try it next time you’re out and about just walk around
And just keep your head L ey be proud of the person you are and just make contact with with with people don’t have to say anything sometimes just a look and and you get on the people who are on it and then there’s all these other people and
As I say you know when life gets hard what what do we all do we all like isolate whether that’s with a drink whether that’s with a bet whether that’s with all the other uh baits that are out there for all of us and I think if
You’ve got a a c of friends that you can rely on that you count on one hand I think you smash life said and if you’ve got a few people who say to you hey stop being a [ __ ] you’re acting like a [ __ ] to you [ __ ] behave yourself if you’ve
Got four or five people like that in your life you you’re a lity winner for me what did you went other P after like oh no this this be sh it well cuz just no so so what happened with me was when I was 13 um minan lived in M close
I’m off St John’s estate mean lived just off the estate on on kind of incident between mosr and the John’s called the hag it’s kind of near heighten Village and there’s a our school Thomas Beckett the Roman Catholic school and there was another big senior School seal Road NOS
Le hay and at NOS Le ha the secretary um of the school was uh the wife of remember Steve Highway who played for Liverpool um who ended up being Liverpool’s Academy director obviously bro through foul of Mam and I think Michael Owen and all that kiga Steven jard crop and
She their school used to play on a Saturday morning and we’d play on midweek we didn’t play in a Saturday league so I played Saturday afternoon for the team Sunday morning for the team Saturday afternoon Sunday afternoon for the team and I just wanted a game of
Footy our school played Jordan we had a Tuesday or Thursday that was just the Roman Catholic schools um so um we they had a good footy team and it was Lads from rro who were really good who were like playing for like crew uh Liverpool was none of EV with us but
But in our school team there was only me who was had a team there was loads of other lads who played good amateur footy but they W not signed up by clubs um and our teacher wasn’t really that bothered in the seniors Mr Reynolds and Mr L
About about football so the other school their teacher was bothered about footy and they used to play like blue coat and all the boss like cardle and all the really good footy schools cuz they were in the Protestant league and they were all like more difficult leagues so my
Best mate was their best player the other school so I’d say to him listen [ __ ] that’s your teacher can I play for you on a Saturday cuz they were getting beat by these big schools so their teachers gone you can play for us on a Saturday so I used to play for our
Girl um during the week I’d play for the opposite School the Protestant School Saturday morning then i’ play for my own Saturday uh team genu and Saturday afternoon then I’d finished that afternoon game I’d try and get to gooderson if it was a home game if not
I’d try and get to me Fell’s game if he was playing for Nole United Sunday morning I’d play a game for St an Rovers and then they had another team a team of our estate that was set up by a few of the fellas from the community center
They call themselves Milan um who were played for on a Sunday afternoon and as I say like when you think like Lads have met in life you Matthew S uh who’s a good writer wrote a book called Bounce which I think is good for people to read cly certainly young formula
Minds and Matthew had taken a lot of the principle from kind of Malcolm gladwell’s uh books um you know bastard eyes a little bit here James but but the the theory of kind of 10,000 hours of purposeful practice makes you Elite or world world class um you Pursuit and and
It was a study done on uh chess players by a a couple scientists who ended up having kids and um at the time you know the only thing he come up with with a test of the intellect was or the intelligence was chess because didn’t didn’t require your
Physical attributes um and then he had daughters so the experiment at that point in in time you know women were considered not to have the same learning capacity as men and that um you know they could never be at that point there’ been no chess grand grand Masters and um
He ends up teaching his daughters and I think they become like the third highest chess score ever one of them’s gotten multiple World level chess Champions and and again it was a an an intellectual exercise by scientists to prove that people are capable of anything um and and that
10,000 hours when I think back to it you know the the Council of State streets and the youth club and all the football that was going on we were just amassing hours and hours and hours and hours of practice almost like golfers going on the Range and chipping and chipping and
Chipping we were just three footballers just playing on the streets I mean you know the prime example of I think Liverpool Street Football culture is 16y old Wayne Rooney slamming in off the crossbar against um Arsenal a gooderson you know Wayne it was from ciff probably the the best player natural Talent
Liverpool have produced but again you know you look at Glasgow similar circumstances as I say South South London’s got similar and and the jordis the Northeast is is a bit of a bit of a hot bed as well so you you look at it and you go all right you haven’t been
Born with all these privileges in life but how lucky you was if you want to be a young footballer to be born to be eight in in 1990 when Italian 90 is the first World Cup then it’s 92 the Premier League and then it’s Sky Sports and the
Big money starts coming and then all the about best foreigners come over and he teach us about diet and training and discipline and then to grow up and play in the Premier League as an 18 19 20 year old and you’re playing against me know my debut is against JJ aota
Fernandoo Ivan Campo next week then you know you’re playing at spares and it’s Gus poer and Jamie rnap and and and then you got to play against Roy ke Gerard VI M Lampard I mean I could be here all day and I go what a lucky bastard you know me it
Terms of just born had a great time and and actually you know you went he didn’t have everything and give it to you in terms of the cards and it was tough and you had to re your stripes and get out of it but also I believe you can make
Whatever you want to yourself like people always say and especially with my rap sheep they go oh he’s done the same again leopard can’t change his Spots I’m like I’m not a [ __ ] leopard you know you know what I mean Peter K who’s who’s the probably the
Biggest uh influence on my life who was Sport and chance Clinic who was a clinical psychologist really but became a great friend of mine he taught me about U the brain and and and the way it works and you know when when I think
Back to it you know he was he told me a story one time I think he was about 33 34 and his thing was drinking drugs and he drank himself to the point where I think his pancreas had packed up on him so he was on a life support machine at
33 34 I think he had three kids at the time um and he says it was about the fifth to sixth time I’d been woken up in hospital said but this time like everyone’s faces around me when I came round wasn’t like it wasn’t the norm and they said you’ve look you’ve
Been in a coma here for like two weeks you’ve been given your last rights like four times like if you drink again you’re going to die um and he said my first thought he said Joe honestly my first thought was as soon as these leave the room I’m
Going on the off license and I’m getting back on the scotch like um and he said everyone left the room and he said this big Nigerian n came in he said he said she must have been about 20 stone he said I’d never seen her before he said
I’d never seen this woman before and he said um in my mind I’m thinking as soon as these [ __ ] off I’m I can get out and I’ve got he said I’ve got the tubes in me knows cafet he said you know what I’m thinking I’m taking him for the drink
Here um and he told him you’re going to die if you drink he said but such is the power of the illness it’s telling them it’s telling him he said then this Nigerian n pulls him and she says uh Peter she says uh I’ve worked at this
Hospital X amounts of years and I’ve seen a lot of people come in in all different states and she said I’ve never seen anybody as far gone as as what you was and she said and I don’t know how you’ve managed to to pull through and I
Don’t know how man how you’re still here she said well somebody somewhere wants you to be alive there there’s a calling for you and it’s important that um you get in touch with that and he said that was the first time I thought F I’m not going to drink just today he
Said after she spoke down he said and then she left the room he said and then I just fought right I’m not when I get I’m going to have one day sober I’m just going to tr for one day sober I think he had 33 years sober Peter and became a
Drug and alcohol counselor I don’t know it definitely changed my life like reconcil like I wasn’t capable of like empathy at the level I now am because um you know it just formulated me personality so far the Rough and Ready Council states of of Liverpool you know for me to think about
Somebody’s feelings um you know was was not how I was brought up and as I say very very fortunate through the chaos in my life and being a um a young footballer with notoriety that I met this incredible man who who who changed my life uh for the better um because he
He’d Liv such a caller for Life himself what was it like signing for Man City it it was quite straightforward I said story there where I get released by Everton um so the guy who’d left Everton had gone to Manchester City Bar poon who was the Scout when I told you the receiv
Change you have a good relationship with him well he found he’ found out within 25 minutes he was he was really good um Scout really good and you know massively responsible with a few others you know Jim Cassell Alex Gibson and Frankie boner the the success of Manchester
City’s Academy I think we had you know from from myself Sean r Phillips you know Daniel stur Stevie Island Glenn wheel Etc I think we had 26 full Internationals whether England irand Scotland Wales who came out of that Academy in about a five or six year
Cycle that we were there so no doubt before the the oil and the Abu dhab money came into City you know it was the academy and the city’s uh belief in that Academy that kept the club in in its in its existence and as I say give me a
Fantastic opportunity but also many other talented footy players and bar phon me the phone went down and I told you I had that result 12 of the [ __ ] of is like and I don’t know 25 minutes later maybe phone call Bar Pointon I’ve heard they released you what the [ __ ]
Are they doing come come up to St at Manchester City tomorrow now EV were in the Premier League at the time man city at the time were in the championship and in my time at Man City they went into before I sign YT they went to League one
And I remember I was signing as I was starting with YT in the summer of the Gillingham Nikki weer Paul diov playoff final you know for City and so I was going back as a fo FaceTime left school yts footballer the face season back in the championship
After that mad final um and then I was there then you know they they got in the champ and I think they went again Joe Royal the next year they got promoted at black black ban at the last game of the season then they went down and they sack
Joe Royal and Kevin Keegan took over came back up and then they established themselves as a Premier League club and I got me debut off Kevin Keegan in the Prem so I was lucky that you know B poon believed in me at the time and the coaches he had you know
See were you not getting put on and stole your STP is that is that true yeah so um but my I made me debut at 20 and and um at 19 I was in the first team squad so six month before they made me debut or might have been five six months
Have to check the the the dates I’ve haded too many balls I was at the near poster remember them um vividly but I got put in the squad we were playing uh Middlesboro away and now I was the youngest so sha R Phillips was the year
Older than me he was a year above me all the time at Man City and team right to get in the face team and do really really well and at a similar time Steven Gerard was in Liverpool’s first team who would knew I’m from St John’s estate
Steve is from the Bluebell and as I say Tom Kore who’s Stevie’s good mate i’ got into lore he’s my cousin and they lived in the same road and I’d seen Stevie get in Liverpool’s first team I thought [ __ ] me if he can do if he can get in
Liverpool’s first team I can get in man City’s because without being disrespectful to City at the time Liverpool Real Madrid man united like it’s harder to get in them first teams than maybe it is to get in um some other fa teams um so I remember thinking
[ __ ] hell he’s just a kid off he’s a spoty kid off the John’s like may you know off off the Blue Bell off the John it’s just a new or family i’ known Stevie grown up never played against him cuz he’s three years older than me but
Remember thinking if he can do it I can do it and then I seen Shawn R Phillips do it who was a year above and I thought and he was smashing it in the face team and I thought [ __ ] hell if he can do
It you know I can do it and then getting the first team 19 midd BR away and I’ve not been on the bench or anything and he puts me on the bench Kevin Keegan and then we’re two-nil down and he turns around and he says um get warmed up
You’re going on I’m like premier league and my dad had always said to me you’ll get one chance at Premier League level the margin of erors that like you’ll get one chance and you got to take it so you got to be prepared at all times it it
Might be when you least expected to take it so I’m like [ __ ] wired in this is me chance now unbe known to me a a fa team player that got injured on the fursday I’m put in the squad late I haven’t been on the face team squad before and the kit man’s
Got to print up a number I’m [ __ ] 42 or something like that 41 and he prints up one chair for me let’s chman 41 so I’m on the bench in the game and I’ve come out and I’m watching the face I’m like what I’ve not I’ve not been on the
Benches as a you know in the face team and they all used to carry the pads in the land and the Shir and the tie ups and the typen so I thought oh this what you doing the face team so I’ve just copied them sat on the bench with me
Thing warmed up at half time second half he’s gone right you’re going on so I’ve gone out to warm up come back got me pads on gone down for me shirt i’ left them under my uh seat on the bench and and me sh it’s gone gone so I’m thinking
This is the lads on the noise up as you do you’re thinking [ __ ] else going come on Lads and they’re going just don’t know what you’re on about like I’m like come on they’re like and Keegan’s now going are you ready I’m like I hav’t
Got me [ __ ] he’s like w I’m like I haven’t got me [ __ ] so he’s gone to chappie the kit man [ __ ] gone get him in other shetes so chappie ran down into the dressing room he’s gone where’s your Shar I’ve gone I’ve just left it with me
Pads there cuz I thought that’s what you doing warmed up at half time and walked up and unbeknown to me at half time one of the midb fans has leaned over and [ __ ] Billy where me how it’s that happen to SC um so M been so now I’m turning
Around pleading to the crowd Les comes back out the changing room and goes to the manager gaffa listen I’ve only had one share for him he got in the squad like notice I’ve only printed one share up there’s no share for him so he looks at me and goes sit down you [ __ ]
[ __ ] you’re not going on so I’m turn around to the crowd going look whoever’s robbed me [ __ ] I’ll give you me [ __ ] and me boots back at the end of the game gives me [ __ ] [ __ ] I’ll give you I’m not even ask you and they’re all just
Sitting there going I had a b six to sign for middleb and I never sign for them because cuz I got told he had one chance right so don’t get on um we end up losing the game so he puts Ali bonabi or whatever and I’m like did you thrw us
I’m like as long as I felt since I got released I thought that’s me chance so at the time Robbie Fowler and M manman kind of took me under the wing you know looking after me as a as a kind of young scouter and I used to sit with the lads
In that and I’ve just sat down the front of the coach on my own I was just [ __ ] soing just going that that’s me chance that like and um no one like he didn’t even he didn’t even have a goal with me Keegan like he didn’t even
[ __ ] say anything and then he just left me out of a he never put me in another squad for four months he never used to speak to me right so I look back at it now and I got stream it mad but I had him again didn’t night at Newcastle
So I I was lucky we got a second a second go we got a second goal of it so doesn’t speak to me and I’m playing in the reserves now and I’m double down I’m playing even better than what I was when I got the first team chance like cuz I’m
I’m like I I’m at me best when I’m when CHS are down were you sent on Mid sent on Mid yeah well I play anyway play up front when you yeah I just play Anywhere lad you know mean I just love footy I play play anyway just love a game of
Footy so back in the reses and I’m captain the reserves then AC Al our coach and ASA was brilliant just like just keep your head down keep doing what you done that got you that opportunity if you keep doing it can’t ignore you so keeps doing it and he had a big champion
In half of Cox remember half of the AL Derby County new hassle manager who was Kevin Keegan assistant um at England and and new Hast and City halfa really liked me um and he was bit old school half and he he really Champion my course and um
Then I go out the team as I say with the Jersey four months doesn’t put me in a squad but in about the last six weeks before a going a squad they’re not playing that well that come in on a on Sunday or a Monday and with the reserves
And at half a clock I’d be passing him in the corridor and he’d go why aren’t you in the first team and I’d say [ __ ] [ __ ] know ask you mate he [ __ ] picks the team I’m I’m ready to go and it was walk off five weeks out you should be in
The first team and he’d like grab me and like trying I love dord you mean but like he’s he’s an half fell and he just grab you pin you up against the wall like why you call her should be in the first because he’d been beat I’d say
Well tell the manager I’m I’m good to go here like I’m ready to go anyway this this continues for four more weeks this to the point where like I’m now going for [ __ ] sake half like you need to [ __ ] go in and have a word
Like I’m ready to go and I’d never swear it half anyway go are like make sure you’re ready and then um I get put in a squad playing boting the away in like the April always remember it was Grand National Day boting the away and um I
Think Mark Viv and four or someone had had the flu and I’d never been on the bench for the fa team since the Shar have been robbed so I hav been in a squad I hadn’t been on the bench and now I’m in a squad so I’m thinking I might
Be on the bench again yeah we’ve done the team shaping like you know what I mean I’m not in the team might be on the bench again here get to the stadium and um he names the team Keegan in the dress old school and I’m gone to myself I’ve
Gone I’m [ __ ] sure he just said my name in the start 11 but like no one said anything to me you mean I’ve gone so Robbie f is sitting next to me so I’ve gone nudged him I’ve gone did he say my [ __ ] name there he’s gone [ __ ]
You st starts laughing so I’m like oh [ __ ] hell like the reality just did you you I mean so I’m like oh [ __ ] sake like this is a s or Swim here like I’m starting I’m not even coming on as a bench you know to get it I’m like in at
The defend yeah so I remember me ass has gone and it was what we were talking about earlier the famous you know got it from Blacky again the Custom Auto stuff Blacky was hugely influenced by like cuss and the old boxing school and used to say about the the difference between
A hero and a coward H it’s not in it’s not how they feel it it’s it’s like what we spoke about your personality you went towards that negative side I went towards the positive side it’s what you do with that feeling everyone’s scared everyone’s [ __ ] scared everyone thinks
They’re not good enough everyone thinks everyone’s better than them better looking than them teeth straighter speak better dress better cooler um everyone’s got that impostor syndrome um some’s some’s imposter syndrome is is giant some’s is very small some’s confidence and ego is Giants and some’s very small
And it’s it’s it’s finding um what works for you so I always remember he says cuss you know the hero and the coward in that moment feel exactly the same they’re both [ __ ] themselves but it’s what they do with that energy that that that turns the hero into the hero
And the coward into the coward so what I find is people avoid those situations where s or Swim putting them people want to be overprepared for everything now you’re a testament to that what do you what your schedule [ __ ] know I’ll just get on with it and and I know I’m a
Good C and I know I’m good at what I do and I know it’ll work for me and it’s BOS to see you heading because you’re just following your path people who succeed they’re the same they just follow it you know you might start out
Want to be a footballer but you’d end up being you know a lifestyle Guru or something you know you see i’ seen a story about was was a Paul MC who was getting like 15,000 to speak um to big businesses now and he starts out as a football I’m like
Wow what what a success that is like you you’re not just the ones one trick pony you know yeah you’re going to have a short career where you could be a footballer till you’re 35 and then after that you’ve got a you got you
Got a big life out in front of you like you’re a young man if you if you first if you dream about being a footballer which I did even in your wildest dreams at 40 years of age if you if you’ve lived like a a a um a a monk and you’ve
Done Pilates and yogurt and ET tofu and [ __ ] done all your breathing and never had uh uh the wrong carb in your life and never had the PS of L you might get to be 40 with thought you’d have to knock it on the head but then you’ve got
A huge life out in front of you um and and for me as I say you know some some days you will act like a coward but that doesn’t mean you are a coward you can you know the leopard doesn’t change its spots you can change your spots I’ve
Seen as I say Peter K great M man who said I nearly killed myself through drugs and alcohol abuse become a drugs and alcohol counselor and changed thousands of people’s lives for the better people who will’ll never ever meet as I say a society grows great when
Men plant trees of which the fruit they they’ll never get a sample um and and I think the world we live in now um you know we we’ve got to do more of that we’ve got to leave the world a better place than than what we found if uh it’s
Not ours like you know we’re we’re just we’re just passing through yeah we just done these V passing through so seeing you’ve then got your debut see with that fear and the one either you push against it or you pull back did you was that in
Your mind just to give it everything so so this is how I new you know people talk about you know I just knew I don’t I can’t I can’t explain this yet I knew I was ready I had play men’s football I knew the bigger the CH every time the
Challenge got bigger for a young kid so the bigger crowds I played in C finals and I always got better what age were you you made your debut uh I was 20 I made debut at 20 um I should have made it at 19 um but got Billy wiad yeah
Middle so um but when I went in I never came back out so so I never got dipped in I went in and stayed in but I was a bit older so you see people get dipped in at 17 18 19 and everyone’s different everyone you know Rooney was playing and
Banging them in top BS as 160 against an invincibles team David Sean you know you know what I mean but then you know when did he retire Rooney 31 you know with Cristiano still going so you know for me um everybody gets Delta a set of
Cards it’s I think if you get a 27 off suit and you turn that into a pair of jacks by the end of year KN I think you’ve done well if you get a pair of Aces and you’d end up with [ __ ] a pair of sixes at the end then you [ __ ]
The job up somehow and um you know you’ve just got to make the best of of the way you see the world you know you try and treat people how you’d like to be uh threat you know for me if I see someone working hard and being a good
Conso try and help them out if I see someone acting like a con like n them or I might sometimes take them to task CU I think you know someone needs to re re re uh re-engineer you you know every now and again someone comes along in all of our
Lives who goes what the [ __ ] are you up to um and hold up airity here and I think we all need that um I was a bit disappointed with his stance recently on Israel but Jordan Peterson’s really good stuff uh some really good stuff in in in recent years
Um in terms of you know becoming the master of your own destiny you know how can you do anything if you don’t get up and make your bed in the morning um and I think there the more people are out there talking about good examples like when you’re saying you’re clean and
Sober and what you’re up to and how your life turned around and as I say at some point people were saying ah James can’t leopard can’t change your spots and you [ __ ] proved them wrong cuz you know every drug and alcoholic gets up and goes right that’s it I’m done you know
For Peter it was a massive intervention in terms of nearly lost his life but he got up and said I’m not drinking again I’m going to take it one day at a time I believe you choose to allow stuff in so offense I choose to be offended because
If someone calls me a fat hunt and I and I and I go I’m a bit out of shape at the minute and I and I accept that offense if I’m not I’d go sh be [ __ ] idiot I just look down me like what the [ __ ] you
On about but now with social media people can just offend you you put a thinging up saying you know where’s my podcast with Joey Barton or whatever and they’ll just be a load of people offending you a load of people supporting you and just all gamut in in
Between that cuz you know that that is the world we now live in where everyone’s got an opinion um and everyone thinks their opinion is valid how long were you with 35 years I was with tiity for nine years James nine nine years yeah oh cuz you went after
Everton so I left Everton 14 play professional five years in the Premier League well yeah I went um so I left ever 14 and I didn’t just like make it I nearly nearly didn’t make it about nine or 10 times from 14 to 18 and a half I
Was touching go all the way every six weeks every six months I was being re-evaluated is he going to be big enough and at about 17 18 um I was faced with a kind of Life uh like a Crossroads in your life there’s a representational team from our Bor Noley that goes and
Plays in the Dallas cup and it’s kind of really good Semi-Pro footballers um you know lads who play for kind of teams below the Vox all it’s not the Vox All Conference like the national league so the conference in Scotland that probably play in your Premier League cuz it’s a
Bad that standard isn’t it in the bottom part the bottom part the same Scottish son flop Joey Barton as a go with Scotland they’ll say um but no like so our pyramid in terms of um you know your T you know fulltime professional is kind of division 2 Division One Championship Premier League
Obviously the national league you get some pro teams with big budget and some Semi-Pro teams and then the next TI below that they me dad kind of played that level but these lads will go and get a scholarship in America and get a degree and they’ll play collegia
Football in America it’s just just at the bar they’re not good enough to make it a professional level in the UK but are still good and go and get an education and a different you know experience of Life by going to the states um and it gets them away from
Nossle as I say which has got not fantastic career prospects for for further education um and and then you know the the Dallas thing for me I’m not really fancy that City and I was training with these Lads and then I was easily good enough to go with them when
I was younger and I got selected for their team and at the point City are going to release me to saying well you’re touch and go and I remember saying to me dad listen I might as well leave City cuz City don’t really fancy me they haven’t fancy me for the last
Couple of years I’ll go to Dallas there might be Scouts there from [ __ ] who knows Mexico cuz like Ajax would be out there you know guad lahara I’m going I’ll do really well and I’ll get an offer of a scholarship and I might get a team that really fancy
Me so I was like really Tor between it and my dad’s like listen you can [ __ ] always go to Dallas like they’re they’re Semi-Pro stay at TI till they kick you out till till they say you’re no longer any good you’re not good enough and you
Need to leave and he said and use the gym cuz if you leave there you’re going to have to get a gym membership and you’re going to have to train on your own you can’t just [ __ ] sit in the house they only train twice a week you’re training every day a week yes
You’re going to for behind the elite level players so stay at city until you’ve ex like you’ve overx overstayed your welcome um so I remember him going you know what he’s right there so we knock back going to America and stayed at city and I just I had to get the I
Wasn’t good enough that they would put me up in digs so I was on a non-contract they didn’t even give me a YT cuz they were so unsure about me so I had to get the busing from Liverpool every morning so I’d get out I’d leave our house in
Night at half six I get to right train station course quarter to I was like i’ run to the train station quarter to 7 train from there to Ed Jill jump off of Ed Jill run to the National express bus station get on the national express bus
To Manchester City Center from the rocky uh get off there get another bus to mide the nine bus all the way through Manchester all the way through Mosside to Main Road jump off at Main Road get me kit from the laundry and then run across Moss side through the back alleys
To Plat Lane which was in train two sessions morning and afternoon 5 or 6:00 say I’d have to run across to put me da kit it back in the laundry back on the bus in the middle of M side which was tricky at the time you have to have
Your wi to buy it um and then back to city center back on the national Express so I’d leave our house at at quart to 7 and I’d get in 7 at 8:00 from 16 to 19 so I couldn’t get in any trouble mhm so like but then I wasn’t doing foot I
Wasn’t aing I was just about getting by having me exes if I could bunk on the national Express and not get you got like a 10 trip [ __ ] pink card like a like a zoney like a Saveway and they’d clip off every time and if you could get
Through without him clipping one off that meant you got an extra journey and there was four or five of us doing the same journey and you’d have to you know if you had half inch a paper or a chocolate bar on the way back from a
News agent that was not coming out of your XIs at at the end of the I mean you you were living an out for like three or four years and as I say using the gym and Jim I always remember Jim Cel who was the academy director he pulled me in
And he said um everyone’s telling me I should release you like I’ve canvased everybody about keeping you on and and nobody’s in like nobody wants to do it and he said Bo I’m looking in your eyes and I can see there’s a fire and I see your practice
In the dome and I see you going in the gym and I see you leaving here at half five when Lads are getting off at like 2:00 and he said I’m I’m going to keep you on for six more six more months and that happened to me about three times
And then I just grew and caught everyone up and then I’d had this training Abit because I was doing extras and then we I filled into me size that I was going to be and then once I got ahead of everybody I had the the the uh Black Sheep kind of mindset of
Saying and being okay with you know in football your busy cun I look at that busy K doing his extras and look at that busy K going the gym I was cool with that because my dad said to me listen you’re in a team of 20 Lads there if you
A really talented group one of your Lads will get in the first team so that you might think they’re all your mates and all that now but it’s going to be im or you for the fair team jersey and I came off a Rough and Ready counsel state
Where I knew it was close margins see when you broke into the first team and you established your St as a first team player because you got yourself in a bit of hassle what was when was the first time you got in trouble um you’re not fighting with a team first preseason I
Think I had a ding-dong didn’t I had donc cter did not start like a 22 man brawl or something like that um so I you know that summer I played made me debut against um Bolton we lost 2-0 but it must have done well cuz he’s kept me in
The starting 11 so the second game I played against tournament White T Lane and scored and my dad’s just meant to be this big hard case was at the game and fainted cuz he’d seen me score big emotional [ __ ] soft sh fainted in the crowd so I always say can you remember
Me first goal he can’t cuz he was [ __ ] unconscious in the in the stand at White Lane um and then I think me sixth game was at anfield first time I’d ever played at anfield and we beat them 2-1 and I everyone with told me it’s mythical you can’t win at anfield first
Time we go Nicholas and El scores to we beat them 2-1 I seen Peter schme make the best save I’ve ever seen life in the same game from Milan baros double save and I thought [ __ ] hell it’s easy I’ve been to downfield in the reserves and played them one there and played
Against Liverpool’s teams all the way through growing up and always had the number but i’ never played the face team the first time I ever played there we dust them 2-1 they don’t make the Champions League I never [ __ ] won there again I thought [ __ ] easy they
Crack it I think the best they ever got there again was a draw and you know I didn’t come out the first team so I played in all of them games um started played 90 minutes in the allall got to the end of the season and I thought you know no one’s really
Spoke to yet it’s not like now where people have talk to you at all different levels signed a new deal went from like 6 600 Quid a week um playing in the face team to the end of that season I think they put me on like six grand so that’s like
Lifechanging money for me you know I’m like the highest a of that ever lived in our family you know I can think think about like buying a house and like moving out of me mean’s spare bedroom and all that and um and then you know Keegan signs cladio Raina that summer
And I funnily enough he just text me this afternoon Paul bossel so clao Raina Senter Midfield at American captain and Paul bossel who two years before was a Dutch International and was Captain of fireo and lifted the EUR U for cup as it was known then I think it’s Europa
League now so I thought this [ __ ] doesn’t fancy me he’s [ __ ] bringing in his country he plac me unbeknown to me I got Keegan a second time at Newcastle when he came back to Newcastle and he said no no you were a young lad he only played seven games I didn’t know
Whether I could rely on your body for I said well why you [ __ ] sit me down and tell me cuz I thought you didn’t fancy me and I [ __ ] hated you cuz I thought you bringing in these but I just seen it as a challenge and and to be
Fair I played overall of them um that that that season and that preseason I was fighting for me existence cuz they’d come in we played Doncaster in a friendly and I don’t do friendlies I don’t do anything like a play a win in in everything if I like playing me kids on
FIFA I can’t let them win like I I go no if you beat me you’re better than me so I I I have to have competition um and and and you know the preseason friendly um you know sometimes when you’re a Premier League club and you play them kind of League one
Championship clubs a few the the the the the knobs get carried away don’t they you know especially if you’re a young player like you know greatly respected them like they try and mark the terity certainly they did in them days and especially in central areas so I always
Remember I think the Striker’s name and he was about 6’9 Leo Fortune West um had gone in for a ball but it was like just a ridiculous tackle for preseason you what I mean like really high so I remember giving it to him like and he was [ __ ] massive like he only spoty
20 year old he’s 6’9 man py and I’m giv it to him saying you [ __ ] big [ __ ] bag and um the next tackle he’s come in and he’s he’s properly tied to do me but obviously being as c as I was you know I grew up in a Rough and Ready past the
World and certainly playing football you got to be tough to survive [ __ ] seeing it coming especially a big dope Center forward like that and and and managed to ride his tackle and you know where you just land on them so I’ve land landed on them and anyway their captain or
Something has has flew in anyway separated five minutes after that there’s a sen toid for them who’s you know looked like the Milky bar kid as I’m pressurizing him and he’s done that one you know where you fall on the ball and he put the ball in between the legs
So they like obstructing you but it’s not a foul and instead of letting him get up or letting the rest stoper have just continued to kick through the him and the ball while the ball’s on the floor obviously it’s on now so all all players are having it and obviously I’m
I’ve started it um and I think they their captains got there’s a famous picture of them like gripping me around the neck but like I’m like he’s like a 36 year old fell I’m 20 and he’s waited to like have like you know a preseason
Friendly to grip up a young kid like I’d never think of doing that as a 35y old senior to a young player I’d be like come on kid but obviously you know everyone’s different so I get in the dressing room at half time preseason friendly and Kevin Keegan’s the manager
And he absolutely gets like right after me just like [ __ ] takes me off starts having a goal because I’ve started the 22 man [ __ ] scrapping a preseason friendly pretty much and then after that James the die was pretty much cast that was Joey Barton Pan Man villain and then
Every story that came after that that was the narrative like that was like that’s the kakure you’re going to be this good cop and bad cop you know Batman and a and and that’s that’s that’s where we’re going with you like and and then obviously you know the
Stuff you get into afterwards uh becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy do feel that though as soon as that happened you had to play up to that character because you like that before any of that stuff happened that yeah yeah yeah I’ve always been Rough and Ready like even as a
Young kid before I was you know that’s just my personality I’ve always been a bracer in terms of I stand up for what I believe in as I say I come from Liverpool come from heighton which is a a set of very very principled people
Grew up in um a time where you know we were coming off the back of you know thatchers Tor austerity in in in our area coming into you know I’m I’m seven years of age when when hillsbor happens and and seeing the aftermath of that so you grow up very anti-establishment and
Very anti um um Authority um and and and you you form your own um view of the world and and as I say you know some of the greatest people I’ve ever met that come from that area really principled you know fantastic people um and again you know you you know the difference
Between right and wrong and you know for me you know it is a is a little bit of an area Liverpool certainly our area where you know if you act like a [ __ ] um you know you there’s a ramar for ation that you know you’re not allowed to just
Behave and say what you want and saying to you on the way in you know the world’s gone a bit weird because um people have forgotten what it’s like to get punched in the face you know they think they can just say whatever they want to people online and in these
Different things and um you know where I grew up if if you had a um very very strong opinion and um you wasn’t able to back that up um then then you wasn’t able to have that opinion see your your brother as well was involved in how did
That affect you was the the media after you for that because we can’t stop affect what other people do in our lives but being a professional footballer known as a hotthead did they use that against you was that a moment where they came that came for you things happen
Don’t they like you know I look back at it and you can’t chart your course like it’s so halfhazard like it’s so you know you try and make plans and these people and and I’m doing me Pro license by end of this week and they talk about
Planning into the future and I’m like I’m 41 here but like it’s so tough to plan it it’s such a random um journey and you know highs and lows and everything in between um for for me you know the the the area I grew up
In as I say I can remember you know my mom’s side of the family with you know my dad side the family not crime orientated and quite working you know working color and working always working jobs and roofers and abattoir um you know butches Etc um me n always worked
And then me me me mom’s side of the family slightly different um you know uncles involved in you know Robin post officers Robin Banks LED them into you know I think becoming heroin addicts um you know certainly as I’ve got older you know they’ve had struggles with Heroin
Um and just life a crime so I’ve seen the contrast of both a family trying to work the way out hey you know huge life experience I just put it down to you know it’s fantastic tool tools to have available to deal with you know the way
World as it presents itself to me now um so I always remember being in ours in the school holidays and we used to have a slide and patio door in Boundary Road and um my dad would never let any my dad didn’t really get on with me mom’s
Family particularly well I know why now and it’s not for in in this podcast but I didn’t understand it at the time but he wouldn’t let let like my uncles come down the path and all that he went loud near our house if they came to see me m
They’d have to shout from the end of the gate they’ have to shout r m M’s name and me m come out and she’d sometimes let them in but if if if my dad found out he’d been in the house they used to be [ __ ] M he’d be
Like don’t have them [ __ ] and for whatever reason he just never got on with them as I say I understand why now and um I always remember this afternoon school holidays and I was checking the [ __ ] teletext cuz that’s how you used to find out what was happening before
Social media you had to sling the teletext on to see if EV was sign anyone and you have all the rumors in the paper so bang got the teletext on I just remember this banging on the patio [ __ ] window so I’ve opened the patio it’s my Uncle Eddie and uh he’s flustered in
That so I’ve let him in and as I’ve opened the door I’ve had like like the helicopter for the so real he’s come running in with all these things he’s on best I think a post office and had all this so he’s upstairs now in ass and I’m
I’m having to follow him I’m think I’m only about 12 at the time I’m thinking half’s going to kill me because Eddie shouldn’t be in ass so I’ve gone upstairs and that and he’s obviously got this bag with all notes in and he’s like listen I was into sub your own stickers
At the time and he’s gone listen don’t [ __ ] tell your dad I’ve been here um to say Chase from the busy day just robbed a post office I’m keeping all the notes he kept all the notes and he said if you don’t tell your dad I’ve been in
Yet you can keep all the um all the coins so at the time you know 12 it must have only been about [ __ ] 40 quid in in in coins but that was like winning the lottery so for [ __ ] I right about it keep St so obviously got the coins
And obviously allowed me to get a few new subo teams and goals and that get stickers or whatever I was into shoot magazine or match magazine so I remember that at a young age you I mean in terms of like crime was just around us you
Know as I say um there was kind smack heads were kind of forbidden on the estate so as kids we’ had car blanch to kind of attack any smack heads we’ve seen so have you seen anybody to like tooting up or whatever and and there was
Flats and all that by our you know you could throw bricks at them or they were like a sub species of of of creature on our estate and like the the brown was just forbidden on St John’s there was other Estates where that happened but
Heroin was just a no no and that was the the local OD cases who enforced that you know the police didn’t really come on our estate if they did you know they were made unwelcome relatively relatively quickly I mean I remember finding uh an an undercover we used to
Climb in the flats above the shops where where where our school was and youly make dens in there and we we’d knock through wall after wall you know just kids playing in the in the in the school holiday or whatever and I remember we broke in broke in through a wall into
One of the flats and there was a a full surveillance kit set up and geared pointing out the windows a um one of the houses of someone we knew so obviously we didn’t touch it cuz you know you you wide in at the time you know the
Difference um between um being a grass and not being a grass you know from a from a very young age and obviously when I made you know the fell who his house it was pointed out away and obviously I remember him coming around and giving us all the drops each
You mean but they went in and obviously um you know took all the equipment out you know remember seeing a kid getting stabbed at 17 I remember me fell as mate AO getting meded at uh 14 15 I remember my Uncle Joe got meded in the Blue Bell
PB got hit off the Ed with the PQ I must have only been 1011 so but you thought it was normal you thought how everybody must be seeing this and don’t forget on TV at the time we’re watching the Iraq War watching Kosovo watching Serbia watching Saro be bombed so you going
Canel it’s rough on the johns but at least we’re not [ __ ] getting bombed you know you didn’t know that this this other world was out there and I presumed it was we’re thinking kids in Glasgow are the same they love the footy and it’s Rough and Ready kids in every other
Big Town in the city are in the same boat and you know for us it was perfectly normal you know it’s only when you look back at it now you go [ __ ] hell like must have been strong through there like well you know no different James do you you just [ __ ] made the
Best of what you’ve got and listen you know who knows if the cards had have been delt over way you might have you know you might have turned out to be a [ __ ] right wanker yeah what happened after Man City why did they release you City didn’t release me you sign for
Newcastle 5.8 yeah so I went to City got in City why did why did you well I had um I had a few scrapes didn’t I so I had um I had you becoming a problem because of all the [ __ ] that you were causing because like I say it never affected
Your football but when you seem to have lost it you [ __ ] lost it you nothing could really you couldn’t really ring it back see I don’t think it did you know that’s that’s a scary thing about it isn’t it that that’s the perception of it
Buy I did like you yeah that that’s not so obviously because you’ve got to have that clean cut I me to be in the Premier League you know that yourself maybe no but you look clean cut where you rain it in where they’re speaking properly you
Never seem you seem to have de Liverpool mindset you seem to where you grew up where I’m fighting any cun who says anything or goes against it because obviously the trouble outside that must affect you as well cuz you getting getting the jail getting sent off and then causing [ __ ] riots like did
Nobody ever say you look you’re just young [ __ ] screwed ahe or was it just a case he can listen if you’re playing good football as long as you’re playing well on a I mean a little bit less now cuz you got the old cancel culture you
Know I think just seen that with the um kind of you know football a step out of line now it’s there’s a different tolerance level from When We Were Young you know obviously the media introspection into your life’s completely different social media’s you know put a huge magnifying glass on the
Lads um you know for for for us it was kind of like the just young lads being young Lads you know young boys young men act like dick sometimes especially if you’ve put in a right few Shilling in the pocket and a bit of Fame and a bit of notoriety all
Of a sudden you know just you know you start to believe that you are The Reincarnation you know you are sent from the gods to you know you know on the world you know we all get this Megalania kind of I’m the center of the universe
Kind of mindset as a young person and then obviously your wings get clipped because you make a few mistakes or you’re getting a few scrapes and as I say then you make your way through life and then you know the the the more and more I live life the more and more I
Realize that oh I’m having I’m not having the same life I’m not having the same life experiences as other people like most other people don’t achieve everything they’ve dreamed of achieving by the age of 23 24 like you know most people spend the whole lives chasing something and and then changing and then
Changing and changing and changing but when you do something and you set out on a course and there’s all sorts going on around you all kinds of different things going on around you and you man you manage to stay steadfast in that When You’re 15 16 17 18 and there’s
Women and there’s drugs and there’s all them Temptations and you manage to go no not for me I know where I’m going or your mat are going to parties and they’re telling you all these great stories and you’re in the house and you’re watching match the day and you
You’re having tea and toast with your n and you’re going to bed at 10:00 on a Saturday and on a Friday night and you know and you’re going is this going to pay me back like I’m no guaranteed to make it you know is this going to pay me
Back and then and then you do it and you make it and then you know you want to play in the Premier League and then you play in the Premier League and then you want to play for England you play for England and then you realize not only do
I never have to work again my kids are never going to have to work again and even their kids might you know keep going here you know and then you just think wow the cards I was delt and the tools I was given in me tool
Box and now i’ I’ve smashed it I remember signing for New Castle sign signed a fiveyear deal what was that decision for to leave city city I just out grown City at the time i’ got really frustrated I was trying to you know I had Frank Lampard Steven Gerard ahead of
Me in the England national team and i’ kind of been captain in the February um five or six teams decied to buy me in the in in in the kind of Summer and the window before that you know city were kind of fighting to to stay up um John
Waler who a great guy was the chairman at the time and he was keeping the club going the sale sale of Shawn R Phillips kept the club going the sale of like ladu were coming through the academy we’re keeping the clubs head above the water then we started trading in you
Know everyone was buying foreign players but you done getting the [ __ ] you know the the [ __ ] at the end of the stick you’re not getting the top boys and they were good lads but there was some maggots in there as well um and then the culture just started slowly to to erode
And I I just thought if I want to Fed in my career selfishly I need to leave Man City you know I want to get in the England squads Frank and Steven ahead of me uh you know they’re playing for Chelsea and Liverpool respectively scoring every week I’ve got [ __ ] no
Chance if I’m happy to you know I was City’s top scorer the season before the left with nine goals like I I’m not want know for scoring goals James and we stayed up comfortably in the Premier League which is Bonkers when you think of it now um and you know i’ had the
Ding-dong with Usman daro um I’d had the face so we had the the preseason friendly with donc that was the kind of fuse was was lit after that um the cig so then uh what was I 2122 we’ve had I’m in the first team we had the Christmas
Party so the lad who who that happened Jamie T’s the year below me we played in the same fa youth Cup team so knew him all the way through he’s a with and short boy I’m a Liverpool boy with and CH I think the biggest council state in
Europe so rough and ready and from the Johns Rough and Ready um I’d always got on all night with Tandy but he was a bit L he was like a little bit of a beef cake a little bit L but didn’t really have as I say you know I grew up not not
Into boxing but Peter K Shaw me my second cousin is was strawweight world champion my granddad um was was one of the key um people in starting the boxing club in in the area around from um heighton um my granddad was Navy boxing champion so i’ kind of been even though I played
Football me Uncle Paul was was a good ABA boxer I mean next door one one uh but one neighbor Frankie Lans AR was a good England school boy boxer we always so you know and you were fighting every day in school you’re fighting in you know rivaling States you you know as
Well drilled as you we for the game of 40 10,000 hours of purposeful practice we probably had a good 8,000 of them you know had a fighting amongst ourselves or you know fighting you know in that young youth space in in in the rough and Readiness
Of of of working class Liverpool at that time you know you had to defend the space that you stood up in cuz if you got yourself caught on in the wrong part of town at the wrong time you got taxed whatever you had on you got to off yeah
You know what I mean and we didn’t have much but you know it’s still stung if you got filled in and got taxed you know got your gear to off you so you have to have your wit about you at all times and um you know the the the toolbox you
You’re developing for it is is to survive you know my dad was teaching me how to survive in the Rough and Ready world he was surviving and he didn’t ever think I was going to be a footballer and you know have to um behave in in a different way um and and
Then obviously you get that exposure and as I say the Tandy one we’re in a nightclub in in Manchester I think we were dressed as the Beatles you know the old Sergeant Peppers there was four of us me Le Chapman James black and someone else Robbie F and M manaman were army
Men of a remember I can’t remember what handy was dresses but like all the players were there fancy dress we were on the booze all day Sunday morning so all on the booze um and then I think Paul bossel or Fowler started it but they were all in fancy dress in this bar
And they started setting each other’s costume light so it was the seniors who started just baning the edge of it or whatever and it quickly in five or 10 minutes it went around the whole group and then it stopped and then there was a karaoke and people were singing and then
Ad B tandi’s costume so someone had got me and I’d ended up getting Tandy back not No Malice in it he didn’t have the opportunity to get me back so everything gets calmed down lighters are confiscated off everybody right by the security we have a karaoke Carry On
Drinking this is like 3: or 4: in the afternoon now 6:00 we’ve all gone we going for a team meal and you have to go and change out your fancy dress to get changed into your smart casual so we go back to the hotel change out the fancy
Dress meal still boozing 7 at 8:00 now we’re in a nightclub now Danny Mills who was our right back at the time had gone as Jimmy Sav so was walking around dressed as Jimmy Sav unappropriate now as you can imagine you Lo did go as Jimmy’s [ __ ] Sav in the fancy dress
Didn’t he [ __ ] crazy nons um and um um so we’re in this night Club at 8:00 all in our CVS and Danny Mills is still smoking a cigar so we’re just sitting at the table talking and all that and I always remember they had this white nylon [ __ ] Prada t-shirt on
Like just dead plain T-shirt I just remember sitting here talking like across the like a glass table like this and had an ashtray in and I thought the ashtray mve but it was actually Stu at the table Mills sitting here small show right somebody else yeah and I’m sitting here and like everyone
Just mingling around in this B and I just remember thinking what the [ __ ] that and I’ve look like that and it’s just a light here and we t-shir on fire like it’s like obviously flammable material it’s on fire like so I’ve had to like rag it off and stump it out and
As I’ve look like that Tandy Jamie Tandy standing here now I know I’ve Set Fire To His fancy dress costume 4 hours earlier so he’s obviously got me back but I’m in my normal Club so I’m ban now got me top off it’s B me whole top so
I’m now need to go home and get changed and there’s a there’s an ashtray so I’ve gone for the ashtray and I couldn’t get the ashay off the table so I’ve managed to take millsy’s cigar off it so as I’ve as I’ve Ted tand is standing right next
To me but he’s looking the other way as if by the way I haven’t done that so for some bizarre reason unknown to me to this day I thought it’d be a fantastic idea as a payback to him to stump the cigar out on the back of his head all
Right that was me logic makes no sense now but at the time a ban for a ban he’s getting this on the back of his head as I’ve gone like that to sticking on the back of his head he’s naturally felt me coming and T towards me and it’s managed
To graze his eyelid all right he’s gone down as you would if somebody [ __ ] grazes your eyelid I haven’t think how hard it is if someone moves towards your eye with the finger you’re moveing but anyway gra is Al stupid thing to do T’s in this all players party with his
Brother he’s brought his brother to the party so Tandy and his brother scarper off to the toilet he’s had this cigar put out on his head Danny Mills just going to me what the [ __ ] have you done M and F now like what’s going on we’re
All B I’m like listen he [ __ ] say fire to me [ __ ] so just [ __ ] stumped a cigar out on him I don’t know I’ve cough him in the eye cuz I’ve just gone like that and as I’ve done it he’s 10 so silan distan are captain at the time big
Silan come over and I got on great with Sil he’s gone [ __ ] hell what have you done I’m like I think I’m in the right here so I’m half human I’m have to fill in Sandy in I’m still have to punching his head in for setting fire to me so
He’s gone you better come and sort this out so I’m like the the red Mists now come down and I’m like [ __ ] hell something something serious must have happened here so I walk along with Silvan to go and make sure T’s all right to he’s gone in the toilet so as I’m
Walking and I get to the toilet there’s like a walkway of about 20 yards from like the toilet walk way to the toilet door and but it was like lit up it was [ __ ] then to think back to it now it’s like it was almost like it was
Meant to be so it’s like lit like that glamorously and um there’s just nobody in this 20 yard space and T’s brother comes [ __ ] steaming out the toilet door where is he I’m going to [ __ ] kill him right cuz he’s obviously seen his brothers had the cigar put out on
Him so as he says this opens the door I’m walking along the passageway with Silvan distan so he sees me and he’s older than Tandy and comes steaming towards me obviously you know I disarm him relatively quickly so he’s fast to Kip and after him Tandy comes flying out
Now so not only have a stuck a cigar out on him he sees their kid faster k on the floor so loses head comes flying at me so obviously he gets another couple thisan and the lads jump in between it and that’s the end of the matter so
Tandy and his brother the rest of the lads get together and throw Tandy and his brother out to do you’ve been acting like [ __ ] [ __ ] all night you start the LI has got [ __ ] put away four hours ago you’ve acted the [ __ ] you shouldn’t have been here anywhere you’ve
Both been filled in get a [ __ ] so T’s brother are launched out of our players do M and fou lad you’re all right I’m like [ __ ] hell there what happened there but it’s kicked off but they like just sit there have a b with sand John ma Trev Sinclair you all everything sound
Calm down about two hours after this the most violent bar brawl I have ever seen in my life like the OK caral takes off in this bar our goalkeeper for the Youth team at the time was a Danish kid called Kevin elard 6’4 6’5 built like a brick
[ __ ] house thought he was hard as Nails lovely kid you wouldn’t want to mess with him just on pure bullk alone ends up in an argument with someone next minute this elard snoozing on the floor this lad hit him with one dig and he’s fast to Kip there’s chairs going bottles
Nicholas and elus is there with all his makes the most violent bar fights I’ve ever seen the whole bar gets smashed up I’m nothing to do with it it had absolutely nothing to do with me I’m sitting in the corner I’ve got I best get out of here I’ve got home so I’m
Thinking next day in the Manchester Evening News is this bar fight Nicholas and El he’s the big star at City at this bar fight so I’m going [ __ ] I’ve got away with that you know I’ve had to fight myself there with Tandy and his brother but I’ve got away with it so
That’s the Sunday Monday we’re back in training so I’ve found Tandy to say listen I’m playing in the fair Team every week here you shouldn’t even been out here I’m not going to [ __ ] for me it’s the end of it you’ve had a crack you shouldn’t have say fight to me I
Shouldn’t have done that you had that’s the end of it and I was prepared to square it off with the kid I a’t going to go sight to the manager which I could have done listen he’s a [ __ ] [ __ ] he ain’t training with us I’m f team
Player so I was going to be dead S I get in unbeknown to me he’s already so the stories at the papers on [ __ ] right to the papers on a Sunday uh so it’s out now so patching that all no that was daro so that that came
Afterwards so T’s gone fully in and obviously the manager put me in Keegan what the [ __ ] happened so I’ve told him what’s happened just as as I always am dead cards on the table and so anyway T Tandy ends up getting loan out were
[ __ ] off and he he was a bit of a bit of a m kid anyway he wasn’t um no angel so now I’m I’m I’ve I’ve started this 22-man brawl now I’ve put a cigar out in somebody’s eye and obviously the story about that was incredible you know the
The [ __ ] constraction it made and then the next one’s daro so at the back end of that City Cycle which accelerated me in in terms of leaving we’ signed a few foreigners who were you know as I say maybe not doing everything right you know smoking in the training ground and
He had a [ __ ] smoking room and it’s not not 10 up to training in the correct uh spot not doing what they needed to do and then you know the manager was not great at the time PS you PS Keegan had left there was a bit of a bad feeling in
In in the club PS had gone in and was acting a bit weird and then you know daro and me ended up having a war of wordss on the training ground and i’ kind of got on as I say his good mate was Silvan diston who’s a good pal of
Mine and um we were in competition for places and we weren’t overly close because I never ever respected is the way he trained or the way he prepared and he he’d had a good career plate for Inter Milan and I think latio and France and but he’d just come for a Payday I
Think and was acting a bit of a bit of a tit um and then it it just went off in training one day where you know he’s left a bit on me this this is two three days before the Manchester Derby at Old Stafford back end of the season April
Not you know we’re safe we’re not going down not really to play for other than pride and he’s lamped me in ch or I’ve lamped him a some and you know one’s lamped one you know I’ve passed the ball and clipp me a bit late so next time he
Does it obviously I’m leaving one on Tiff a tat Tiff a tat and it just escalated in terms of no one say in the back foot and then it ends up in a war of words where you know I was a young kid I’m only 23 24 at the time and he’s
28 29 and he’s obviously um starts having a bit of a vable and before me I’d seen Nicholas and Ela punch Steve Jordan who’s a year above me four times in the face entertaining pitch and and scarred in his face and the manager do nothing Stevie Jordan just had to take
His stitches because anel was the top player and I’ve seen Paul bossel throw a dig at somebody so Paul bossel had slapped me sorry on the training pitch i’ been arguing with bossel and just add the blue he just slapped me across the face and by the time he had chance to
Respond everyone’s in the middle of it I was [ __ ] fuming for you cheeky [ __ ] but he D me on terms of I never thought anyone would [ __ ] raise their hands on the signing pitch and he [ __ ] caught me and I thought you cheeky could you so this daber one two
Years after this is going on we’re having Award of WS and I’m saying to daro you [ __ ] you [ __ ] crap you don’t you can’t even get a game you [ __ ] crap you know that that’s the and he’s in French and all that and as you know I’m I’m fluent in French
Now put a ways at the time a ways at the time so he’s [ __ ] giving me down the banks in French so we’re walking off the taining session’s finished you know what I mean we’re walking off he’s [ __ ] giving it to me in French and I’m just
Gone I just keep saying you’re [ __ ] your [ __ ] crap Wich to a footballer if you’re not playing in the fair team and someone who is playing saying that’s that’s the worst insult you can get I’m going like you know heav on the Yos a footy you [ __ ] crap and he just lost
His head so we’re walking off and the vbls are going and from nowhere he’s flipped over so he turned around and he sprinted towards me so I’m thinking I’m getting a crack here cuz the way he run at me I knew he w’t coming for a [ __ ]
To tickle me so he’s he’s turned and ran 15 yards across the Tain the pitch he bear in mind he’s ahead of me so he’s turned and run back hoods towards me he gets a bar [ __ ] Within r two foot away from me three foot away from me so
I’m like what the [ __ ] going on here and his arm comes back as soon as his arm comes back I don’t know what’s happened after that you know your natal Instinct kicks in this fight or flight and my instinct is to fight um and my natal instin kicks in there and I disarm
Him relatively quickly um but unbeknown to me I’ve knocked him out so he’s out on his feet the face punch he he’s gone like that he says to slap me but as that’s you know you you don’t wait to run around where I’m from and i’ the first job I’ve hitting with rather
On the money and it stunned him the second one of it him would put him put him away so he’s on the floor Natalie as as a scrap in Tails I’m down with them and I ain’t coming off here until the referee stops the contest you know you
Know what am I going are you all right now get up and you [ __ ] kick Fu hard of me like you can’t take them chances So within a few seconds it’s over bang bang bang and um obviously usman’s had the shot of his life because he’s bigger
Bigger than me um and he thought he was uh capable of um imparting his belief system on me and obviously he’s had a a reality check and you know for me that was the end of the matter you know we finished saying him we go in um after
He’s been woken up and um told what’s gone on you know I went in and said look you want round to yeah alen Grand you we get on the Astro sa again if you want to sort this out um he didn’t want any part of that I’m sent home then no problem
Shouldn’t be having a fight with your teammates um and then next minute he’s gone the papers the next day with a [ __ ] big piece of sticky tape on his finger as be to take a picture of him the [ __ ] you know and and then you know You’ have to defend yourself
Against that there but but again I said to him loads of times like I I was 23 at the time I’m 41 now like know someone have filled me in and he went and said to the police not that I did from behind than that which was [ __ ] Li absolute
Lies you why would they allowed to go to the coppers both of them and other teams listeners always craps we’ve had scraps and in the pitch and it’s done shake hands sorry cudle that’s it but why was those guys allowed to go to the papers I don’t know because it was you someone
Goes to the papers or the authorities where I’m from you’re get off yeah you know for me it says more about him than me if he’d have fill me in I wouldn’t have gone the papers I wouldn’t have gone the buses if he’ have Fill Me In
And I felt it was unjust have done a bit of training and have come back and gone come on you bollocks round to me and you for a straighten that’s how it’s sort it by if someone says something about you or or C you know you’re not on come on
You know no weapons which is the way it should be yeah no weapons get yourself in the in in the car park get yourself in the back Garden get yourself on the Bowling Green where wherever it is and you know sort sort your differences out
I grew up in that world my dad taught me my dad was that’s how my dad solved his problems that’s how his his dad solved his problems that’s me Grandad solved their problems and then all of a sudden I’m the first generation that’s like no
No does you know you have to solve your problems in a different a different way was that the the cord not City I that was for me though I decided to leave so City suspended me um and then just the the way they supported daro who for me
Had done nothing for the football team um and I thought I just didn’t like the way they behaved in in the aftermath of that event and I thought no that that’s me done I’m um you know I don’t ow use anything you give me a chance I think
I’ve paid you back with four or five years as a senior you’re going to command a a decent transfer fee for me you know I had a closing me contract for 5 and a half million that had negotiated two years before so I knew they were going
To get you know that claw activated I’d already rejected Everton West Ham over chores of other teams you know in the two or three years before that um and I just thought you know no I’m I’m not going to stay on and you know at that point John wler Cham was phoning
Me asking me to stay on I just felt thought you know needed to get away from Liverpool the Northwest just felt it was a time for the change of scener and obviously Freddy Shepard and Newcastle United um you know as well as ever and West Ham who were taken over I think by
The Icelandic banks at the time um were all in the in the market for me and and I thought you know you know Newcastle at the time where Michael Owen you know you know trying to get in the Champions League you know some some big names and
You know I just thought yeah you know I’m going to try something uh different and and end up sign for New Castle and you played with him for what four five years four years up there yeah done four years at Newcastle when were you in the jail at Newcastle yeah Newcastle yeah
Had uh first year up there I got injured and then the Christmas um i’ gone out just went w’t going wet like went going as planned like you know injury first time in me career had had an injury which was um caused by experts you know Sam Alise’s experts who Chang me
Orthotics in me boot when I’d played for 24 years virtually unscathed before that first preseason game you know this whole F definitely contributed to to me foot snapping and then I’d not been injured I’m living away from home not got you know me me I’m living in a flat in the
City center to new hassle rather than with you know your family security network around you you know at that point me Nana had come to my house and clean my house and she’d make me tea and make sure you know it’s like a show house my house I didn’t have any kids or
Anything at the time she’d make you know you know me dinners for me and made sure to at healie because I was a a professional athlete that was you know living I had to live like a [ __ ] Spartan to to you know to play against your Patrick Vias and Roy ke and Stevie
Gerards and scholes with the ability I had you know I couldn’t be eating [ __ ] food and not training properly and and again the great timing I have coming into football you know you live through this foreign Invasion where they bring some incredible habits you know about
The way we should eat the way we should should train the way we should prepare prepare for professional football and they were you know fantastic influences on me as a as a young player and as I say for for me to go to Newcastle then
And you know it was a first time I’d knew i’ never had to wear ever again in my life I just knew i’ sign the fiveyear deal I knew the numbers involved and I’m like the hunger you know i’ had holes in me traines as a kid and you know you
Know being Rough and Ready and that hunger for the first time it was like just that the injury and then the ability just to take a breath and go I I [ __ ] like this is done do I mean like I don’t have to ever work again like it’s a [ __ ] mad feeling
There especially for the kid off of counsel State and then you’re like okay right let’s let’s set some new goals what are the new goals right I want to do this and I want to do that and but playing in the Premier League playing for England and becoming a multi
Mul like I always remember being in night and Village as a 16y old when you 17y old 18y old and they had to run to the Lloyd’s bank to get me wages out the bank before me overdraft kicked in and he tax me you know they used to
Tax you like 60 quid and that was like whether I had a decent week or not and I’d have to Sprint to the bank and then I always remember thinking one day I’d [ __ ] love to come to this [ __ ] cash machine and bang it in and I got a
Million pound in me accounts so I kept the bank account night in Village until I got a million pound in the bank accounts printed the fingo statement off and was like right that’s me are of this bank but like that was like a 24 20 but
You know what I mean that that was like you know little goals to yourself to go wouldn’t it be [ __ ] great and night in villages you know a lot of great memories you know ducking and Diving as a kid and where like you’re still all in
You know you’re 12 and 13 dreaming about being something and then you know not having any money in the bank when your face after earn a wage and then it learning how hard it is to just survive and then you know having those goals to just go wouldn’t be [ __ ] great to be
Here one day due to your in your sacrifice and be able to see that number cuz that number for me wasn’t for me it represented house make sure me AR and me mar and every all my brothers and everyone was safe safe because I’d grew
Up where I’d seen you know hero and grab people and drugs grab people and crime grab people and as I say you know you know new hassle for me was a chance as well cuz don’t forget the back end of City coincides with me brother being
Involved in in in a m in Liverpool and getting seven years jail at 17 it was me obviously my cousin who’d killed him and and when I talk to you about my belief that Brilliance is in everybody the lad who killed Anthony Walker Paul Taylor is probably the best finisher of a football
I’ve ever seen in all my time on the planet like the the most talented finisher better than Fowler like I always say to Fowler about it same left foot was at Liverpool 11 12 13 14 but just couldn’t stay out of trouble was just just too far gone and then when you
Learn about like what happened his environment you kind of go did he have a chance do you know what I mean he had talent and how many of them kids are out there in all these major cities mate and as I say if if we can talk yourself and
Myself different ends of the the Spectrum and that helps some kid who’s who’s out there now who’s you know just maybe second guessing himself yeah you know you can be wherever you want to be in this world no one can stop you there only you can stop yourself same way if
You want to drink and Drug you can do it there only you can stop no one can diagnose you and if you want to be a winner and you want to achieve in life you can do that even you how many people you say go back to school at like 50 and
Go right you know I’m going to get a degree and I’m Blacky always taught me Steve always taught me always be a students always be laring never [ __ ] think you know everything or every everything about everybody and it’s your job to find out about people find out
What the go sit and talks to people people don’t talk to each other anymore yeah but that’s why we’re lost there’s no communication so kid then from everon released Man City debut England you become a millionaire you’ve went through all the [ __ ] you’re in the papers you’re
Known as a hotthead the bad boy brother and cousin dun for mder you go to Newcastle get angel you’re a millionaire life’s going sweet you’ve kind of overcome all the obstacles but then bang you end up in prison but you still you still got those those fears you know all
Them insecurities are still there did you have that what was your what was your triggers to be so fiery what was it what where does that St from do you think now that you’re old and understand life a bit more I’ve got a huge trigger for
Injustice so when I see an injustice so like somebody using an advantage to put somebody else down I’ve always struggled with that even in school I didn’t like to see bilan I didn’t like to see people picking on people I didn’t mind a fair fight if someone want to have a fair
Fight or a disagreement no problem I have no problem with people who into violence as as a means of uh solving conflict sometimes it is the only way get out in the [ __ ] car park and you know I think if you know Tony Bell’s doing I think a good thing in Le now
This knives down gloves up thing Tony’s Leg Show great fell yeah um you know you know if people went out and had straightness now listen it’s not great James but you know this knife crime that we’ve got running around where we are at this moment London you know getting a
Fat lip or a cut nose you can come back from that you can you know you a couple of weeks you scab and and you learn your life lessons someone scking a blade in yet or you know as I said my my brother lost 17 years of his life from 17
Because his mate who’s his cousin at the time thought it’ be a fantastic idea when they were having a [ __ ] scrap to pull ice ax out and swing it into somebody and it’s stuck in his head and he ruined not only his life um but lots
Of people’s lives off the back of that [ __ ] stupid decision um you know the they were charged with racially aggravated you know and and and again I think if the lad wasn’t black it it it may not have happened anony walk and he was a fantastic kid I always remember
Seeing him on our Estates because there wasn’t many black people about where we lived um and and to see the way his family and his mom and all that have conducted themselves in the aftermath of it you know I’d struggle to do that you know I’d want an KNE for an ey if
Someone killed my son I’d want to see them um um um um how do I say it Revenge not not you know yeah but you say that but again it’s familyid if an ey for an ey the whole world goes blind but again if it’s if
It’s your kid like I say I’ve had women on this show whove their sons have been abused they’ve got blades went and kill the [ __ ] do you know what I mean so it doesn’t matter who you are you can be the softest most gentle person in the world everybody’s got that trigger when
It comes to their kids and this is an environment we’re in where with listen picking up knives and guns it’s not you you’ve been blessed and hard work to then make a life for yourself other people’s I played with a kid Alan Moran unbelievable one of the best player I’ve
Ever he played for Cel I played for HS and we were friends back today unbelievable we end up we end up drunk one night he kicked a bit of glass through a [ __ ] door and then cut his Achilles and it ruined his career and he’s kind of went the other way in life
I’ve not heard from in years but unbelievable but you never know what’s planned out for you when you’re going down that path and revenge listen it’s easier try to forgive and forget we can go through all the f but it’s difficult but when you’re seeing people die and
Left right Cent drinks the uncle’s being robbers it becomes normalized but then when you’re going through that great football player hote head people use all that against you as if it’s all your problem the FY C for me is that’s that’s not big news where I’m from it’s kind of
Just the weekend that’s just people resolving conflict on on our estate was the FY cuffs you know it’s only when you look back at it now and I think about you know it’s having children for me you know you travel through this world on your own journey and then you have kids
And you realize how unimportant you actually are up until that point you think you the [ __ ] be need of course you’re self-centered and you know you you you know you have these things that that come out and you just love them unconditionally and you just and it just
Frows your world and your whole belief system that you’ve formulated before that completely to the wind and then you piece it back together because you know you want to give them H as as great of an opportunity as you can now that’s not giving them everything cuz I don’t think
That necessarily helps you become uh the best version of yourself um but but that’s trying to help them not make the mistakes you had like my kids know I’ve been to jail and they don’t know my brothers who’s now out has been to jail and me May to again another story he’s
Out on a night out and there’s a fight and fella falls down and dead and he’s an off duty police officer like just mad stuff that happens like you’re saying your mate there puts his foot through a playing glass window and that’s the end of his footy career what people forget
Is you one stupid decision especially now in the modern world from irreconcilable damage to your to your life life because it’s all recorded you know you’re one mad tweet away from lose your head you say something mad online and all of a sudden you canel that and you know the world so we’re
Going to end up with this world of Perfect People which we all know to be bollocks nobody’s perfect everybody’s got something that they’re not great that they could do better and you know we we try and create these um perfect people but surely now I mean I’m only 41
But the amount of people we’ve built up in this country or in this on in the British Isles to knock down you know the stuff that’s going on now in the Middle East you know the stuff that you know I’ve lived through the IRA being a terrorist organization never bombed
Liverpool but bombed Deale and and obviously Wasington Tim Patty um to shim Fain being the you know the government in Ireland and you know you’re seeing what’s happening now in the Middle East you know strange all time to to to be alive and again have we not learned that
Killing each other is just not the answer like if it’s not Catholics and Protestants it’s it’s Muslims and um Jews you know it’s ukrainians and Russ it’s and we’re getting into the Realms of you know 1984 George Orwell there’s just always a war like Would we not be better than building missiles and
Aircraft carriers and fighter jets and uh ammunition and guns and tanks in spending that money on the schools for the kids that are going to live in on this world that we’re going to uh leave very shortly you know what if I do great you know Bobby charon’s gone a couple of
Days ago you get three or four days newspaper of coverage you know they’ speak favorably of you um you’ll get a minute Applause and then in a week’s Time Forgot About and he’s one of European Cup B on door you know what I mean so people go through the world and
Life trying to please all these people and make all these people like them and that’s just for me I Le and it maybe being a bit of a pariah maybe having all those things happened to me where people you know people think I’m in the hand at
All and you know they’ve got a certain perception of me um and I kind of developed my personality then as a little bit a little bit of a black sheep away from the kind of normal conventional um person in the spotlight you know I remember first going and
Doing articles and when i’ walk around like an art gallery and I fa started using Twitter I was just different and just the ferar cost and you know then for me I just enjoyed poking the box and then I realized I was like this is dead easy to manipulate this this uh this
Algorithm it’s really easy to manipulate um certainly for someone like me who who’s no not afraid to be outspoken and then I just thought this just ain’t for me for me I get a lot more out of helping people and I never never until I had kids I never ever realized that I
Was very very selfish very very low in empathy before um I had children and it it just fundamentally changed um you see the world yeah just just completely changed because I think of everyone now G even like people have hit and who have sparked in the past who have gone he
[ __ ] deserved ago that could be that could be my lad or my daughter on on the end of that and hour that you know it just changes the way you you know you just mature as you get a bit older and you look back over the stuff you’ve done
And at the time you felt it was the right way to solve that problem you know with the power of hindsight you you wish you’d have done it completely differently and as I say I go back over me career and I think I had a great
Career I overachieved from a 13 14 year old who’s totally wen’t good enough to play for England even if it was for a small period you know I overachieved and you know for me you you know I’m now on my second dream I always wanted to be a
Footballer I want to play in the Premier League Play for England want to play for ever never man to do that um and the next thing for me was I always knew I’d be even better as a coach working in a team and I’m now on that next Journey
You know what I mean I’ve got a lovely wife lovely family um got some great mates Army who’ve been me mates since the John’s who uh unafraid to tell me when I’m like a PRI which is what we all need um and you know life’s getting easier it’s not easy
It it has its TRS and tribulations you know I always think the secret of life is rented and you have to pay that rent on it all the time and the minute you think you’ve got it um it usually has a way of kicking you square in the
Bollocks and putting you down a few pegs so as long as you stay humble as long as you stay honest uh you don’t have to always agree with everybody um as long as you’re a person who people can trust um I think you’ll do all right in life
Yeah what was it like being in the ja for a premier league player uh I don’t mean this to sound Blas obviously it’s [ __ ] because you’re like I’m playing in the Premier League and now next minute I mean all the lads bear in mind I know because I’ve been on
Remand and I got out and on baale conditions I’m playing now in the Prem come back and I’m playing sound cuz I’m all right when I can play through chaos I have this way of operating through chaos there was part of me that I think induced chaos when I was younger because
I actually did well in in in that space so me and Peter K used to talk a lot about whether I had the self sabator inside that actually purposefully you know there’d be 18 nice things said about me and had focus on the one that
Said I couldn’t do it so it created this me against the world mindset and and I felt really comfortable delivering um you know performance in that space and then you know what when Pete passed away I realized he’ been telling me for years you don’t need that energy like you it’s
Life’s even easier when you don’t need that chaos you could do even more good when youd haven’t got that chaos in your life and you know as I say it was only a couple of years after he passed that some of his teachings when you sit and
Reflect as you do with great people who who are in your life who who pass away you with and think about them more when they’ve gone you know they have more profound the words and the conversations have a more profound impact on you long after they’ve uh
Passed on into the next life and you know some of the stuff he he he taught yet or or things he said um rang true and and you just decide look there there’s a different way of doing this and as I say I think he used to always
Say to me through your vulnerability you become closer to people so when everyone thinks they’ve got the answers to everything and the [ __ ] no alls no one wants to listen to them but when you say Hey listen I’m massively flawed here like I haven’t got a [ __ ] clue what
I’m doing I do not know can you help me all of a sudden people want to people want to help you and I think if you’re in a in in a set of circumstances where you can encourage that out of everybody and make everybody feel valued um life’s great like you can
You’re a billionaire you know if your misses loves you and your kids love you and you’ve got four or five mates that have been on your journey for over 10 years and someone in your life who you know will [ __ ] turn around tell you’re acting like a Gob sh you’re you’re a
Billionaire you know there’s people with loads of money and tokens and coins in the bank who [ __ ] don’t know whether the wife loves them because they loved them or because they’ve got a mega yacht you know look at Jeff Bezos ago is that is that bad with him because on the
Growth hormone or because he’s the richest man in the world or because he’s [ __ ] shined his head extra extra shiny today she you know what I mean if you’re Jeff Bezos there you’ve got 78 houses you’re thinking what the [ __ ] imagine the paranoia about the security
Cards having a [ __ ] a drug or in me in my [ __ ] villain in Hawaii like with more money you know b b it More Money More Problems like that you know there’s a simplistic way of really enjoying life and I I I think that’s attainable in this world we’re living in
This social media this materialistic world where you’ve got to have all the mod cons and you know the iPhone 14 is not good enough you need the iPhone 15 if you haven’t you’re a [ __ ] weirdo and that moves on 6 months later to the 160 you know you’re just in a race to
The bottom for me and you know for for me you have to find real value in in life and and I find that in in interacting with other people trying to help other people but in the midst of that they help me but Peter used to always say to me you’ll realize when
You’re in a roll of service cuz I used to always say to him what the [ __ ] hell do you get out to teaching me and helping me and he’d go you’ll realize one day I’d go what’ you get like you know don’t get make loads of money and
He’d say listen you you remind me of me when I was younger so I like and and now in the job I do and the people I interact with I see that every day and Blackie stuff I spoke to about earlier watch the well reflect back on you next
Time you’re out walking look for the eye contact next time you’re out jogging say good morning smile at people it [ __ ] takes them back you can see them like what’s going on here and they smile back at you very few people if you smile and say good morning to somebody they smile
Back at you don’t smile back at you they don’t even want to and they do it and you think you know what for whatever reason even if it’s only for 4 seconds there you’ve just elevated cuz soon as you smile serotonin dopamin chemicals are released in your brain
People have got to help people more like the where we live in now the government ain’t helping yet social services are being pulled away like everything they’re going to take the NHS away from you shortly they’ve already in forced vaccinations on [ __ ] loads of you that are going to have long-term
Complications with an experimental technology I mean I’m not antiva I’ve had flu VX listen I’m off the John’s I [ __ ] used to drink out of Puddles when I was about six cuz I wouldn’t run home to get a drink it’d be raining I’d go [ __ ] I have a drink out of puddle cuz
You want the to carry on your game of footy so I’m not against putting stuff in my body you know I’ve been to Glon B you know you know I’m not I’m not I’m no saint but for me there wasn’t enough information on it I thought vaccinations
Usually follow a real clinical uh period of um testing and seeing what the consequences are usually over a clinical setting and over about a 12 year and when they started offering you bger and chips for a vaccine and when they started saying you couldn’t go on all
Day and when they started for oh [ __ ] this F what the [ __ ] are these up to yeah and the Republic of Liverpool you know the the rebellious don’t trust Authority certainly not a Tory government question everything mindset anti-establishment maybe Black Sheep mindset kicks in and that’s probably one
Of the singles single greatest decisions I’ve ever made in my life because my M was pregnant at the time and we just looked at the information we were like what are we going to do here you know cuz public noise was noise and and whatever reason we we decided it wasn’t
For us because we caught Co quite early um and I can’t imagine if she’d have wanted to be vaccinated and and there have been consequence with my youngest Ean what that would have done to the family unit you know I mean this is what they’ve done to people pregnancies see you go what
Happened when you get out the ja so when I went into jail I very mind I went for six days cuz I got nicked in on New Year’s Day or boxing day or something so put me in cuz the courts Clos I done like six days in Walton when I went into
Walton I had I think I had four or five cousins in there um I had like five or six Lads are new from our state six or seven Lads are new from other the parts of Liverpool so you know you don’t want to be in jail and you want to Rand wi
But you know it didn’t it isn’t you know prison break and people getting bummed and all that [ __ ] nonsense that you you know think people think it is you know have you been in jail you so and and if you if if you’re from a Rough and
Ready part of the world and you’re a good [ __ ] you’ve got you we to buy you’ll be all right list there’ll be a few um airbit who try it on because you know it’s a higher AR um environment where people are petrified and when people are scared they front that up
With aggression don’t they you know so I’m in there and you know I’m a premier league footballer a [ __ ] training every day the week I’m running massive distances over the weekend I hadn’t lost the FY Cuffs in in the area I’m from or or in in any Walk
Of Life you know I’m not the fell in the world you know no [ __ ] Conor McGregor but I’d always been able to look after my own space um you know even if that was strategic you know knowing what fights I could win and what fights I
Couldn’t win um so when I get in there you know it’s like being the first day at senior school isn’t it when they’re s away how to use the car of the school and you got to have your [ __ ] wit about it and I get in there and know a
Few people so that settles you down and then obviously people talk to you and you come up and you know everyone’s testing you’re out and then you realize he all right him and I was fine then I’m out of there after six days and and then played the Premier League here and all
Lads are going where you going onal in the summer and I du Bai and cells and M be and [ __ ] I’m like I think I’m getting [ __ ] six months jail you know Mich like [ __ ] told like I’m [ __ ] getting a bit of bed like cuz it’s a
About the F skish I’ve had um and I think they’ve just had the [ __ ] enough of me and they’re going to teach me a lesson and you know Bank rights of thrown 14 to 15 punches here um even if the first two or three were Justified
And way outside the um the threshhold of self-defense um so preparing All That season playing great fussy you know end of the season comes and um they give me six month so I’m into Walton then and again you know I knew a few Lads from
When I was there on the man so I was sound no problem um and then because of notorious prisoner they don’t want anything to happen to me so I get put on the drug free Wing uh which I think was [ __ ] jaywing or something like that
At Walton um and then you meet a few characters in there and sound you got your Jim knew the Jim early uh Kenny good good ma mind now sound so get Jim every day kept out the way Walton was was was you know quite easy in terms of
You know you were left alone it was not easy cuz you’re [ __ ] banged up and you have to going wearing a wood it’s like going back to Wood wear in school you doing these mad jobs and you know when you could be playing fussy it’s and
You’ have you know the life I had it it was a kick in the bollocks but i’ [ __ ] up and there was a price to pay and that’s what the C and the Lord the landed decided and I had to [ __ ] pay me price for being a [ __ ] um so I’m in
There and getting on with it and then in the midst of that CUA daro daro got in the papers there’s another Core case coming for the daro one which I was fighting I was like no no that was self-defense you came at me pulled your hand back slapped
Me and just cuz my my two put you away that’s your fault like I was defending myself so I was admin I was fighting that so that’s going to court in Manchester as I’m in jail for 6 months in Liverpool so I now get moved from uh Walton and they’re taking me to
Strangeways cuz the court appearance is in Manchester and I’m under that jurisdiction so it’s like pack all your gear and I’ve got a cush you got a [ __ ] PlayStation heav Life’s good me couple me half mat that day so any did we send you on a phone I’m like no no
Cuz my dad said if you get a did [ __ ] give you a phone you get EX to 30 days so I was like nothing and obviously you know people think Jail’s this sanitized place it’s [ __ ] you get anything it’s just like being on the Council of States
You know within reason um you know and then and and the characters you’re meeting there the the some of the smartest people you’ve ever met like some people who’ve just got incredibly unlucky life stories but you’d expect to go in and meet the dgs of society and
They are in there and you see them but then you see people in like white col crime and frauds and lawyers and you know mad stuff that was in Walton which was Cap B then I get shipped for this C case in Manchester so now I’m in strange
Ways I’m not going back to wton which is Double C so you’re carrying you know I think Kenny know you know that like proper life in there I’m like what’s going on yes cuz you know re you know prison’s scary place but cat beat a double Cate you know you’re going from a
Yard where there’s nothing on the top to like cage where you’re like what’s that there for like so no helicopters come down to like help people who are doing life tars up gun people walking around in M two-tone boilers suit you’re like what are they doing they like they the
Life is they have to be visible so a huge culture shot and then when I go in I didn’t get I got looked after him Walton really in terms of they they just made sure I was all right you know didn’t give me any mad pick but made
Sure I didn’t go on bwing which is like the council state Wing where all the bag heads are they come me on jaywing I think which is like a drug free Wing so I was kind of you know cuz they didn’t want anything to happen to me either
Otherwise they’d be in the shite you know if I get in the fight or someone slashes me or something mad you know that have been uh chaos for them probably so I’m probably a Governor’s [ __ ] nightmare they don’t want me in there but obviously you know the law of
The land and the judges give me the sentence I go to strangeways and again I’m on I’m on the cap but he put me on the Rough and Ready Wing So This is a Fu I’m moaning to say and get back to Walton I’m saying send
Me back to like you’re not going back to Walton so I’m like I need to see the governor like you’re not seen in the governor so I knew the only way you can see the governor is say I want to go on protection Wing cu the lad said if you
Ever want to speak to the governor just say you want to go on protection because if you want to go on protection the governor has to come down speak to you and you have to sign yourself on protection so I’m like kicking off like a padon trying to get back from get me
Jail changed and they’re just [ __ ] buzzing off me like who’s this tit so we end up saying listen and the governor comes down do you want to go on protection I’m like no no I don’t but like put me on a drug free Wing like I
Don’t need to be going in with the bags here what happens if I [ __ ] getting a scrap with one of them so he’s like no no if you go on protection Wing that’s it and once you sign on the protection Wing that’s you for life in it you can’t
Come off them so if you ever go back into jail you’re always with the nonsense and you go on the nons swing that’s it so so I’m like I don’t really I’m not doing this so I’ve gone no so he [ __ ] sent me then back onto this
Rough and Ready Wing the Landon Wing So I’ve had like a few like I’m I’m now I’m now worried cuz like I’m now like I don’t I don’t know whether the way they’ve been with me I’m like are they going to [ __ ] Stitch me up here by
Putting me in a you know me paranoia is kicking in that they’re going to [ __ ] put me in a pad with someone and this is going off and it’s all it’s part of their plan to you know to keep me in here forever Charlie Bronson I’m going
He’s going to [ __ ] Bronson he done a [ __ ] bankr and he hasn’t got out you like the paranoia kicks in so we walk into this cell in strange ways and there’s a lad line on the bottom bunk and notoriously you don’t want to be on the top bunk do you because you get
Kicked out the top bunk so the bottom bunk the the high arle position and he’s about 6′ two black lad I’m like [ __ ] hell it’s going like just like what the [ __ ] going on so I’ve gone all right mate it’s about 8:00 at night by the time you’ve been processed come out the
Course and he’s just he’s just watching the tell he just blank me doesn’t say anything so I’m like bear in mind me brother and cousin have been involved in this racially aggravated Ma so I’m like this is [ __ ] going off here like and thought I’m I’m going to get [ __ ]
Bummed here or whatever you know what I mean he just thinking the worst but I thought [ __ ] I have to go down fighting so I’ve gone Ted s to him again again he [ __ ] me off so I’ve just got I haven’t even got changed I’ve just I didn’t got
Under the the [ __ ] sheet I’ve just lied on the top and you’ve got your back belongings which had a couple of tins of beans or whatever in and I’ve just gripped two tins of beans and I just thought if this C kicks me out the bed
Here or [ __ ] kicks off I’m just going to have to fight for me life and if I get [ __ ] bummed then at least I’ve gone down fighting I can say I went down fighting he was a big [ __ ] my [ __ ] a bit so but you know what I mean you
Can’t just so like that that’s what’s going through your head so I’m lying on this bunk turns the Telly off then he does about 10:00 whatever and then I’m just lying there and every time he moved in the bed I’m ready for action I’m ready to go just sitting with these two
Tins of beans and I always remember a strange ways which didn’t have a b and with dogs barking cuz they have the the guard dogs so as it starts going like the dogs start barking I haven’t slept a wink the first night so cell door opens
At whatever 7:00 half 7even and this lad gets up and [ __ ] off out cu he’s got a job he’s he’s already on the thing so I’m in there now I’m second day on the on on the uh Wing fell comes along and he’s he’s like a Bolton accent so get so
Soon turns out he’s a Bolton wonders fan my Uncle Tony Kelly played for Bolton said to you earlier on and Kevin noens a mate of Mine played played for Bolton so I’m [ __ ] right into him then straight away going listen mate I need to get out
Of this Padia this going to kick off this fell comes back in it’s nearly gone off last night if he comes back this afternoon it’s it’s kicking off in here like there’s just a bad energy so he’s like watch I’m like you need to sort
This out so anyway he goes I’ll see what I can do I go B F I’ll [ __ ] show you some tickets and I’ll get make sure there drops you in envelope just I’ve just L you know that’s you got to game the system you got to use every [ __ ]
Two on your two box so I could see he was receptive to it so for have got one here and all the screws are [ __ ] bers you know I had the one was one on your podcast sh Manchester one a bad ball de him full of [ __ ] him I think he was in
Strangeways but he never had that interaction with me he’s a [ __ ] lion cun big do big dope yeah big dope yeah honestly big ball bag he said I was like trying to trying to throw me name now or something for some influence didn’t he remember I was like I didn’t even met
Him I don’t think and I think he mentioned something to do with me brother so anyway um worked out the screw pretty quickly that that afternoon I’m back in the thing and the lad comes back from from where so I’m like [ __ ] hell this is this is on this so he gets
Back as he comes back in the thing he goes to me all right lad so I’ve gone just ja and I from the night before so I’ve gone yeah you’re all I said talking to him now turns out he’s from Chapel toown in leads where a mate of mine m
Richards is from who played at city with us so he goes ah lad me head was Kettle last night when you’ve come in I’d [ __ ] been arguing with me bed on the phone and the the the phone’s gone down as it does in jail and I couldn’t carry
On and I just [ __ ] was going to kill some head’s gone and then you’ve turned up and I’ve got a new pad mate and I’m thinking I’m getting some baged and you’ve turned in and you’re trying to be all chatty and I’ve just F [ __ ] and he
Was sound I went [ __ ] H mate I told said didn’t K last night had two s of beans there I just stole your Fring in if you kick me out that bunk so we were laughing about it so we’re sound then two days after that this screw takes the
Bait on the on the bolt and tickets and I’ve said listen you need to get me I found out there was a lad from B Long View who was in for um got caught with a boot of AK-47s running a load of guns for for the Lithuanian crew and was was
Looking at like a 12E stretch so I’ve ended up getting a and and there was a lad whose mates was in our our road um his his kid was mat with me as as a kid this fell and he I think he stabbed the
Copper in the eye so he s there doing a heavy tariff and everybody was petrified of him in strange race so I get Weir then he’s trying to get in contact with me so like he’s a boss fell won’t name him here but he’s [ __ ] crap you I
Mean but he’s a great fell out of gold but you terrorized everybody when he was out so I can’t imagine what he’s doing you know obviously locked up and anyway everybody in Strang R is [ __ ] weary of him so the last place I want to be is
Anywhere where there’s a Tinder Box like that cuz I’m thinking I’ve got six month jiler with good behavior they love me out I’ll be out of this in couple of months of just keep me [ __ ] nut down and keep myself to myself and obviously everyone’s wanting to make contact with
J and go I know you’re Al fell and I’m just going [ __ ] here’s a phone I’m like no I’m all right I don’t want any I’m saying and um anyway Mi gives me a shout and I I go over he’s on this decent wing and he says listen I’ve got the laundry
In that here he’s he still hasn’t been sentenced and he says yeah get padded in with get padded up with me it’s sound you so the screw ends up boxing it and anyway I was fine then after that so we had the gym on our wing there and I
Became the gym orderly got looked after a little bit by a few of the [ __ ] Rough and Ready fellas and um I was sound I was away then I done I think 74 days done a month in Walton about 40 days in strange ways and then I was out
The offer me me tag a little bit before that but I didn’t want to take it cuz I didn’t want to [ __ ] sit with the tag on and as it was you know got out and as I say James I I met some boss people
Like when to say boss is a scout word for like brilliant people like proper proper people who just [ __ ] up up had a mess a lad he was a great lad Man uniter Fan and when he got to jail you know he’s been up to no good and when he
Got to jail it’s be [ __ ] off to Morocco with his [ __ ] kids and set up with a new fell and he could get no visits and there’s me thinking I’m at Ground Zero I’ve reach rough bottom because I can’t play Foy on a Saturday
And and it gave me a huge um eye opener of I I felt dead sorry for myself when I got the jail of thought and then I realized this is your own [ __ ] fault you [ __ ] and your life’s still fantastic you’ve still got a po life if
You get your finger out when you get out be feeling sorry for yourself there is people in here who’ve absolutely got a [ __ ] [ __ ] the end of the stick and um you know life could get a lot worse if you don’t [ __ ] get your ass together
So you know jail work for me you know I had something on the outside to work towards but did that make you appreciate Le more absolutely yeah absolutely well you know you think people in jail you look down your nose at them and and and the people who’ve ended up going on the
A one night and took hello to Charlie got in a car and crashed into somebody and the’re doing seven eight nine years jail on a [ __ ] mad weekend where they had made with the bed and gone on a bender you know they’re not career criminals yet they are in there and
There is you know some Scouts in there there is some drags in there but there’s some [ __ ] solid people who’ve just you know had life come at them a little bit too quick for for for what they were able to deal with at the time and then
The problem for it is is you know your car insurance all the stuff that’s tariffed onto you after you leave jail doesn’t give you the a chance to turn your life in the direction you wanted to it actually is inclined to force you back into the system how did the media
Treat you when you go of prison or you just used to it yeah you follow me around and all taking pictures of me doing community service and it just you know the con let’s be honest you know if you know I fortunate enough or unfortunate enough to to have a couple
Hundred grand off two of the major Publications one of them I think’s gone out of business now for HCK phone and you know talking your voicemails and you know you seeing what they were doing you know I think it was the Millie Dowler case that highlighted a lot of the
Business practices for our for our you know media in the country and um you know I wasn’t even that famous you know so I can’t imagine well you know the the big HS were getting p through but you know for me I you know it is what it is
Isn’t it you know what I mean never really affected me I never really you know when you grow up reading um headlines in newspapers about football fans you know two people from our Ro died at hillsb and they said you know fellow football fans who I knew at
Lipol ever liol everon fans you know liol fans the e park always had a famous flag at every European Cup Ty Li PE you know an item flag they traveled everywhere to watch Li PE loads of them Lads were at illb and to read in the papers that they ordinated on their own
People and they’d stolen out the pockets of them and you know everyone in Liverpool in our area the time knew that was absolutely lies but the rest of the country didn’t so you grow up with that’s bear in mind that’s happened to me at 789 when I can really remember you
Grow up thinking n there’s a lot of there’s a lot of nonsense in the world you know you question everything you know if if you read what you’re reading about um people that you know and you know that to be false um and and I think um you know from our
City you know if you grew up in in in the a I grew up you couldn’t not be affected by um what the media in this country certainly you know a certain um a certain um media which was you know obviously M do or you know State
Controlled at the time you know the narrative that was set there you know that the families are still searching for Justice and um you know as I say once you once you experienc that at a young age you know you the the the illusion of nania is sh how hard was it
To get back into the first team after prison dead easy SL slotted straight back in how many weeks it take I managed to get M Jail at the end of the season done the two months so I miss preseason but obviously you can only do so much inside and um you know
The the body weight stuff and the exercises but but but I managed to keep myself taking over inside I ended up coming back out so I I just missed the offseason and you know missed two months 74 days so missed you know preseason usually six or eight weeks sometimes
Nine weeks if it’s a bit long so I came in and I missed basically all the preseason and the offseason so it took me a little bit to get up to speed I think I came back on as a sub in the emat about 6 weeks after i’ you know got
Out to jail and I never looked back from the I’ve got a peculiar personality like I don’t dwell in the past like the past the past yeah you can’t change it um I’m very future orientated so Newcastle pris you end up go to QPR you got promoted
With QPR what was your decision to go to Mars well again you know that sending off didn’t I the Aguero one it’s quite low profile there um and he happened to be the [ __ ] most iconic [ __ ] Premier League finishing goal um since Sky’s Inception I think um with Aguero and that was Madness
But KN that fight me I could there didn’t you like that’s that’s the common conception what happened then so QPR last game of the season you used to play with Man City you get sent off I think was that just before halftime no after we were second in the second half minut something
Something like that yeah in the second half um so i’ obviously was at Newcastle had a great spell at Newcastle and you know mik hashley was doing some mad stuff so you know there’s a few of us who stood up to him I think I was the
Lead instigated in that you know there’s a few strong personalities but they didn’t they didn’t want to get as militant as what they they did and i’ come from a labor City you know where where I’m from heighton and St ens and all that it’s they’re all El mining
Community so not miners per se but you know my one of my best mates growing up Matthew molini his dad was a a minor who was given his his obviously redundancy money so you know you grow up in that era of Liverpool was impoverished with you know the austerity that was that was
Put on the City by that kind of fer kind of Tory government um so so opportunities and the development of the city like the city was [ __ ] Rough and Ready you know it’s changed a hell of a lot now with you know some of the grants
And and the money that’s been spent on it for the better but at the time it it it was rough and ready and you you just kind of grow up with that abrasiveness don’t you like you know it’s it’s kind of anti as I say anti-establishment um
And from our perspective you know the the the opportunities for me I was like I’m I have to go in the military yet going have to be really good at sport and and if if I’m not then obviously them other things are there you know your crime or music or stuff that people
Get into but you know for me it wasn’t a whole host of stuff that I was really interested in at I was really interested in football and if it had got an injury or the setback I think the military might have been um something for me because I was kind of Yearning
Discipline you know a knew and needed strong structure strong discipline I always benefited from having a strong coach or a strong hand alongside me you know all the good managers that got the most out of me had that kind of firmness um so when I’m at Newcastle I stand up
To Ashley um because I didn’t think his what he was doing was right and obviously he he then broke that power structure that opposed him up in Andy Carell leaving to liol Kevin Nolan and Steve Harper myself alen Smith Etc so then it was the first time we thought
About having a family Georgia was pregnant um with our first child Newcastle was trying to renegotiate a contract with me I was 28 29 I think and I was negotiating with Derek lambas who was a casino owner or manager who was put in Chief exe role and he was bit
Difficult to negotiate with so it got to a bit of a Mexican standoff um and some um home truths were were spoken about the fact that I didn’t think he had any credibility to to make some of the judgments he was making negotiations broke off at that point um and it
Coincided with Georgia having a miscarriage our first child she had a miscarriage so she was up the wall thinking am I ever going to be able to have babies she was all over the place I was having a difficult negotiation with with the club and I’ve ended up just
Putting a line through it and said look how spey is in the summer when I didn’t say this is going on in me private life cuz it’s not for them but I needed not to just have this business negotiation in the midst of trying to look after me wife do you I
Mean in terms of you know she’s all over the Gaff here and you know with as I say it was a f child so she’s like threw it a bit um so the end of that season Derek lambas had said to me you know if we
Finish top 10 it’s a 2-year deal if we finish outside the top 10 it’s only a oneyear deal I was like we’re about to start a family here me and George are thinking about having another go or having a kid again and a one-year deal
At 29 is no good to me cuz once you turn nor for 30 as a footballer life changes you know up until in your 20s you can’t they can’t give you enough they want extra years on your contract the boot sponsors everyone’s Giving You Everything soon as
You turn 30 it’s a very agous sport it’s almost like your best years are behind you and you only want to do onee deals and the boot and the endorsements and now for the younger kids you know it flips over it must be like being an actress in Hollywood all of a sudden
You’re you’re getting all the lead roles and then all of a sudden you’re 10 45 and you haven’t got the uh the piness of of Youth and and you get shipped for you know the new the new uh the new model coming through so the end of that season we were 3-0 up
In the last game of the season against West Brom at half time and we’ have finished eth first season back in premier league and we end up drawing 33 Solomon Choy scored a hatrick for West Brom second half and we finish 11th and Jose Enrique our left back and joose
Jonas Gutierrez the Argentinian left midfielder had been [ __ ] about in the second half cuz we were tring up and they were taking a piss and we ended up Hing on for a free fre draw so by Derek Lamb is cations i’ have been going into that dressing room after punching the
Pair of their heads in because then [ __ ] about in a second and half would have mean I got a three-year deal or a one-year deal as it was the contract got sh so I was like what a [ __ ] idiot for he he could have caused a scenario
At the club that he didn’t need to cause by trying to be a casino manager thinking rules of the casino where in Premier League footy so at the end of that season um I kind of thinking this is not going to plan Mike sold Kevin Nolan to West Ham who was another
Agitated in not was we with the first team in Premier league history not to sign a bonus sheet cuz he was trying to Ram it down thinking we were Sports side and we didn’t have it well I took a bridge to it and I knew that everyone
Had to sign the form so loads of lads were going I was going will we get paid our wages what the [ __ ] do we need the bonus for just tell him to stick the bonus up his ass because it was just another way of mik get bullying and
Controlling people for money so I thought [ __ ] you I’m standing up to you and I convinced a few of the big bigger HS in the dressing room like the bigger influencers and then it got to the point where the manager was trying to get us
To sign it and the lads I think wanted the you know the union a few wanted the fold but couldn’t say he wanted to fold so I was saying Lads look you do what you want I’m not [ __ ] signing it and I knew I was smart enough to know that
They needed every signature one signature on it left off it was not enough for them to get it through so I was going look if you need the money you need his mik Mike Ashley’s money and you need to sign the bonus sheets cuz Mike
[ __ ] want you to you sign it but I’m not so in the mid of that five or six lads who were proud lads who were maybe wavering decided not to sign it so we go into the first League game bear in mind we’ve won the championship at Old Stafford for Newcastle United away
Without signing a bonus sheet which no team had ever done to that point so it got out and was news that there was a rebellion on so Mike’s decision is to to do away with all the leaders of the rebellion and he ended up sacking Chris
Uon off the back of it and then broke up the kind of power that got us turn the club around that power structure that the lads in the addess knew him and he broke it up cuz he wants to control so paru comes in and I’ve still got a year
Left and and and um end up having a little bit of a dingdong with paru and he [ __ ] himself and he said look you can go so I end up signing a four-year deal end for QPR first decision I think I’ve ever made based purely on finances and
The most H most most I’ve ever been paid most unhappy I’ve ever been why it just wasn’t a good environment like it’s a great great Club QPR good people there and I know they’re having a tough time with them in it but they just put loads
Of money into it and there was no you know team football is a team it’s a culture it’s a it’s a it’s a working class Collective sport where everybody has to chip in together yet it’s a meritocracy so the best will get paid more than the worst but there’s a
There’s a there’s a sense of belonging for everybody the superstar in the team can’t be a [ __ ] to the [ __ ] to the lad who maybe does one of the more menial tasks in the team like that just won’t wash in our game maybe that washes
In the tennis world or the golf world or you know in them world you can treat the people below you like a piece of [ __ ] but in in a workingclass sport like football you can’t and how you treat everybody for me is is important whether you’re the [ __ ] or the [ __ ] school or
Whether you you know you know want the lot how you behave at at all Junctions is is very important so if you’re the manager or you’re in a position of influence I I think it’s very as a as a socialist whereing class ladder for me it’s very importance you know I said to
You all my family have worked kind of working class jobs you know me n was waiting on so if I see someone treating someone like a piece of [ __ ] or not saying please thank you or then that really [ __ ] triggers me what was it like getting promoted for was that that
Was the only season you were there one year wasn’t not where QPR QPR no no no so I leave new hastle at 28 29 I think and I sign a fouryear deal at QPR and they just been promoted from the championship Neil Warner and I knew straight
Away with the way the the deal was conducted I was you know was me and the agents who was representing me at the time so they went the Premier League straight I thought you joined them Championship then won the leag no I went in they’d won the championship with the
Delta rap and all that and and a good mate of mine M and his dad played together Bradley o he was in the team so you know what I knew I had to leave Newcastle because of the fallen out with Ashley and he wanted rid of us all I had
A year left on me deal there and I got offered the freear deal on on slightly more money at QPR and I thought you know what I I was getting into stuff you know art and culture so if Naturally Fit that London I was like this is going to be
Great and you know got into kind of social media and Twitter at the back end of New Castle to manage me my exit strategy I was there and it work [ __ ] fantastically well because Mike Hasley tried to create this media war with me in the local papers but obviously this
New technology was there Twitter where I could just say I’m navigate the fact that he’d print an article in the chronicle and then he had to wait 24 hours to respond you know I could just take it out every time they print an article I just tweet this a load of [ __ ]
And it was using this new technology uh quite radically to to benefit you as a as as a footballer so West Ham I think had bid for me when the first Rumblings of the summer were on and and and I think they were trying to phase me out and they offered 3 million
Quid for me West Ham and I didn’t want to go can’t remember who was the manager time I didn’t want to go so I’ve dug in and then it got progressively was to the last preseason friendly against Leeds I kind of know me times uh up and I had a
Bit of a ding-dong And a bit of Twitter going on and mik hasy just turned around and said to to the agent he can [ __ ] leave I don’t even want any money for him so then straight away the businessman and me is like okay sound I
End up signing James QPR to go down to meet them and I always remember Neil Warner and Phil beard and the Agents I I was uh sort the deal out and we were sitting there and just watching neg negotiation go down and it was it it was
A financially fantastic deal but the way it was conducted I remember being like really uneasy with it and but I was like shut the [ __ ] up like you you’re going to r a b to any odd millionaire you know what I mean just keep your [ __ ] nut
Down you’re getting pushed out of new hastle they don’t want you asle doesn’t want you so you got to go somewhere and there’s about 22 million quid on the table here forget [ __ ] whether you like people or not so me me gut was not was just wasn’t sitting right me anyway
I signed and it it never sat well with me after that I should I shouldn’t have gone that that intuition I had that gut instinct I had was correct and as it unfold after that um I I regretted it that’s not to say qbr wasn’t a great
Club but it was just the characters I got involved in and and and I regretted it um but it it wasn’t going to plan so F year we ended up the manager who Neil Warner got sacked in the January MAR took over we ended up staying up by the
Skin of our te with that famous Aguero game I end up coping a 12 game ban out the back of that um and I come back that preseason and Mar wants me gone um and had to get a phone call um saying Olympic Mar want to take me so we end up
Going out there for the year at a phenomenal year there loved it and then in the midst of that QPR got relegated so I’d finished second in France and while I was away QPR had [ __ ] me off you know for me bad behavior or whatever
Which is you know and I said to them at the time look you make this bed I’ve still got three years left like you know what happened with the final game of the season when you’ve you cracked you’ve cracked TZ you’ve cracked Aguero yeah yeah so so if you remember in the game
If we had V now I don’t think i’ have been sent off i s per to say that because I blocked hez from the throw on the sideline and he punched me across the face he punched me in the back of the head and punched cuz as I cut him
Off he’s now behind me and frustrated because they had the title on the table we’ equalized in the game if you remember they were one nil up Zab zabaleta miss it across it went over Paddy Kenny and we equalized jble C equalized ear in the second half and
Their [ __ ] had gone they’d fell apart and know as a player you can just sent it sometimes so they the great man city we’ve got a win to stay up or certainly better Bolton resulted sto and we were one nil down and they thought they had the title it’s party mode and
They had all the bun and all that in where we that’s so that was like a red rag to me and we’ scored early in the second half and about four of their senior players [ __ ] are dropped out you seen them go the color of boiled sh
And you can you can just smell it sometimes as a competitor that oh these are done these are toasted so it’s they’ve gone and we on we in the Ascend and you can feel the nervousness in the stadium and I check TZ off a off a throw
Read him get in front of him cuz he’s not thinking clearly and and he [ __ ] punches me twice once in the back of the head and once around the side of the head so I’ve carried on moving when I say you know he jumped on me back and
And cough on me twice so I’ve we’ve kept moving I’ve kind of looked around loo hasn’t seen it ref hasn’t seen it and I’ve gone I’m fuming I thought you cheeky cuns so as a t line like that TZ is now walking back towards me so I’ve
Just looked around like that I thought no one can see me and I’ve just G [ __ ] off and elbowed them for one1 you know you’ve given me a couple and I’ve it him and he’s just gone down the [ __ ] you know the forigners Ary they’re well
Smarter than us so as soon as I’ve have cough him I should have gone down I’ve G up and startd to be British and Macho and level it up as soon as I’ve hit him he’s bit the dust and he’s screaming and next minute aguero’s running over
Grassing on me to the ref saying ah he’s like and he hasn’t seen anything so like now everyone’s piling around Mike Dean the ref stopped the game Mike hasn’t seen it so there’s no V or anything here the fourth no one’s seen it so then he goes over to the linesman the linesman
Says he’s seen it and I always thought to this day the linesman had seen it but now I know the linesman’s a liar because some people had sent me about 6 months ago a couple of stills from the game from you know they’ve been watching the
Game back and when they when the still happens and I touch TZ there’s six people in between the linesman on they’ve showed me the wide lens there’s six people in between the linesman there’s no way he could have physically seen what happened unless he can see through bodies so he’s just taking a
Punch on and he was [ __ ] right to be fair cuz he’s gone B he have definitely done it so my Dean comes over and there’s like a bit he saw at the linesman and all that now all the players are on each other and Bobby Zamora runs over to me [ __ ] K Bob
Runs over to me and he goes Joe Joe Joe you’re getting sent off you’re getting sent off [ __ ] take one of their with you so I thought that’s a [ __ ] good idea that cuz I’ve made a cun of it we’re down to 10 if I get one of their
To go it’s 1010 so I [ __ ] up but I’ve kind of leveled the playing field yeah so I just remember thinking at the time bear in mind we’re in the heat of battle it’s 55 minutes in the game [ __ ] adrenaline’s flowing there’s loads at stay us to stay up them to win the
League there’s a dingdong I’ve had me Celts I think I’m I’m getting sent off here and at that time Bobby’s words of advice were really profound you know now I realize it was a [ __ ] mad call for him so I thought yeah he’s right there so next minute aguero’s grassing again
To the ref so I’ve walked over to the ref Aguero should be a r kicking so I just fall [ __ ] off you so I’ve need him F I gave him a dead leg cuz he’s grassing so he bites the dust someone else runs in and I think it I think like
Lescot or something and I’m like [ __ ] off you you [ __ ] tiit so I haven’t he said the ti today bottom or whatever but once once I’ve need Aguero I’m just trying to get any one of there to throw punch at me or get involved cuz I know
I’m I’m already on my way off I’ve either been sent off or I’m on the way off so if any of days throw a dig at me it’s 10 men each it might even be 10 n to us so the best thing I could do in
That moment is get one of their players to take the bait as it was none of them really did and I end up with the [ __ ] 12 game suspension I think I’m fading the all time list AR I between can’s got number one for the Kung F and then
Somebody else on a drugs ban I think I’m third for like they done me for three three red cards in there said Aguero was a red card TZ was a red card the first one then the neon Aguero and then they set upd to B lesos and the thing that
Annoyed me about it all was you know players being players they won the league and the famous Aguero moments and and the rest history but lescott was the only one who when it when they had to go in front of the fa he was the only player who turned
Up to give evidence against me in front of the fa to say no no Joey tried to that but me I’m like jolian I’m [ __ ] getting it I’m getting a ban I’ve been you know sent off you’ve won the league why are you turning up to give evidence
Against me and as small as the world is when I’m at Glasgow Rangers who turns up to T I have a Glasgow Rangers with with the with the capping and [ __ ] lesos so I said I’m not playing in the same team as that grass and C I’m playing
With him he’s a [ __ ] grass can’t share the ious with him um and again you know for me if that hadn’t happened I wouldn’t have gone to Mars James so Mars was a phenomenal experience yeah they loved you so you’ve got 12 game ban you went
In Mars so we done a season of QPR stay upay up 12 game ban Mar you done the interview we’ got to touch on the interview because when you started speaking French I’m not going to lie I thought I could start understanding French at that time I thought I must I
Must have took all that in the [ __ ] CL we all learn that don’t we when we speaking to to whiters and that when you’re on Aldi you I mean but um so we go out there and obviously I’ve got a 12 game ban to to negate so but the fans T
Me straight away like why did they love you so much just cuz I was a rebel I think they just see me as a rebel and I remember the first game I turned up in and and and one of the the ends had a massive like mural of welcome sweet and
Tender hooligan because they knew I was into the Smiths and they’d gone and read and I just thought these are a [ __ ] crackers these like I haven’t played the game I’m getting sent out of QPR who [ __ ] Persona nonr in the UK with this 12 game ban like I’m Hannibal Le there
And these are just hav me and I haven’t even kicked the ball like and these have had a European Cup win and Jean Pierre papan and Canard and Chrissy W and Abid Pelle and dejan stovic and like like just um sorry Dragon stovic like just incredible players Basel B I can remember them
The C I remember watching on ITV because Rangers were decent at the time so I remember leads V Rangers on ITV think semis when it was only like Champions who played in it now where if you finish you know game so and I remember how good Rangers were and how
You know don’t forget after Heisel we you know we didn’t have European football in in England you know all the top players had to go to foreign countries to you know Spain Italy Germany and obviously Scotland to play in the European Cup or the Cup winners
Cup or the UFA cup at the time and um you know the English game really suffered as as as a result of that and you know for me then the Premier League getting it act together was great because that coincided with Italian 90 which led to the Italian serat League
Was massive and got gazetta James Richardson goals on Sunday in the Italian game so you know you grow up with this unadulterated love of football like I’m I’m a football historian like anarak like love the game um and then I’m fortunate enough to be good at it
And then after I’ve hung my boots up I’m fortunate enough to be able to [ __ ] coach and help people there fulfill their potential in it so you know you look through life and you think [ __ ] I’m a right Jammy bastard you I mean I’ve been born in but you’ve what T as
Well M I wouldn’t say Jammy are lucky that you’ve you’ve grinded man through all the [ __ ] the pain the torment all the [ __ ] hate from the media and you’ve still kept doing so see you say for Marc their fans are [ __ ] loving you what happened with the interview how
Did how did that happen so I say up and um as I say you know I’m banned for the first 12 League games so I could play in the Europa League but I couldn’t play in the in the domestic League the ban was only for domestic football or something
So I could chip away at these games but I’m playing in Europa League games and um they kept me out the spotlight for a little bit and then I’m doing me French lessons and all I had an American lawyer used who worked for the club who used to
Give me a lessons so I’m doing me French lessons and that and you just sound like a [ __ ] idiot don’t you whenever he speaking in a foreign language in initially you just sound like a like a space that to yourself it’s like when you first hear your voice you don’t
Sound like you sound to yourself when you he your voice record or you see an interview on the tell you’re like what [ __ ] why am I talking that voice for it’s like your M or your n used to have the phone voice didn’t he they’ be screaming and shouting at you the phone
Go oh hello how are you and you be like you don’t you don’t be like that during the week um so you have your your press interviews and as I say I’m learning like I’ve got the basic understanding of French but you know I can ask for
Something in the shop but I can’t have a conversation so we’re playing I think Fen aach away in the uh Europa League and I get put up for the Press so um it’s a it’s a European game so you get Mars is a massive club like you know
It’s the biggest Club in France it’s like man united in France so Liverpool it’s it’s that big and the European games cuz it’s the teish uh Champions or whatever it is ferachi it’s it’s it all these foreign journalists so that the interpretor says to me before go in he
Goes um can you do me a favor like with your strong Regional dialect like can you just speak a bit slower cuz it’s I’ve got to translate firstly from scouts to English and then from English to French and then back the other way when when we’re doing it so I’m like
Yeah May no problem so I’m in this press conference and it was like a um you know like about five five rows of about five people it’s almost like a little mini Cinema room and in the back of it was my brother Andrew me might splattery and
Tager who were over staying with me at at the time so I’m doing this presser and I’m getting asked questions and I’m answering and speaking slow and before I’d gone out there I’d seen Steve McLaren’s interview I’d [ __ ] laugh me head off laugh me bollocks off going what about [ __ ] that’s silly [ __ ]
Steve and all that you know the and so I was fully aware of like how much of an idiot you could look if you spoken broken so I was like laughing going [ __ ] as if i’ do that like I’m [ __ ] way too switched on for that like buzzing people 6 weeks later there
Again [ __ ] bollock chops thinking of cracked in this conference chatting away giving it all the vaav Voom and all that thinking I’m like I’m keep looking at this um translator and he’s going to me just keeps doing this keeps going so I’m thinking I am [ __ ] nailing this face
Press and every time I Ed this C he’s going as if to say like you’re on the money day no one’s batting an eyelid and then after about 15 20 minutes like I [ __ ] bad think I’m [ __ ] like knocking all these questions out the park here throwing a bit of f French in
There you know the odd word n as if to show I’m trying to learn the language and then I just [ __ ] look like that and I can just see our kid our kid’s got [ __ ] big mad [ __ ] hair isn’t he’s like me hero hair you can make rope out
Of our so just see this [ __ ] head going like this in the back so I’m like the [ __ ] hell are these up to so you know you trying to answer the questions and you remain professional but like how the cor and now these are serial messes James like they’re always [ __ ] about
The you know it could be anything that they find funny they’re never serious so I’m like this anyway after about keep C like that and there’s [ __ ] tears coming out the ey so I’m like looking at them and they keep looking at me but they can’t look at me they keep looking
Away and they’re laughing the [ __ ] off so and and I’ve just had the real no just have that realization of oh [ __ ] I’m I’m doing a [ __ ] Steve mlad here so I’ve realized and and I for I’ve just got to go with this like I might as well
I’ve made the [ __ ] of it so M you know for me you got to laugh at yourself if you if you make a bollocks of it so I then start like tapping a bit on as I say these are just keep going in the background going in the background but
The funniest thing about it was there’s only the four of us in the room who were on it nobody there’s no English journalists in there nobody’s aware of it so when I come out of there they going [ __ ] hell what was you up today sound like [ __ ] a low low so they
Give me I’m getting it tight but I’m thinking that’s contained to the room I’m never ever thinking that’s going anywhere so I’m thinking that’s going to be Mars TV and then [ __ ] Moroccan TV or Algeria wherever a Mars a big and that’ll be the end of that you know you
Know so come out the room and I’m laughing and they they’re going they’re saying we’re going to get on to your press officer to try and get the video cuz they want to show all my mates go listen what this silly [ __ ] done and they’re de and I’m going to the Press
Offic so do not [ __ ] give them that tape so I think it’s contained in that room so anyway playing the game [ __ ] get out about two days later my [ __ ] phone just starts going off D I’m like it’s obviously it Sky Sports News in England and then the next [ __ ] and
Then you just got to laugh hav you I mean you just like [ __ ] H made the B to that I genuinely thought I could understand French honestly that’s class so Mar you end up what was it running with Ibrahimovic so that was in the game obviously PSG and and again you know the
Cuz you you I had to Mar him so zlatan’s about six or four and he about 18 he’s a big unit and and he’s handy with it I think he says he’s Kate and all expert you wouldn’t want to dust up with him like he’s he’s a big unit and I’ve only
Seen about four Center forward him a lifetime who actually Target the center half usually in my world the center half tdes to bully the center forward and kick him out the game but every now and again you get like a Louis Suarez or an Alan sheerer or a Duncan Ferguson who
Actually goes at the start of the game looking for the center half to bully him well we’re playing we’re second in France and the um katar money’s just come into PSG the year I turn up so you’ve got Thiago Silva Zlatan M you know all of the big HS
Beam came yeah Beckham came in all the big hitters are coming and it wasn’t them but like they’ve got this incredible yeah spend in in the last you know 12 months and Mar the historic Club who’s trying to keep Pace with them and Leon there was three of us sessi and
Leon were going at it but we were close to them so ad was banned for the first derby at the V and Zlatan scored two [ __ ] crackers and we threw 2-2 but I was in the stadium and I was I couldn’t player I was playing in the Europa
League but I was banned for the game and then as the season went they were about four or five points ahead of us but we had to play them in the cup quarterfinal and in the league in the same week so we playing them in the cup on the Wednesday
And the league on the Sunday and the cup on the uh Wednesday but that was the if if they won they were going I think eight or nine points clear of us with seven games to go and if they beat us in the cup obviously we were out the cup so
Our season pretty much came down to that week so we played them on a Sunday and at their place and played [ __ ] great and they ended up scoring a spawny goal and I think they beat us out of 2-0 or 2-1 but we were right in the game good
Account of ourselves but they beat us and that was the league pretty much it was we were we were then focusing on finishing second rather than winning the title it was like a six-pointer but then we had to play them on the Wednesday in the cup but we had
To play the same start in 11 virtually and they made about eight changes you know what I mean nine changes and was one of them who come in so in the first game in the league um Zlatan had gone targeted Nicholas in Kulu who was a great Center
Half cameronian boy but he just there was Sully deard and then kudu and Sully was a bit of a warrior and Nik was the ball player and Zlatan just pulled right onto him and just G [ __ ] he’s getting it and just started roughing him up so
From every goal kick then I didn’t get pulled down because he’s Dustin and Kulu so I come the front screen then so I so I’m like listen I [ __ ] front screen him and stoping bullying our Center half so I’m now front screening him and I’m just standing on his toes pinching him
And he’s massive compared to me and every time he put his hands on me I was diving on the floor and going ah and the ref kept giving a free kick and it was [ __ ] doing his eding so in the end he’s lost his [ __ ] with me cuz I’ve won
About four free kicks off him now and he’s say to me and gone you’re [ __ ] Fanny you’re [ __ ] [ __ ] so he’s so I’m like so I know I’ve got him so I’m laughing at him going [ __ ] off you [ __ ] [ __ ] so he’s going I thought you were meant to be a [ __ ] English
Tough guy he was saying you’re a [ __ ] [ __ ] was saying to me right so I’ve gone shut up you you [ __ ] big nose [ __ ] so I’ve just gone [ __ ] off big nose so we just ding donging like this right but it’s like it’s like laughing but
He’s no one’s ever called me big nose C clearly cuz he [ __ ] he was shocked that that anyone had the audacity to say it to him cuz he was the King of France at the time he was the king I was like [ __ ] off you [ __ ] big nose [ __ ] I was
Going you might be boss or FY but your [ __ ] nose is massive so and for a big ego Maniac like that his teammate started laughing at him you know like a few like and and his head went so he you can see his argument now completely
Unbeknown to me they ended up beating us in the game at the end of the game the game had been on French like BBC or ITV and they zoomed in in the midst of the game sto and they zoomed in and captured that like I didn’t know that had
Happened so when I come off we’d lost the game but my status within the Mars fan base and with the football fan base in France I I did just love me because they they didn’t like Zlatan and they just seen someone taking them on who was smaller than them and it just endeared
Me to them you know what I mean I didn’t know it I didn’t even know it was happening I was just like [ __ ] you I’ve never taken a back with Stephan anyone never mind you you’re [ __ ] big no Swedish [ __ ] so I ain’t going to start
Now and as I say it it just grew this arms and legs to the point where I go back to my Mar now I was there two weeks ago uh to see some Pals and people in the street walk past kids and going big no like it’s just nuts they don’t even
Remember a [ __ ] game we played with them you mean but they remember a sck him on and it’s sad really cuz you know you want to be remembered for your FY and you’re playing but also you know but that’s what you’re known for as well to be remembered that you know that people
[ __ ] remember yet is you know so if you’re Mar the fans love you you’re doing well there what was a decision to leave well I I I was I was going to so we first i’ signed a for you dealer Q the first year we’ stayed up second year
To get loaned out to Mar cuz I fell out with the manager and the 12 games and he wants me out the club in the midst of that he gets sacked because they don’t win a game and then they get relegated so Ari Redna takes over in January QPR
Got relegated in that season so I’m like well [ __ ] you cuz you wanted me out and look what look what You’ have won I’ve just finished second in France uh fans love me living in the south of France it’s [ __ ] 30° every day you know I’m
Treated like a like I’m a God yet he want me yet you know not done anything great football-wise but they just love me I can’t do any wrong [ __ ] if I’m going back to [ __ ] England [ __ ] that I’ve got two years left on this QPR contract but they’ve just been relegated
There’s no way they want me back cuz I’ve been throwing bombs at them from France going I told you you was [ __ ] told you you shouldn’t have got rid of me knew you was [ __ ] knew you had all magets in your dressing room um vocally on Twitter which was probably a mistaken
Iight but the impetulant of of of Youth um so I’m thinking there’s no way I’m going back to QPR firstly the salary I’m on there’s no way they can afford that in the championship the B bridge is bent the fans don’t want me back manager I’m in the Champions League here but Mar
Could only pay half of me salary the next year so I still had two years to go on me QPR deal and I thought it’d be a natural negotiation to you know meet in the middle somewhere and there wasn’t and then Tony Fernandez is going this
Story is written for you Joe you can come back and and say save the club From the Ashes this is you can this is a Redemption story and I’m like Tony look [ __ ] off you [ __ ] subside with Mark using them to me out the club you
[ __ ] made your bed I’m playing in the Champions League here V Voom the French love me you can stick QPR right up your ring piece I’m away and he just won’t buge so he’s going well if you want to leave you’d have to cancel your contract
I’ll let you go but you have to cancel your contract so I done the math on it for me to listen to the Champions League music and playing the Champions League for Mar financially you know for for the money that was at state it wasn’t worth
Um you know wasn’t my future you know decisions that you’re making for your kids and their kids I thought you know what it’s not worth it you know Mars if Mars really wanted me did you know then they were going and then in the interim in between that Gap Mass I went and
Signed a load of players and I didn’t become the priority that I was at the start of the summer and before I know I redn had kind of convinced me and Tony Fernandez that getting QPR back to the Premier League would be a fa you know a story and Mar kind of
Younger more salable assets had signed and I think you know the the appetite to do the deal had waned on their side so financially they were never going to be at the level I needed them to be at and then QPR dug the feet in so I remember going speaking
To Ari and said look at this Mars one’s dead it’s def sign this midfielder now it’s you know I’m not going what you know if you you’re square with me I fell out with the old manager if you’re square with me I’ll be square with you
I’ll do everything I can if you bring me back into the face team so he brought me back in and the rest is history that season finishes with those winning the playoff final Bobby Zamora at at Wembley and and I like to think if I wasn’t there there’s no way that would have
Happened what was that feeling it was moment of relief mainly because of the club was in a in a toxic position um and you know myself and Phil be had pushed really hard to to get Harry to add Steve Steve black to the to the off the field
Team and and without Steve black that that wasn’t possible that team was not getting promoted that year uh Blacky came in and worked his genius and showed everybody what is capable if you’ve got a um a strong mindset and and a desire to to be um better than what you was the
Day before and he he he he he showed you know in football and terms of Miracle to turn that group around and you know we get promoted at the end of the season you know Blacky was without that you know 10 men in the final g O’Neal sent
Off at half an hour was a go Hing on by a Fred Bobby scores the goal last kick of the game and and the conversation and we were getting batt with 11 men never mind when we had 10 men but it was black he’s man and the where he done with the
Group that that without a shout shadow of a doubt set the small details in in in us getting a job done that summer we go away and come back and I’m thinking okay we can get cracking here back in the premit it’s the last year of my deal
At QPR but we’ve got a chance to build on what Black’s given us a good foundation and Har had gone away in the summer you know watched the World Cup where Van AR played in Brazil uh 201 14 16 was it when was the Brazil World Cup
14 vanal played a five and got Holland to semi-final final Nigel D young gon so tle was the final and Chile under um I think it was either might have been um be Elsa or the the guy who came after them might have been s POI i’ played 3
43 so Harry had been away in the summer and come back and we’d been a 4-2 31 solid defense that we just about got up by the skin of our teeth and AR’s coming back and we’ve signed R Ferdinand on a three and we’re playing this back three
And we’ve got Chilean Wingers and we’re going into the Prem which is not a [ __ ] a league if you’re newly promoted that you want to be playing this open expansive three at the back and stopped listening to Blacky kind of thought he’d got us promoted Harry it
Was him almost whitewash black out of history of of the of the club and then the club just got back into a shitty spot had had had he resigned the day after the deadline had closed in the January or February February the 1st so left us up shik creek without a paddle
Because he didn’t get the plays he wanted Chris Ramsey took over and we got relegated slow painful death and then that was tough to take because I kept me standard Sky I was playing some good footy in a really bad team in a really bad environment and I thought the phone
Would ring at the end of the season and it didn’t you know West Ham pH and thought that was done and then the that they backed out at the last minute and then a sign for Bley you know Li in the window and then had a fantastic year
There won won the league won the team of the year had a great year there and then came up to Y of the woods SL came across Adrian’s wall into the uh the Barbarian Heartland that is Glasgow and and Scottish football yeah what was a decision to join Rangers well i’ i’
Spoken to daish at the end of the season and and at that point I’d had lots of Seasons where I’d been in the Premier League and it was just about staying in the league and finishing 16 for winning 10 games and throw and I just thought
I’ve got a little bit of a fa at Newcastle at Mars and QPR and now Bley of winning and getting promoted and Rangers made this massive play at me face Year back in Scottish Prem you know the fell who sign me at banley Frank M Partland had left halfway through the
Season to go work with Mark warin and Rangers and I just felt for do you know what I had Celtic kids as a kid but I’d love to play For Real Madrid or Barcelona I’d love to play for Dortmund or Bayern Munich I’d love to play for
Porto benf Ro Sport and Lisbon so for me to play for Rangers or Celtic as an anak of football even though as a kid I’m a Roman Catholic Joseph Anthony you know went to St Agnes school and St Thomas a you were all every fed kit I got was a
Celtic kit always got Celtics fa kit like Easter he always ended up with the Celtic kit and they were always decent kits um bro you know peoples Ford and um you know some of my mates ended up on Rangers kits but we were always Celtic kits so then
I’d always thought i’ play I always thought I wouldn’t mind having I go with Scotti footy playing for either Rangers or Celtic but I always thought I’d play for Celtic and then you know as life comes at yeah you know win the league of barley thinking I’m going to sign a new
Deal there and then I love Dai and I think I can speak about this now but it’s like it’s diy’s money that he spends you know I mean that’s a good thing for the manager but I knew what it cost to replace me I’ve done the math on
It at that point I’m 31 I’ve just come off probably you know the most consistent season I’ve had team the year we’ve won the league I think you know it was a productive environment for me had a good working relationship with the manager it was it was just what I needed
I was settled I was living back in the Northwest kids family’s great and I spoke to him and he said at the end of the season we’d had a pint together and and a curry and he said listen I he started talking money and I don’t like
To talk money I just said look just just when you speak to me Agent ju ju you just sort it out you know you know I don’t really want to get involved in the N nittor you pay me what you think’s fair and and I’ll sign for it so I go
Away thinking that’s going to get done and and in the M midst of the next two weeks there’s again another Mexican standoff to disagreeing on figures and and then cleverly Franken Rangers stick the little wedge in there and go come up come up and look at this so I go up to
Glasgow it’s June they [ __ ] take me to Lo lman Andy Black takes me to Lo lman the sun’s cracking the flags take me to I Brock show me the Soviet room the pitch I’m take me to the training ground I’m going what a [ __ ] club this is now banley
Was a good club at the time but it wasn’t Glasgow Rangers you know the the impressive you know institution of football that is Rangers and that is Celtic as well you know I know I know your League’s U different to ours but still incredible respect from from the
Football faity and and then I just thought you know what I [ __ ] really fancy this I I love me golf and I thought they were saying it’s like this every day take no no the weather forecast the [ __ ] there wasn’t a cloud in the sky they like it’s like
Every so I know yeah but I thought you know what I’m going to I’m going to this is a chance it’s history for Rangers it’s the first season back after the the the the problems they had um even if you’re [ __ ] in Scotland and your Rangers you’re second to third so you’re going
To be competing for trophies chance of playing European football which it was going to be difficult for me to do in England with banley who were newly promoted back of the league and banley hadn’t in the negotiation really shown me as much love as I thought it was
Going to be shown so there was a crack and Rangers stepped in it and then I I decided that that that was me challenge I wed up and everyone was going you [ __ ] mad giving up the Prem to go here and I thought you know what this is
A bsy challenge like to to over throw Celtic and be the first rangers side back in the top flight and and and winning a title it’s it’s a historic moment and I thought it’ be great to be a part of like it’s a real Underdog Story um so I’ve I’ve decided I’m going
To do that in the mid of that D she get winding it and because he’s slightly different motivation to me he’s a little bit more M orientated he’s then come over the top of it with a big offer from banley thinking Ah that’s the end of the
Rangers one and he expected that to be a a torpedo into the Rangers uh transfer and I’m like no no i’ I’ve decided to go to Bley to go to Rangers he’s like what you mean I would offering you more money I’m like I I don’t do this for money
Like yeah I made one decision for money to go from new hastle to QPR and I swore for the rest of me existing since that would be the last time I was ever um ever compromised by uh Financial uh compensation and he couldn’t believe it but mine and his relationship got
Stronger since because he presumed like everybody or normal people are that if someone offers you 10 grand a week more or eight grand a week more you [ __ ] in in the Premier League you’re going to stay there but I was like no no I I would have stayed for for that offer at
The first goal but now you you’ve only offered that because a big club’s come and my my eyelids have been Ted and I really fancy this project and um you know it was a big moment for me because my little boy Casas he’s 11 now but he
Was starting school so it was his fair school so he he started school in in beay Den in Scotland and had like a little bit of a glass Regent accent going on so it’s not just uh me who can pick up the languages really easy it’s in the genetics so same you
Saying obviously you cause [ __ ] everywhere you go you always cause headlines but you went oh Farmers League Scott Brown [ __ ] you can’t La my boots what was that then get into the park head game so so I never I never actually said that when I went up there obviously
Rangers had been demoted to the to the Bottom Rung of professional was it league did he go to the third division league so remember Ali mcon all that there and they were really down in the dams and as I say I grew up watching you know more Celtic than Rangers I was you
Know if if Celtic played Rangers I I want the Celtics to win you know I didn’t really invest in it cuz I’m an A atonium but I would always um you know out of the two you know AC Milan played Inter Milan I always liked Inter Milan Real Madrid Barcelona I always liked
Barcelona um so I I get a chance to go up there obviously Rangers is fair season back in the top flight and they’d lost in the Scottish Cup Final to hibs but beaten Celtic in the semi-final if you remember so Ronny Dalia was the manager of Celtic and obviously Celtic
Were in were winning the league and the trophies but they went in a great cycle um so when I go to Rangers first year back for Rangers in the top flight and coincides with Brendan Rogers taking the job so in the midst of doing the Press
I’ve just won the league in England in the championship I’ve had the the most consistent season I’ve had in terms of behavior and process I had Blacky in me life now and D was good influence and good group in the in the dressing room Team of the Year and I’m going up to
Scotland I’m like I’m going to [ __ ] show these country like mainly I’m going to build Rangers you know I’m going to and at the time you can’t go into Rangers who were who were first year in the thing was the mar signing and go and Celtic great isn’t scottt Brown great
I’m like in Scotland Rangers are doing well and Celtic are [ __ ] or Celtic are doing well and Rangers are [ __ ] the two can’t cohabitate and and both can’t be doing well at the same time it’s just the country’s just not geared on that one’s great and one’s sh and vice versa
In England there’s about nine teams that shared amongst but in Scotland the real focus is on the old Fame you know hibs heart abdine Etc but Celtic and Rangers caught most of it so if I turn up and I’m saying I’m just here to oh you know
I just go under the radar and and that’s not me as a personality anymore so like you know with the greatest respect to Scott and I’ve managed against him you know he took the job uh Fleetwood i’ been there and you know in terms of if if you’re an elite level player in
Scotland you have to come south pro Bary Ferguson you know gra keep going back no matter what it’s the same way the Welsh they can’t stay and play in Welsh Premier League you can’t the Irish can’t stay in play for Shamrock Rovers Northern Irish can’t stay and play for lynfield you’ve got to
Come here the same way in the 80s our players have to go to Italy or to Spain or to Germany because they wen’t seen as the the the are the hardest challenge you know if you want to be a top fighter now you got to go to UFC Bellator cage
Warriors one Championship Etc but you want to be the [ __ ] top man and remembered forever the UFC is where you need to be at and for me the Premier League in my era of football is where you need to be at so if you’re anyone who [ __ ] anyone and you think you can
Mix it with the big boys and you see Patrick via and Roy Keane and Paul skulls and Mele and Lampard Gerard and all these that’s just a name but a few and you sit him look in the window at that no one you could be in that room
Then for me you’re a [ __ ] bag like you’re a sh bag now bar Fon to be fair to him was the King of Scotland B was the King of Scotland king of Rangers that’s his Club captain and to be fair to he had the ballocks to come down he
Didn’t move to man united or Liverpool or one of those clubs that maybe his ability was be fitting of he had to go and sign for blackb Rovers then he went to Birmingham city and I think he won a League Cup and I think he went back
North of the board there maybe not being as good as what he thought he was going to be down here you know kind of G him soon as category but I think he certainly went back up there and forth you know what about the [ __ ] right go
Captain Rangers have won every a win at me Boo club and I’ve gone down South of the Border now that I go and I don’t know I just look at them Lads like Scott and I’ve had a paint with Scott as I say you know we’ve laughed about what went
On in Scotland he’s a good fell he’s not a bad fell a great saveing for Celtic Football Club and I always said to him like I just I had no respect for you if you just fight Bellator you don’t come UFC I think you’re a fanny why not come
[ __ ] UFC mean that’s fair enough yeah so that was my mindset and then when I turn up there I’m like I’m not coming here to take part I’m coming here for to win the title Brendan’s gone in and he smashed it to be fair I think Brendan’s
A chameleon so Brendan is brilliant but there’s a Cell by date on him and you know but he says he’s going to be here for another three years but if he gets an off for [ __ ] um Saudi Arabia he’d be off in a heartbeat but again you know
They went up there and Celtic and to be fair to them browny and I think they had some good lads there and young call McGregor who I think is a good player good Captain the boy who went to Arsenal T you know Roder he had a good little
And Brendan going in I think because of what had happened with Ronny Dalia I think Brendan going in got Celtic standards raised massively so we were going in Rangers with a a championship in Scotland team that thought it was better because it beaten Celtic in the
Semi-final but it was the probably a bad vision of Celtic under Ronny Dalia Brendan had come in and standards are gone North and to be fair to him did he win treble treble or something treble he absolutely smashed it headed in and I think the likes of Scott and all that
Maybe their career and and time at Celtic was not as professional as what it could have been under runn yeah and I think me signing for Rangers and coinciding with Brendan coming in I think he put a few of them Lads on notice and to be fair to Cela they they
Got some good players in there and and made the players they already had better and they you know Brendan’s H coaching quality they never [ __ ] look back did they what was the old fun game leag for you the atmosphere you know it was it was a strange one in terms of I’d been
Moaning at stuff in house and you know we had me time yeah cuz standards just poor like now I went up and I I was a little bit behind in terms of my own Fitness so you’re a bit frustrated with yourself when you when you when you’re
Looking for your own Fitness and because i’ had such a good season and I bely by the end everyone listen to me if I said it was something they’d go [ __ ] hell he’s my own but he’s usually right and I went up to Rangers and he had no
Credibility in the dressing room and I just because I’d not done anything at Rangers and I just start [ __ ] moaning at them you know and you got your Tav years and leave all us and new lads who have been there settle for a bit and I’m
Just saying up going don’t do that that [ __ ] don’t do that that’s not going to work but I’m saying that cuz that’s not going to work in the Premier League that doesn’t mean to say it won’t work against [ __ ] dunde or dunde United it probably does and if your Rangers you
Get away with bad habits until you face Celtic or until you face a decent side in in European competition so when it get up there I’m criticizing everything straight away I the gate going that’s not good enough this not good enough but so instantly you don’t you get people’s
You don’t get people’s support cuz you’re just criticizing everything whether it’s just or not you just seen as a [ __ ] moaning country so I actually got off on the wrong foot cuz I was moaning at people and and I made a huge mistake there uh valuable life
Lesson we then get into the nitty-gritty of it and all the stuff that I was moaning about not being at the correct intensity and not being the correct way you know the way we defend set plays the way we trained Etc didn’t really RAR their head because
You’re beating dundy and you draw them with some you know you’re not getting beat but the seventh or eighth game we were playing Celtic at Celtic Park so I’ve been moaning and moan and moaning in the background anyway we get to Celtic Park and I’ve been there kind of
Two months now two two and a bit months and I just was like what the [ __ ] have I done signing here these are [ __ ] miles away like just miles away and I can’t change them all and I’m moaning I’m getting more and more frustrated which is making me even more of a
Moaning [ __ ] and it’s alienating me further and further from the lads who are need to effect so we playing the old Fame and we’ve done the team shape on uh Friday I think it’s a Sunday 12:30 kick off so the Friday we do the team shape
And me and Andy Al they playing Center mid and I think Niko crank’s in the 10 and it’s 451 and you know it’s a little bit more of a defensive structure and we got our plan and and that’s the manager’s prerogative and you know then
We get to the hotel I think we staying in M Hall on on the Saturday for the game and I always remember this uh James because I was sitting with uh Lee Wallace Kenny Miller and the AL who were all like mad Rangers just boss lad’s
Good lads love football so I used to just take it you know I find it like when I was saying to you about the Air Makeup I find it funny just to wind people up you know just say mad things and then not say anything so they don’t
Actually know what what so I’d say like I’d just just to noise The Lads up just for the conversation at the table I’d say who you think the best player in the world is and they’d go you know [ __ ] Ronaldo or Messi or i’ go and you all
Give the names and then did go in the end who do you think it is and i’ go like Thomas Muller he go W I go [ __ ] Thomas Muller most goals of the World Cup and I just just a pissed and all be arguing well you Fu well better than
Messi just and I didn’t believe it but it was just to [ __ ] noise them up just so they’re all taking the bait on it so I always remember being in the hotel and I always remember winding Kenny Miller up that night about saying Thomas müller’s the best player in the
World he scored the most goals at the World Cup was me logic he’s got the you know he’s he’s more than um um I was and the other argument was making was marav closest better than like somebody else cuz he scored more World Cup goals anyway the Scottish Lads in a Kenny M
That they’re absolutely losing the [ __ ] and then from nowhere Andy all’s been part of it and he just goes quiet so we’re all sitting at the table he just goes quiet and then gets off like then he comes back and you can see he’s [ __ ] like upset and he’s he’s a
Proper Stone kid and he’s a good kid so I’m like [ __ ] you thinking someone in the family or you know some he’s had some bad news so he’s like then then it gets out there the manager changed the team but he’s text Andy to tell him he’s
Not in the team for the old Fame Saturday Sunday morning so he’s never done this so I’m like what what the [ __ ] this we’re playing the biggest game of the season he’s done the teamw and he’s [ __ ] [ __ ] himself and change the team Saturday night and he hasn’t
Had the bollocks to pull the kid one-on-one he’s texted him and he’s gone and he’s a mad Rangers Fan mad Rangers family but that’s upset the other lads who were quite close to him so I’m like [ __ ] hell anyway sleep it off get up the next day won’s like the leader and
He’s not the leader like I’m like he’s just his ass is gone so I’m I think he’s a Jag anyway based on his training sessions and what’s been done but I’ve had to sit on it because I’m thinking none of I just keep M everything everyone thinks I’m a c like I’m just
Literally moaning at everything so I’m like Victor meldrew and I’m thinking like just but I’m thinking a few things need to go wrong year before they finally go listen you were right there can you fix it and had a gone yet happily I was you know you almost have
To it’s like watching your kids [ __ ] stuff up before you fix it you almost have to allow it to unfold and in football times I’m watching this unfold I’m going this is just heading like have did not learned the lessons from the Scottish Cup Final i’ identified by the games i’ watched that
They had a weakness for conceding goals from set plays did did consider the two in the Scottish cor final against hibs lost the game on it and he had I think 14 or 16 instances in in in in the games that i’ watch where set plays with a
Huge problem so I’m getting him thinking right first Port call set plays are dead easy to set piece you just get organized from from the start um don’t we don’t do that here I’m like what you mean yeah we don’t do SE plays here we don’t practice
That plays and I’m like well you [ __ ] [ __ ] at them you lost of Scottish go Final on them why we don’t do that here that’s not it’s not what we do so that’s not a good enough answer for me cuz I’m going we’ll have work for boom boom boom
In the Premier League for the last [ __ ] 12 years I’ve been on the continent and this must this must this mad football club where you’re the only football club that doesn’t have to [ __ ] practice that plays and lo and beh old you’re absolutely useless at defending them can you not understand
The correlation like sometimes in football they forget the rep it’s a repetition sport if you keep repeating your action with personal practice you’re improve and get better at it from a team perspective the more you drill stuff the the better you get it it but Mark warber who is Rangers manager at
The time manag brenford but whilst I was playing in the Premier League and becoming a footballer an experience in the arena and and the challenge of that he was working as a banker in the city so you know I give I give everyone the respected the due but for me I live a
Life of meritocracy if you act like a [ __ ] I treat you um Bes spokely towards that now if you act really um competently and you show your WTH on a daily basis then I treat you exactly life isn’t you just treat everyone great that’s it’s not possible you treat
People how how they treat you or or how they interact with the world and if I see someone grafting and putting the away in I go above and beyond to help them if you see someone slacking or [ __ ] not doing the work to ignore them or give them a kick up your ass
That’s that’s the nature so Rangers then you’ve ended up leaving then what happened with a gambling was that Rangers W it so it’s it’s an interesting Oneness and I’ve I’ve don’t think I’ve said this publicly so the Rangers one for me was as I say I’ve been saying
Stuff that was going to go wrong team changes I’m in the dressing room at Celtic Park and you know you walk the gaet out the stadium like like fa old Fame and it’s hostile it’s you know at this time there was still I think we had 1500 2,000 fans in it now they’ve
They’ve closed the away fans off sh stupid n no fans now well at this point there was still a bit of a crowd in so we’re at Cela Park and um I remember doing the warm-up and that and I said to you I I knew I was ready well I’ll just
Go back to my debut and I told you the teams night I T to foul I’m is that my name I go out for the warm-up me ass has gone the hero and the coward I’m [ __ ] myself do the warm up I’m all over the Gaff in the warm- up it’s not
You know your touch is not quite right everything you’re doing you’re getting away with it but like you know you’re just not in sync this is a the rebok for me debut and I go up the tunnel and my ass is still gone like have [ __ ] butterflies and
Uh can I swim here like this is the [ __ ] this is Sor swim this is match of the day tonight this is goals on Sunday in the morning this is all the papers this isn’t like the reserves are hard like this is the [ __ ] real deal here like this is everything you’ve
Worked for and you’re only going to get the one chance me ringing around yet and I remember going up the tunnel after the warmup nervous and remember sitting in the dressing room and I just remember thinking you’ve work your Co your C off to be here everyone who sacrificed for
You to be here you’ve done the trainning you hav’t CAU a corner you haven’t [ __ ] larged it you haven’t been in the nightclubs if you’re ever ever going to be prepared for this you’re prepared so just [ __ ] trust yourself when you get out there and a calmness just
Descended on me in the tunnel this is five to 10 to three I just remember looking around going [ __ ] there’s Robbie father grw up watching there Steve M like just remember this calmness and I remember going out in the tunnel and just being cold like cold
Clinical and I speak to people about it I’m like that’s the moment you know whether you [ __ ] build for the [ __ ] proper stuff or not like when you know when the chaos is there and you’re you’re going cooler calmer more calculated people usually speed up in that or and I just
Remember that the the feeling no one could ever pay me for like I’m a 20y old boy who doesn’t know what’s about to come who’s who’s wake for this moment and just the calmness of knowing I’ve done the work I’m as I’m as capable of being here as everybody because I’ve
Paid me dues I’ve paid the rent and I can’t wait to get out here and perform and as I say I went into the face team there and I never came out I never came out I stayed in there till uh the Celtic um Celtic mob grass me up with the
Betting account which was Paddy Power um in Scotland and then obviously got a one game ban in Scotland 18 month ban in England reduced to nine so so how that played out was and I’ll come back now dressing rooms so I’m CHR still clear Calm making me debut in the Premier
League at 20 when I’m in the dressing room at Celtic park for the old Fame looking around me thinking standards you know not where they need to be watching Mark War I’m an observer like I speak a lot but I also watch a lot I don’t miss much of I have an
Illness that I [ __ ] spot everything you mean know when you see someone acting a [ __ ] school and and before you know three weeks later he’s he’s someone sign his hand I seen if three weeks before and I’m like I should have nipped that in the bu there I’ve always
Had this incredible ability to predict the future because I’m very observant um so sitting watching feel frustrated at Rangers but I think I can change it I’d almost left just before the deadline when they said I had to sign lescott I put me body in front of lescott for the football club
Mainly because I knew he wen’t good enough he’ grass on me in the uh fa thing and I knew a physio who Adam at West Brom and I spoke to a Physio and he said his knees are dust don’t sign him and i’ we laid this up the food chain
And I said to warber I’m not sharing a dressing room with him so if you sign him I’m off dead straight forward but let me know cuz he’s a [ __ ] grass and I don’t play with grasses and he’s a PRI so and that was it i’ probably get on
With him fine now but at that moment in time that’s where I was at with jolian um so wton goes I’m not have a player dictating to me who I’m saying I’m not saying I’m not saying I’m not saying sign him don’t sign him that’s up to you
But if you sign him I’m out dead straightforward now I’ve been up to Scotland I’m going to be the best played in Scotland I’m the mar signing so this was the 30th or 29th of uh September the deadline is 31st in the mid of that Johan D just phed me and
Said look come back to Bley it’s not working get yourself back down year you right back in you shouldn’t have gone like our relationship’s grown stronger for the fact that I walked away and because I walked away and never uh took the financial is respect for me I think
Grew cuz he thought [ __ ] hell he’s a man of principle him like fair enough I that he hasn’t he hasn’t signed for the money or been uh thrown by the money so he’s phoning me saying come back you know War he he actually said to me war
Button’s not for you he said he he’s not your type of character you don’t and he was right he was right on that and I thought that was cuz he selfishly wanted me to stay up B make his job easier you know what I mean um and and then I get
Up there and as I say I’m in the dress room at telta Park watch loads of things and he’s walking around doing the team talk and knew the thing that had gone on with Andy all day and he’s in his suit and Rangers you travel away in suits sh
And TI and he’s shaking like a [ __ ] dog his hand shaking almost like he’s got like Parkinson’s or muron disease or something like he’s [ __ ] shaking and I just remember [ __ ] thinking how am I going into battle for you you [ __ ] you’re a [ __ ] Fanny your ass is gone
Here you [ __ ] [ __ ] yourself on the team your [ __ ] standards of [ __ ] and your ass is gone here and I just remember thinking I’m going to have to go out here and I’m getting me ass handed to me I knew I’d said I’m going to be the best player in Scotland and
Now I’m getting I’m just going to get covered in egg and if we get beat yet I’m getting it and for being a baggish um a bragging English [ __ ] coming off of the B border saying you’re going to be the [ __ ] main man this is I’m
Getting me licks here and I’m going to have to take it like a man so I’ve decided as we’re going out I thought this going to be tough this game but I’m not going to get sent off my standard is going to be Sky ey and Win Lose or Draw
Everyone on this pitch is going to is going to know and respect me after the game cuz all he wanted I think was for me to do something mad and get sent off that was the narrative so it was like this Tinder Box this Powder Keg was building between me and
Brownie you know the the famous thing with the an shake and that and I’d looked him in the eyes but they waited until moved past it looked down he G look he hasn’t even got the bollocks look him in the eye look how level with you if Scott wants to [ __ ] walk in
And you can ask Scott this we had a bit of a laugh as I said in the dress room I think he’s had a great career and he was a great player there was no there was no me and Scott Brown you know Rangers and Cela Football Club bigger than Joey
Barton scottt Brown this was Rangers and Celtic being back on the table north of the border which is for me the Scottish League for the first time because Rangers I don’t know what went on but you you don’t want if you if you’re Scottish football and you demote Rangers
To the fair division you ruin your own product they ruin the game in Scotland by doing that you know the football clubs cook the books of course they do all our big clubs do here look at all the now you need incredible lawyers to stop you you know as some of the big
Clubs in our country you’re fine now if you got the best lawyers then you don’t get any problems Rangers at the time was a bit of a mess and it should have been about Rangers and Celtic but they wanted to make it about the protagonists in the
Middle of that which was me and Scott Brown game gets played we’re right in the game he’s got the wrong team selection we’re right in the game we end up lose I think we’re two one down Phil sendross who I don’t think he should have played Phil he wasn’t fit enough
And he dropped Illy for Phil Phil sendos gets sent off jumps and Miss times Ed and balls it we’re down to 10 men they score 3-1 not long afterwards I end up playing middle Center back of a back three with James Sania right side Center back and Lee Wallace left side Center
Back both can’t defend V tofy both fantastic going forward really good attack and full backs but for defensive uh um qualities that they severely lack and I’m definitely not a middle Center back um against mus demell so the game ends up finishing and we’re right in the
Game at 2-1 at 3-1 they end up scoring a fourth and fifth quite late but that’s our back three you know we’re down to 10 and we lose 5-1 and and at the end of the game I walk around I thought now you [ __ ] come up giving
It the big you have to [ __ ] take your [ __ ] licks as a as a man I [ __ ] clapped all the fans shook every one of the Celtic players hands tot him well done look every single one of them in the face especially Scott we [ __ ] well done and I thought right that’s
Ground Zero now now the [ __ ] W begins now the venture to put Rangers back on the top of Scot his foot he begins you’ve had you come up and stay so the game finishes that Sunday night all my mates are off for the old Fame they all
Want to go out in Glasgow on the ale I’m like I’m not going out anyway I’m not showing me face in public we be [ __ ] 51 [ __ ] not going out so they’re all out and about I [ __ ] them all off Monday we off um oh sorry Monday we’re
Back in training so I’m thinking right we need to get in Monday because the job starts here you know that’s the first game I’ve lost in Scotland he what lost one game in Scotland that was it all the other games had W or or or drawn I only
Played seven or eight I think that was the eighth game so come in on the on the Monday thinking all right right enough’s gone wrong now now we can get Ken now the we don’t do that here excuse has got to wash cuz we’ve can see the goals from
Set plays in this game so we’ll come in Monday morning Mark and dve we were notorious for like every game you played did have an hour an hour and 15 minutes debriefing the game played [ __ ] cow and beefing the cup or piz head an hour and 15 minutes all the good and bad
Things that you done that was like you know that that’s their way of coaching so we come in on the Monday morning thinking right we’re going to get a nitty-gritty face de feat but it’s going to be blood blood guts and [ __ ] all the all the go but we need it because if
You want to overthrow Celtic you know that’s a team you’ve got to beat and we’ve just been [ __ ] shellacked by them in the first encounter that’s the first game after the semi-final where they beat them where they F he had the number again Brendan’s in town not
Ronnie Daria so we realize at this point [ __ ] hell this is a different entity this Celtic team is is is under a different theme coming on the Monday no meeting all right so there’s no meeting all right that’s weird that’s the first time that’s happened so it’s almost like the biggest biggest defeat
We’ve had they just pretended that hasn’t happened get out to train Andy all is not happy that he has he’s been left out the team he came on in the game but he came on with like 20 minutes ago or something like that so he’s fuming so
Training on the Monday morning James at Rangers football club was the best training I was ever involved in the morning after that old Fame cuz people were [ __ ] angry proud footballers were really angry about how their football team had performed and the scone that comes on yeah in that country
If you lose an all Fame and training was at the level I was used to in England cuz you’d have to train our above match intensity you can’t train below than expected turn on on the match day you might get away with that for a [ __ ]
Two three month period but at the level we play at you’ve got to be on it all the [ __ ] time so we play that game and um get in the training’s right on the edge it’s like you’ve been involved in them sessions where there’s a few tackles flying around but it’s [ __ ]
Right on the edge where it’s a good hard session both teams are going at it but like if the Shi bags in the group are on notice going [ __ ] hell this is one t away from a a fisty c you I mean it was it was right on that edge where
The best teams best teams had trained in best teams I’ve played in and been involved in knew and respected that little space if it bubbles over it if few years have to pull that back in and get in the middle of it if it goes under a few
Years after moan at each other or [ __ ] kick off to get it back in that zone but it was right in it it wasn’t this Mark wton [ __ ] Academy [ __ ] nonsense stuff that we’ve been doing passing off manans center overlapping and putting crosses in [ __ ] Academy you know
Nonsense now was hopefully going to be uh gone with say properly and the manager wton didn’t like it and stops the session halfway through because me and Andy are having it Andy’s on the opposite team and he’s pissed off he hasn’t been in the team and I’m on the
Other team and we’re going at it and there’s a few players on our team who were getting dragged along in it but me and him are really going alala and the managers I ask go cuz he thinks it’s going to kick off now me and Andy had a great working relationship I really
Respect him I think he’s a great kid cared a lot about the football club and I spent a bit of time with him away from the football arena because he’s he’s into his music and his fashion he’s he’s a good lad I’ve met him a few times in
Dub since with his misses he’s a CER so we’re sound we we we know it’s getting tasty but there’s no like it’s not going to boil over manager stops the session and goes right Lads we’re going to do shooting on the edge of the box here so goes down
And I’ve gone here I’m like what the [ __ ] this nonsense so now you’ve got Clint Hill taking a touch on you Ed the box and having a shot someone’s fizzing it out to him they just nonsense and I’ve just walked in I’ve just I just
Kept I didn’t even I walked down to the session what he was doing and I just kept walking I just went this is a load of [ __ ] this is a waste of my time and just started walking in and if you if you have you’ve been the Train the
Ground at Rangers so the staff thing’s on the second floor so as I’m walking in Frank M Partland who’s who’s sign me is looking out the balcony and I’ve just gone this manager is a [ __ ] clown and I’ve just walked in gone into the dressing room started getting changed
And I’m about to just go on so I’m getting changed the lads of stayed out doing this shooting session and [ __ ] Davey way walks in after about 15 minutes and goes to me uh manager wants to see you upstairs so I’m like why he’s gone he’s
Not happy the way you’ve uh spoken and the way you spoke to other players and um he wants an apology off you he wants to see you upstairs in his office now so I’m like I I respect Davey because Davey played for everon um under Moes you know
So I respected Davey’s career and he’s a good fell Davey I went Davey listen I need to go home here that that’s it’s not good for me to go upstairs cuz I think I’m going to [ __ ] say what a what a feel here and he’s G no no
He want he wants to see it I’m like no problem so at this point like I’ve had enough I’m checking out like and it’s I can’t play for this country I can’t play for this manag yet it’s he not for me so go upstairs this is as I said say the um
The Monday or the Tuesday after the thing go upstairs and go in he go so it’s me Davey and and WBS in the office and he goes yeah sit down so I’m sitting across the table he goes H I think you need to apologize to the
Players so I’m like what for H the way you spoke the way youve spoken to people in recent weeks the way you think it’s it’s not acceptable I said well look I’m not going to apologize to the to the other players he well I think you should
Well Mark I’ve just told you I’m not going to do that so are you going to force me to do it he’s gone no G well well it’s not happening then uh I don’t think I should apologize I’m trying to raise standards I want the team to be
Better I’ve come here to win leagues I’m the only person here who would think of play in the Premier League today there’s no one else in this team and there’s no one none of you could coach in the Prem otherwise you’d be there I’ve given up
Playing in the Prem to come and help Rangers get back to the top and all I’ve seen is and that’s it then I’ve opened up subpass standards B and I said to him look Mark with the greatest respects yeah I’ve been doing this since I’ve been consciously away you went off in in
In your teenage years and your senior years your 20s and your 30s to work in the banking industry in in London and with the greatest respect yet I’ve probably forgotten more about football than you’re ever likely to know like this is my vocation this is what I do professional football so when I’m
Telling you to do stuff that I know works in the Premier League environment and you’re turning around saying to me we don’t do that here that doesn’t [ __ ] cut with me cuz I’m out there in the arena like sat Sunday I’m out there getting me ass handed to me in front of
60,000 at Celtic Park and then getting ridicu by the old [ __ ] country and the reason that’s happening is because your training habits and the way you set your teams up uh uh uh ineffective and inefficient so if you don’t [ __ ] like that tough [ __ ] but I can’t leave because the deadlines passed
I can’t register for another club until uh the first of January so I’m trapped here do I want to play for you absolutely not cuz I don’t think you know what you’re doing but I’m here so what how do you want this to play out
I’ve just joined Lo lman so if you want you can just [ __ ] me off and I’ll just play golf at Lo lman every every day but I’ve come here to be a success and we’re now uh in incompatible he says a few things back I end that end up getting
After him a bit more and in his credit Davey W [ __ ] stepped up and tried to save Wars WBS just put his hands in his head and just stuck his hands on the table because I give it to him that tight and he had nowhere to go and to be
Fair to Davey and I’ll always respect Davey off the B of it Davey said to me who the [ __ ] have you played for what [ __ ] career have you had cuz WBS was getting it tight for not having a career now when you come for someone like me you better [ __ ] be Wikipedia because
Before I before I attack you have an argument with you I usually download you so I have gone online and I’ve looked on your M’s Facebook accounts I have seen all your cousins I come arm to you know I never go to a [ __ ] brawl unless
I’ve got um you know some solutions some solutions so Dave Dave pipes up he says who the [ __ ] have you played for what Crea had I said shut the [ __ ] up you I said you you’re a center half I said you didn’t even come through the system I
Said you went out to America and collegia football and then back door you didn’t come get to England till you were 28 I said and then if you remember where you turned up everon I’m an evertonian he played 5 four 4-1 you never [ __ ] moved off the 18 yard line in [ __ ]
Four years at Everton so don’t talk about playing Central Midfield Central midfielders as you know think we’re the best players because we have to have 360 degree view of the football pitch where for me goalkeepers are last pick in school changed a bit in the modern ER there Defenders are limited
Midfielders who actually can’t aren’t good Defenders are midfielders who aren’t good enough to play midfield so you go [ __ ] right back or left back you your right or left footed if you’re ugly and you read the ball and you don’t mind the Rough and Tumble Center half H
If you’re a [ __ ] sweeper and youd have a big area to go and do your scrapping but Center mids have to do everything forwards then at the flash flash at is quick score loads of goals get all the money get all the beds H Wingers are not good enough to score goals and
Players forwards and not brave enough to play center mid and and and um a little bit more skillful than the fullback so football for me he’s a dead simple game it’s the same as the school playground so me and Davy are AV it and as I say we
Have a bit of a ding- dongy k comes over the top and as I say I’ve got enormous respect for Davey um but at that point what’s coming out your mouth and that’s your manager an assistant manager I know there’s no way I can take back that
Stuff and what I’m saying is quite personal to him and I know I can just feel you know when you see a bridge just getting bands in front of you so I’m like but there’s no way I can continue this relationship is now untenable so I leave the training ground
That day um and I’m thinking all right me and the manager have had a full dingdong he knows what I’m thinking I [ __ ] give it to him tight by the way they give it to me as well you know we’ve we’ve had a war of WS but where
I’m from my culture that’s that’s a that’s a cleaning that’s a cleansing that’s a right we move on now we move past this there’s no grudges right men and men we’ve had our words and we move forward and I come out of that and he suspends me all right so he
Suspends me from the training ground waron for four days while there’s a club investigation based on what I’ve said in this office so Richard gof and a few senior people in the club John Greg so I just tell them what I said i’ said this
Is what I’ve said I just thought this is exactly what I’ve said so you can see them going [ __ ] hell he’s like half not wrong here so I’ve just owned up to it then I get a phone call on the Friday or Saturday to say and it’s warber and
Phones my agent and says listen you’re not going to believe this in the midst of me suspending him from the club and this going on the Scottish fa have contacted us and we’ve had allegations he’s got a bet account and and they need to investigate it so Wars then in the
Midst of me being off with the suspension phones me on this so I’m thinking a [ __ ] rers thrown me under the B here under the bus so as it turns out we played Celtic lost 5-1 Celtic if you remember played on the Wednesday or Tuesday night in the camp new against
Barcelona and I knew Celtic was [ __ ] based on our dist action with them even though the beat us the game was quite close the sending off massively changed it and we were massively underprepared and it wasn’t much in the game they were better than us no that they were ahead
Of us but there wasn’t loads in it there wasn’t certainly as much as what people felt then they were playing Barcelona so I’ve gone to all my mates listen this Celtic team is bang average they’re not as good as what they are cuz once I’ve had a scrap with you all played against
You I’m very good at nullifying you the next time now cuz I go all right that’s what he’s good at right don’t do that quite scheming in that way and play the game and go all right Celtic are ahead of us but it’s not insurmountable we’ll
Get it them but there’s loads of work to be done anyway I realized Monday Tuesday with Wars it’s not happening then I get the phone call Friday I think it was that the betting thing unbeknown to me me being me I’ve told all my mates I’ve said Celtic is sh they were playing
Barcelona I said they’ll get pumped so you had the over two and a half over three and a half over four and a half over five and a half goals on the be pad power markets so I’ve said Lump Lump Celtic to get pumped by Barca anyway I
Think Celtic beat Barca beat them 70 or 71 in the camp new and obviously i’ I’d had the bet on Barca on all the over goals and told all my mates to bear in mind this was Paddy Power who had had a working relationship with Paddy Power
For years where I’d been paid in betting count tokens and to to you know to do stuff for them speaking for them you know me and Paddy Power was the rainbow lest campaign me Stonewall and Paddy Power started that and obviously it’s been picked up by the Premier League now so
I’ve had these bets on Celtic Paddy Power and and when I think back to it I a bit of a conspiracy Fe this year but before I signed for Rangers or after just after I’d signed for Rangers I played in the BMW at Wentworth PJ and I
Got sat on a table with d m Desmond and JP who I think were major Celtic men and they were feeling me out in terms of you know who’s this cocky little country the [ __ ] so I end up sitting with them and then I go to I go to Rangers I
Have this bet and I’ve had this bet in account for say 8 years and there’s a whistleblower in Paddy Power who’s Celtic fan and you know I’m like so for me I’m like [ __ ] grass and bastard like who doesn’t have a 40 coupon it’s not like we were fixing games you know we’re
Having a 40 coupon like just seen the lad day T Ali like you know I grew up in a bet shop betting on horses and Rangers will beat Celtic or manu will beat Liverpool or Everton will be you know a coupon for me was what a Saturday afternoon’s fussy
Was about getting up your granddad he’d go to you know fly around a bet and shot me Grandad would come in with the Mirror Mirror reader and he’d have a couple of bet and slips and he’d be writing his horses out and his footy coupon and you
Had like your fre aways or you know and you’re checking in on tet text you remember the one you used to have like a stamp and stamp the pools yeahp theall was the [ __ ] spot the or something that was more today his money W the all spot the ball you peeled it
Off so I grew up in all of that but as I say you know pitchon toss at school you know I was’t really into cards I wasn’t really a card player never like play cards on the coaches and all that but game of Ed tennis for the five game of
Table tennis for the five game of FIFA for the like I I I if I play anything with you I have to compete there has to be a bet on it so I play golf for a five I play at the same intensity in the playoff final
I swear like I swear like I’m trying to win as much as I would be trying to win a playoff final if I’m playing for a five or a 10 or in on on a Saturday or a Sunday on a golf course because I just love competing and and it’s not about
The money it’s a more it’s more about the challenge of whatever the discipline is you’re doing it in whether it’s snooka pool golf tennis [ __ ] love all sports but specifically football and i’ owned and had lots of interes in resources and in the resource world I
Could bet on my horses to win I couldn’t bet on my horses to lose I could also bet on horses that I had information I me mates were jockeys and rid and more trainers are new but I couldn’t back my hor to lose in the race which is make
Sense so you don’t want in football we went from an era where we could bet on everything when I first started when I first out my be fair paty power accounts you can bet on anything and then they went right you can’t bet on matches in
Your league now you can’t bet on matches in if you’re in the cup and and that’s even if you’ve been knocked out then you can’t bet on anything so the the the the regulation was slowly ratcheted up over the course of my career but I just kept
Having a coupon in the background you know I’ve got a five team accumulated on a satday in France Italy Germany what the [ __ ] I got to do me I’m playing in [ __ ] England and it it’ been unchecked and I knew all Lads in the dressing room everyone was at it so and
Then everyone’s getting sponsored by gambling things we’re all getting uh money off gam they used to come to us everything you and say Here’s ,000 bet soans if you open an account with us or there’s five you know so it’s like it’s not like we’re taking performance and an
Some drugs or like they frown upon it but they’re not really going to ban us for having a 40 coupon [ __ ] low and behold you know due to the the you know the the Draconian rule set they [ __ ] you know tali’s going to miss a year
Foot here for what for having a [ __ ] coupon what did you get I got 18 month I got one match in Scotland they B me the Scottish fa were great and the Scottish fa cuz I left Rangers after it never ever thought I was going to go back to
Lon and te up for the for the investigation and remember tearing up with me lawyers and they were [ __ ] the lied that s up mainly because I give them the qos going no no you you have you have given me the charge and I’m not going to disrespect you by going [ __ ]
Scotland I’m never going back there I turned up and went you know fair cop I have had the BET account I explained it to them and they gave me one match I went to England and you know I’m Jesse James aren’t I in the fa’s eyes even
Though I’m a proud Englishman who wants England to do well you know the fa for whatever reason want me out of the game they want me out s and died if they could they’d get rid of me because I said say things that they don’t necessarily like hearing you know so
When they ban me for the gambling I wrote an article with a good Palama and alist Campbell and and took a bit of advice off a few people who know who who were creative and I wrot wrote um an article which forced the fa to relinquish the as they were Banning me
For 18 months they had a 12 million pound a season sponsorship for the England team with lad Brooks so I’m like you [ __ ] joking like how can you how can you be so Draconian in one and yet use are in bed with betting companies and you got all I’m like it makes no
Sense if gamblin’s no good for everybody and we’re not allowed to bet otherwise you’re ban us for that long will stop everybody stop the kiosk being at a football stadium stop the advertisement and but like fair enough I’m taking performance and Anon drugs you know I failed a nerone or an anabolic steroid
Test I get listen get him out the game he’s at it for having a [ __ ] football coupon you know [ __ ] s like what was it like retiring well I didn’t really retire did I so we got banned for that 18 months so in the midst of so we got a year in
Scotland signed for Bley went back to Bley trained with Bley November December played again for Bley first game backer scored against Southampton um was this after the ban no I didn’t get I got banned in Scotland for the game but that only lands in Scotland investigating I come back to
England play as I’m playing I have to fa it in about the and it’s going it’s getting uh protracted it’s dragging on in about the April I’ve got to go down to the fa I go down do a full day there I think that’s me last game the game
Before as it was the fa have put off the yearing so I can manage to play on the Sunday against man united so play against man united I think we lose 2-1 I should have took anony Marshal out he broke on a corner and and I thought I’ll
Get to him I could have whipped him up and a yellow card but I thought I’ll catch him and I didn’t realize how fast the [ __ ] was he [ __ ] accelerated away so my last memory my last regret is I should have [ __ ] tripped him up he ends up breaking passes to Rooney and
Rooney scores we end up losing the game 2-0 and in the midst of that the fa come back I thought I was going to get 6 months 3 months you know I had a footy coupon they’re like fs and teners you it’s nonsense they knew it w they Wen
Match fixing or [ __ ] throwing games they knew we [ __ ] spot betting or any of that they knew it was aad who had the 40 coupon me 10,000 40 bets or whatever we mixed in with 10,000 tennis bets Formula 1 cuz I’m a Aver sports fan I I’m a footballer with a disposable
Income I finished work at half two I’m coming in I love me hor racing I love me tennis I love me golf I love me Sports I’m single I’m sitting on the couch and I go I’m going to have a 50 Quid on that
AA you talk I’m going to have H 50 Quid on lead to be Castleford in the rugby league tonight not for any other reason and I just I’m watching sports anyway and I’d rather have a bit of vested interest on it they had all my accounts
I gave them every accounts he had Pros tall pros and cons I think I’d lost about over me 12 year 14 year cycle or whatever I think I was down 15 grand you know i’ put say 400 Grand away for bets on I was 15 grand down so we hadn’t even
Like it’s just a lad having a punt you know casual better um and they [ __ ] absolutely through the kitchen sink at me like they give me an 18 month ban and a 33 that was like a death blow for me you knew what they were doing on on appeal it was reduced
To nine because no Banner that they never were outside the president since I’ve being a manager they’ve they tried to get they’ve you know with the stendal incident they’ve they’ve helped the police in investigations which the fa should never be doing uh they’ve hacked our computers when we have Fleetwood
Started accusers of being racist on a couple of occasions so Do’s this uh thing in the fa that wants me out the game which is fine and I may well be out the game what they don’t understand is I’m way more dangerous to them out the
Game than they am in it in it they can control what I say out of it if I go on to YouTube or in the podcast space and bear in mind I’ve done the podcast I’ve done one series eight podcasts and it was number one on iTunes I decided it
Wasn’t for me that cuz I need to build stuff like I’d love to do what you do I’m natally inquisitive I can sit and talk all day but football’s my real passion James you I mean like I can do loads of other things but nothing turns
Me on and gets me at it than being in a football team what’s it like being a manager uh it’s for me if you can’t play you know playing the best there’s nothing better than playing you know you don’t have to look after yourself you know you’re the master of
Your own destiny in in many many regards and you know as a as a manager your Reliance upon everybody else you’ve got to get you know it’s not about you it doesn’t matter how good you are it’s a m it’s what you can get people to do for
You you know you you’ve got it inspired or or Mo of as or uh find you know the keys to unlock human beings to get them to do the best for themselves you know get them out their own way lot of the time um but again I think my skill set
Is as mad as My Life Journey’s been it’s probably prepared me more to excel in this space than it did as a player now it’ll take me a period of the time and I still don’t know whether management re I sometimes think am I going to be a
Manager CU When I look at a great indicated a future performance for me is always past performance so I’m an AED historian like I really enjoy geography and history and certainly history to to figure out what’s going to happen in the future I think you need to understand
What’s what’s happened in the past and um even at school they were me two favorite topics outside of PE like I was always fascinated with them um and then the next one was English language and English English literature I always excelled in just natal without even
Revising I had two BS in GCS and you know got 10 gcss without even [ __ ] thinking really and I was most of the time after them lessons I was building me world 11 football team or South American footy team or Italian best of you know that’s all we did and draw them
40 kits and planning what kits they’d wear and whether it was Nike or Adidas who be the sponsor and what stadium we’ play in and then going home and playing Championship manager and and then EA Sports bro FIFA out and playing that and then industry playing with your mates
And then going to Footy coaching and football football football and then Sky Sports it’s the Telly and match of the day and all like just football everywhere and then you realize [ __ ] me you can get I paid a few million quid to do this when I started playing I had to
Play for nothing I remember sitting in a science lesson thinking reading in the paper that’s someone was getting paid 10 grand a week and going [ __ ] hell how’ you even spend that not knowing anything about tax ni Insurance c i just like and then thinking with your mates going
Imagine you’re making you get paid 10 grand a week what would you spend yours on and then you’d get the Aros catalog out and you were going right I’d have that I’d have that you know just go that was the dream you could just open the Argos and just get whatever you wanted
If you made it as a player what’s your greatest moment as a football player uh I think playing for England you know to walk to to pull on your national team’s Jersey and and know that for that moment you’re in the best 11 in the country even if it’s because the lad
Who was the best is [ __ ] tired now and he’s coming off after 70 minutes at that moment you’re the best in in the country at what you set out to do what’s your biggest ret um biggest regret I don’t I don’t really have one you know if I’m honest with you I don’t
So I move through life just like I don’t really stay too long in achievement or mistake I just think like like even if you’ve been excellent here this challenge in front of you the next day the next challenge you know so that’s why when I went into AA and went into
Anger management and and I went into the AA meetings the powerless something where you powerless over something was big for me because I was a big megalomaniac in terms of this world rotated around me when I was younger and you’re on that hero’s journey of being a
Player and getting off a council state and all the palls of that and you create this me against the world mindset and then you have kids and then you do a bit of kind of psychological work on yourself with you know Sport and chance Peter K and it opens up a different you
Know chain of for in your mind and for me you know there’s loads of things you regret and you I I could be going back to being eight and punching someone in the face on the playground and I think I [ __ ] shouldn’t have done that you
Know I was a bit quick to go to guns there and um or you know a million different things I can think of you know kicking someone in a [ __ ] fishing pond you know with the fishing gear or just being a bully as a kid you know 10y old and um you know
Maybe a tackle where we losing in the game and I’ve done a tackle and someone’s end up rolling their ankle or breaking their ankle who’s a good lad and you know I’ve not really meant to do it but so there’s a there’s a million different things I I would go back and
Change but also all of those UPS downs and everything in between make sure who you are um and I and I do believe You’ have to make a number of mistakes some people have to make more mistakes than others before they get the [ __ ] together some people don’t have to make many
Mistakes and everyone’s different what’s your biggest life lesson you’ve learned been on this planet 40 OD years I I I think for me James it’s the more you know the more you realize you don’t know so the the more intelligent get you know you get this thing where you think you know
Everything and then when you truly meet people and you and you truly um let go of that ego you realize you don’t know [ __ ] much that [ __ ] St you’re learing all the time so for me like I life fascinates me like there’s so much I don’t know and so much to know and
People intrigue me like that’s when I was talking to you in the car I’m desperate to talk to you and say what the [ __ ] I had loads of questions for you you I mean I was going to ask you loads of questions but a you need to
Swit the so for me that like other people fascinate me and and and and and I think it’s because I believe and and this is just my life experience as I say the best footballer I ever seen the most talented finisher of a football I have ever saw on this planet that includes
Nicholas andelka Robbie Fowler Andy Cole Michael Owen like everyone I’ve seen up close and personal who we’ve played with Andre Pierre G in Mar L like was was Paul Taylor and Paul Taylor stuck the ice a in an anony Walker’s head and killed him because at 134 and 15 and he
Got into robbing cars and smoking and taking drugs and being up to no good and he didn’t have people around him to keep him on a straight and narrow Steve Highway was the Liverpool Academy director and he used to bring this kid in when he was 12 13 and 14 in the
School holidays to to be at Liverpool’s training ground when the first team were there to keep him out of trouble cuz he knew he was that talented but he knew he was from a mad um Family background and he he Ed the bootroom so went all the first without training he went in
The bootroom after about the fourth day he told his mates off the Estates listen this this lamp poost and he went in and he just [ __ ] threw all the boots over the first team players boots over the thing they’ve come in like where’s all the boots gone he’s like don’t know and
He he’s the best fif I’ve ever seen as well just seen him walk in shops just pick stuff up and walk out that’s incredible Thief um I have you ever seen a proper proper shli us to do shotting myself proper one like it’s incredible like a
Ghost so this kid was like that he was big for his age as I say he was two or three years younger than us and used to join join in with us and we were at clubs and he was way better than us like
He used to join in with us and not B Miss A Beat 12 13 14 and then just [ __ ] fell in with the wrong crowd and then started like doing stupid [ __ ] to that cool and he was a game c like and he could fight like f you mean he’s a
Good size and just that nonsense that bollocks became cooler him the footy and he didn’t have anyone around him just to pull him like I had me Nan me Nan just was there to keep me on the straight and nrow me half fell m a little bit but more so n
And you know he’ll never get out of jail him he’s he got a 23 re 25 re for killing he’s not done any the stuff you need to he might never get out he’s ruined other people’s lives he could have been the best Striker we’ve ever
Seen in this country he was that good James I and I like you know Talent when you see it like he was that good like EV everything that you need that and then I watched everyone told me Robbie F strikes the best ball everyone’s ever seen with the left foot purest finisher
Rob was incredible but he never he never hit him as clean as this fell he had an on air in accuracy whatever he at no used to just stick in the stanion no like remember the old net do used to just stick and he did like ex set
Missiles and the the amount of times I’ve seen seen him jam it in the stum where the balls stuck almost like Bey senori do you remember just senori or like Z was right footed but he reminded me of Senor like his left foot and usually people with a great left Peg
They have a sh right Peg but the left foot can be like a wand this was beyond that and as I say I I look at that and this why I always believe everyone’s capable of Brilliance you’ve got to get us people at a young age sometimes for
Some people when the darkness descends there’s no coming back you know I think pris and and society’s littered with that but I do think lots of people do have the ability to change they had to meet a [ __ ] good mate who stands on them or they meet a a wife who takes
Them or they meet somebody along the journey a boss at work someone a little bit older than them and and I think males massively benefit from having a [ __ ] male Mentor that they can look up to to go you know what I respect you you [ __ ] you’re a cool bastard and I’ll
[ __ ] listen to you cuz you’ve lived a good life I can tell by your your face and your conversation and you can stop St me making some of the mistakes and give me a few shortcuts in life and I’ve been lucky I met Peter Kay when I was 23
24 changed my life incredibly incredible man he passed away when I was 28 29 and six weeks later I met Steve black and I had I met black he at 19 I I think I the captain England like I don’t think anything would have stopped me because
The mindset and the and the behavioral patterns and the way was like he just couldn’t have helped beating an incredible uh uh exponents of whatever potential you had he just he made you believe you could be the best in the world not just like [ __ ] not like
Nanny Pammy he’d explain it to you and then because he give you in common sense you were like oh actually yeah I I actually should be able to do that like not like that’s not for me and and I say to you I travel through the world now
Even when I see homeless people and wrote a column for the big issue Etc always stop and TOS them and buy one off them because I’d written for them and how what how’s your day being and you know they might go they might take that
Money and go and have a [ __ ] toot or whatever but that’s not my bag it’s not my problem that’s still doesn’t mean I can’t have a civil conversation with them smile up and say how are you and and just be civil for 15 seconds it’s
Not hard to do and in the world we live in that’s lost cuz people are more interested in whether you click for a like or yeah it’s crazy it’s backwards where do you go forward for the future Joey what you get planned I don’t know I’m like you I don’t really I don’t
Really chart the course I’m just like you know like Life’s good life’s you know you’ve got your head your head on you got good people around you I’ve got a good good family good friends um I’m work in a in an industry I want to work
In it it annoys me from time to time CU you know I’m one of the few people who is a master as his craft in terms of time spent and you know people turn up and tell me how to do my job better like I you know I don’t turn up to an
Electrician and say you [ __ ] plug you could have done that better but my industry everyone knows a better team selection or a better passer should have played or a you know you you know so but on the flip side of that we get compensated there fantastically well
Financially to to do a a hobby because that’s what football is you know if You’ have said to me as a as a kid on on the council state in St John’s at 12 listen you’re going to be a footballer and you’re going to be doing a podcast with
James English at 41 and we’re going to give you 00,000 for those 20 odd years i’ gone [ __ ] sign me up w 100 I love that now obviously it it’s paid me back in in a completely different space to that and you know my true call and I think now is to to
Help people not make the mistakes I’ve made so that I think we’ve got to you you’re the same you’ve got to help put good [ __ ] in the world now if they your kids that’s easy because you love them in the day and that’s that’s your job
But also what wouldn’t it be great like if you could do that for other people as well like Steve black done for me and Peter K done for me and countless others and great youth youth work has I had in the community centers on St John’s
Estate Dave when I was a kid you’d get all the kids in the mini bus and go come on and [ __ ] take us to white man damn canoe cuz he knew if we stayed on the estate we’d be [ __ ] robbing cars or getting in mischief and he’d give up his
Thursday or his his his his uh Tuesday uh evenings to take us for the game of table tennis or a game of five aside or to a FY tournament just to keep his out of trouble was he getting any [ __ ] doe for it no but he he knew just these
Kids are [ __ ] good kids and if if I showed them a different way hopefully a few of them will turn out all right some turned out doing you know half of that group is killing killing and mured or been killed selling drugs and half of
That group some of the lads have got out and had to go and if it isn’t for these great examples or good examples people think everyone’s got where they’ve got on a shortcut or that they’re Mega talented nobody’s [ __ ] Mega talented everybody’s a prime uh total of the
Weight that they put in on a daily basis you want to be the best stamp collector in the world you [ __ ] can be it’s easier now in the modern world to be a world class person because you got these smartphones you go on YouTube now you
Got a global audience when I was a kid you only had the morning papers and the local [ __ ] paper that came around there was no [ __ ] social media or YouTube or you want to be the best if I want to I get into garden and I’m I’ll
Go through phases where I’m into Ray M for like six months and I’ll buy [ __ ] all garden and um all hunt and stuff and be in the backyard trying to make a [ __ ] fire out of a [ __ ] splint and all that you know what I mean I’m just like dead
I need to I need to understand stuff you mean or out to like catch rabbits in snares and I went through a a space misses like oh this another phase you’re going through where I’m thinking about breeding like perig Fons and getting an Avery in the backyard and she’s like
Don’t don’t this is another six Monon fat or a year fat that you’re going through where you get into something you know Jujitsu whatever it is I get into because my mind’s very active and I needed to be uh working all the time otherwise it gets into stuff that is not
Productive you know I can very easily with my addictive personality get into uh stuff that’s bad for you so I have to constantly focus it on stuff that I know is beneficial for me as a person or people close to me so we get into um these little these these different
Spaces where and and I got it from George jison like me granddad’s Beetle favorite Beetle you know everyone’s Paul or um John my grandad’s favorite be was George jison and he you know my granddad I was lucky got me into kind of Bob Dylan all
You to have Bob Dyan on tapes you know desire and um all the old albums like so I you know grew up and you know you forget how influential pop stars and sports people are you know Muhammad Ali and I said to you before custom art like
There’s such an Eclectic vision of these influential people all around us and you know my granddad George jison and and he said people are always telling you not to change and you know the Beatles are arly going to be the biggest thing that’s ever come out of Liverpool ever
No matter who comes afterwards no one’s going to be the Beatles and George’s approach was when people say you [ __ ] changed that’s a badge of honor you should try to change as much as you possibly can to be a completely different version of the person that you
Was you know add all these different tools to your tool kit if you can speak a foreign language [ __ ] speak it as you’ve seen with me par Vu but you know what I mean like people say don’t try and play the piano don’t do that don’t like they’re always
Telling you like my C advisor you [ __ ] Camp I’m like [ __ ] off who are you working a [ __ ] Council States for anybody watching Joy who’s maybe want to be something friendly footballer artist tennis player what advice would you have for them work at it all the time work at it
Absolutely all the time like make it the pure reason that you exist you know you you can’t half ass a leap performance if you want to be a footballer because you’re going to get a Lamborghini and you’re going to get a load of page free
Beds and a load of money stuffed in your pocket you won’t get it you you when the tough moments come and the injuries and the loss of form and the setbacks and the [ __ ] nights and you’ve got to get your ass off the couch or your mates are
Going out because there’s a 17 18 19 year old Beed babysitting and there’s a party and there’s a bit of Charlie knocking about and if you don’t love the game and you AR for the purest reasons that that that bad wolf that voice will that’ll be that’ll be loud enough to to
Capture your attention if you truly want to be something and you set your goal to it like the world has for me it’s never been simpler to be an elite level performer in the world if you want to be a podcaster you can become the best in
The world you know whether you’re from Glasgow or [ __ ] Los Angeles you know if you want to be a stamp collector if you you want to collect [ __ ] action figures or ComiCon like it’s just there for you now there’s no excuse if I want to learn as I said to you getting into
Gard or I go right I need to plant this tree YouTube bu right now now within 15 minutes after watching a tutorial a video I can find Monty done and before you know what I know to plant uh a tree like an expert I
Couldn’t do that when as a kid I had to go to the library check in get a book read the book come back home try and apply that now you’ve got an encyclopedia a library at you think finger tips um don’t listen to anyone all these people who tell you what to do
And and who to be and how to behave [ __ ] who are they like you’ve got to be your yourself you know the difference right and wrong you know when you’ve done something that’s wrong you know when you’ve you’ve cheated yourself which is the worst thing um and if
You’re prepared to cheat yourself well you’re going to cheat every other [ __ ] around yeah cuz if you [ __ ] let yourself down you have to I always said and I remember there’s two things that happened to me James where where I my mindset just flipped over like Co was
Huge for me in terms of I I studied as say history I always thought how did the Nazis end up doing what they’ve done and Co made me realize very easily like just to see how people behaved and what they got up to I was like [ __ ] hell I
Didn’t think we could do this but we are crackpots and then as I say you grow up with you know the the things that happen to you and you end up just being a pariah by you know behavioral patterns or yeah he’s a bad guy he’s a bad you
Know bad actor in The in this in the show his nonsense of football and um and then what happens is from a distance Natalie I wanted to fit in I wanted the papers to like me I wanted people to like me CU we all do I want to be in
With the In Crowd but I’m not allowed in so I’m over here and in the end You observe them and you think they’re [ __ ] nuts Who Wants to be well thought of or well likeed by these they’re all [ __ ] nonsense pretty much you know they’ve all been
But you know up to no good or you know the veil of the nice guy exterior has been lifted and I’m sitting over here just laughing me bollocks off going [ __ ] hell who who wants any part of that and again all these people um are these people who are exonerating
That they’ve never made a mistake and that they’re this perfect person and family people and I’m like my experience of life is every everybody’s flawed um everybody’s talented brilliant in the same thing and it’s your job not their job to tell you it’s your job to
Find out like a treasure hunt with every person now if that’s your mindset think of how many good Treasures you’re going to uh find on your journey if your mindset is you’re the man and you’re better than everyone and everyone’s a silly [ __ ] and you’re just [ __ ] you
Just joy into to have them off at some point or [ __ ] you know get in a position of power and be their boss then life’s tough life’s life’s really hard and I there was two things that happened to me there’ been an episode and I’m getting the [ __ ] down the banks from
Everybody and you know the [ __ ] calling for me to be lynched in the Tower of London because I [ __ ] told someone to [ __ ] off or give someone a [ __ ] crack or something you know the aeria that goes with being a footballer and I was walking my dog through uh a
Graveyard so I remember walking through the this graveyard and I’m reading the headstones and it was like Brian Smith died age six 62 loveing father loveing husband Bo goes to the next grade [ __ ] R [ __ ] Johnson or whatever know it’s loveing mother loveing left by
So after about a 74th gravestone a red I just remember thinking where do all the [ __ ] get buried cuz everyone in here is [ __ ] sound loving father Ling husband and the world as I know it there’s loads of Pricks most people are [ __ ] pricks rather than sound so is there a separate
Graveyard for them where did where did they get buried where did to go and then it had the thing of people only remember you how they want to remember you either favorably or you know and then within two generations no country members you know put put [ __ ] flowers on Your
Grave you know their kids kids look at you on a photograph and you know you as a thing you you’re all all your medals and all your it’s gone no one gives a [ __ ] no one cares now if you’ve done a great job and you’ve you’ve done the
Right thing you’ll still be having an impact on them people people them children will be getting an education or have principles or have behavioral patterns in the life that you instilled through through force of nature in your life that your kids wanted to be like you and their
Kids want to be like them which is a in essence the the KY you get a you you get it for you live forever great people live forever Steve black will live on forever through me Peter K will live on forever through me and I will impart my
Wisdom on everyone I meet to say these were great men this is what they taught me so they in essence by being a good [ __ ] not not the billions by being a good C you live on forever you can probably remember the people who had a
Huge influence on you as a kid you can’t remember what they’ve said or but they you can remember how they made you feel that might be someone just having your back a teacher maybe not [ __ ] coming down on you like a ton of bricks that he
Could and make you know I had Mr Mitchell in ask good he just he just let me off for a little bit he he understood I was a bit of a to rag but I had a good art and he’d give me a bit of a joggy
And I can’t ever remember anything that I done but I remember thinking he’s [ __ ] all right him and and in his lessons I give him way more than I give any other teachers because I thought he was all right and black used to always say to me people can’t remember um
Anything other than how you made them feel like I think back now of games I’ve played in managers coaches I can’t remember them but I can remember certain things that happened and how it made me feel and and the reason that is is adrenaline and that nervousness tattoos
Stuff in your mind yeah definitely so you can’t forget it Joy boy listen it’s an absolute pleasure to have you on today brother I think that’s one of my longest podcasts about [ __ ] 4 hours is H would you like to finish up on anything no mate I’ve really enjoyed as
I say I think I could sit I’d love to sit and ask you a few questions genuinely any time yeah listen unbelievable career like I say you you’ve been [ __ ] hounded by the press and listen rightly all with some many the [ __ ] you’ve done but you’re still it
Mate you’ve changed your life you try to see the world different you’re try to educate people as well it’s a beautiful thing but would you like to finish up on anything no mate I I really appreciate it as I say You’ you’ve um you’ve been smacking Ted and I’ve been watching you
Grow from a distance honestly like I feel like I’ve known you for a long time in terms I’ve going go on lad and then gu and go on and again you know for me I I I always I’ll always listen to a podcast about 20 30 minutes I’ll put on
A timer especially when I’m in Bristol and I’m not with my wife I’ll bang a podcast on I’ll fall as sleep to it used to do that as a kid with the Telly but I do it with a podcast now and honestly the amounts of guests you have I go
Through it I go how the [ __ ] he ended up with [ __ ] this fell David he ended up there and then G like keep smashing it head best I look forward to see what you do
21 Comments
This Episode is sponsored with fireaway pizza https://fireaway.co.uk/ use discount code James20 for 20 percent off in any of the 150 stores around the uk.
Interesting character tbf.
WHAT AN ABSOLUTE WEAPON IS JOEY…. SHAME THAT THE BOY CLOWN'S LIKE HIM GETTING A VOICE IN PUBLIC DUE TO CLOUT CATCHING…….
Great Man great interview,thanks.
Class interview
Joey Barton 7 was my first ever shirt , Newcastle 10/11 I believe
As a Celtic fan I always hated joey Barton especially when he went up to Glasgow on that side, a lot of it was because of the media and all the flashy newspapers. After listening to this at work it makes you think how bad the media portray people.
The fam and I watched most of the joe show. 😂 ffs brilliant.loved it.Articulate young man, I hope he doesn't join a political party ! Hats off James.
Get joey boy back on for part 2 100% that was banging
That was banging man proper heavy 🔥👌🏻🔥👌🏻🔥
1 hours and 12 mins in and still going haha never liked this guy but really grown on me
squeaky wee fandan fook listening to him aw nite razor blades needed attention seeking at its very best and shite at football
2:05:23 Barton calls his vermin brother's racially motivated brutal murder of a defenceless kid ""a scrap""
Biggest liar in football
I'm 33 years old and watched football since a young age and obviously knew the stories like everyone else did about joey Barton, but after watching this I can say my opinion is not what it was! What a top man! Great podcast 👍🏼
Imagine Joey after a couple of patsies. Even the taps in the kitchen would start to cry through boredom..
I've waited my whole life to meet a bloke on my level, and until I meet joey that still stands, I worshipped him at Newcastle and as proud geordie and still do what a bloke man
Fell asleep at the begining .. Just woke up anf theres STILL 2 an half hours left..
put more of your personality into your ads James, you talk like you've got a gun being held to your throat. Loosen up champ!
Am gonny get bummed here 😂😂
Top lad Joey