Right, here we go. James. Yeah.
Managed to squeeze into a club track so you can get a good
very much, right? So we've got three balls here. Yep, each to
replicate three of your best goals
for the best free kicks in your career.
All completely different techniques that will go
through, go, through all that,
you're obviously make it look ridiculously easy working at
the top left hand corner, I don't. So that's why I'm here.
So, let us see that how that goes,
first of all. So the, but the whistle goes, it's in your range.
What's your first thought is there that sort of hit of
adrenaline, that, that butterflies, that, ya know that
That you're right. I think the first thought is to kind of
keep yourself you know, level because you don't get too
excited, we don't get too many free kicks or when
the opportunity comes about
it's obviously a good chance to score. So
not getting too carried away.
Just calming myself down and
getting ready to take it
great. So let's let's talk through your routine. Yeah.
Also that expectation. It's such a dramatic moment, isn't
it? You sort of hear a murmur a bit or even go a bit quiet. It
feels like a standstill a little bit. Yeah, I think so
either. You know, the games played at
such a high speed that when it comes down to A Moment Like
This, where the game slows down completely, I'm in control and
I can, you know, dictate
how the game goes in a way. So
it's a nice feeling and I think, the more I've scored,
there's more expectancy on on these free-kicks now,
which is a good thing.
And I thrive under that kind of pressure
or trousers,
hang up. Another Free kick here.
That's the guard is
still just behind if he could go for power
but it's ward-prowse it strikes it again.
James Ward rounds is absolutely Sensational.
Okay, so first one, as the Miller away, your second of
the game, you'd already worked it into the top left-hand Corner.
Yeah. We picked this one because
a lot of up and down it's obviously quite close in. Yeah, so
first of all, what's your routine? I notice you bounce
the ball. So just yes, talk us through that. Yeah, so just
somehow developed switch. Just hold the
Nike tick facing up
wherever the referees
sprayed. The And it bounced it twice
and have the nightstick facing up and then kind of
set myself here and get ready
and then it kind of a 45-degree angle, just four steps back
and then I just kind of shuffle my feet and just kind of get
get comfortable in a way. I know Rafa Nadal does a lot of
his his his. So it's better. That I just feel like I have to
kind of. Yeah, set myself and then one more look and
then I know where I'm going to put it, and then I just step up
and do it. So, not bothered about the wall at all, the you
Looking at that kind of thing. Normally, I just look and see,
four or five, six foot plus, guys, and I think it's going
to be tough. But,
yeah, I just feel confident in my technique knowing that if
I execute it. Right. I can't, I can score and let you have a go
in a minute, but Yannick was trying to get this one off. You
was the Yannick Vesta. God. Yeah, I think he got get a bit
carried away because I'd
already scored one and I think he fancied one and
he was wanting me to
lay off for him to smash it. But
yeah, I said to him, look mate I feel so confident. I think
I can do it. Absolutely going to give us a go.
No pressure.
There we go. I mean should we finish that? I'll tell you that
one.
Did they do do that? Well that's got to be it as
the okay. Yeah here's where I make a fool of myself. I know Garden
but your birthday wasn't it that day as well? Yeah two
goals for Tori Winn. Yeah
I mean this is definitely just to show you that. That isn't
easy so not
oh dear.
It's alright Ming's. I have timing didn't jump out of in
it. There we go.
Well, have to be in exactly the right spot here. Because
James ward-prowse
and Bertrand are both very handy from here.
Smart money would be on ward-prowse
and that
pick this one because it's, yeah, Manchester United away.
Yeah. A bit further out. Uh-huh.
And
I wondered first of all, whether this was almost your
perfect angle and maybe distance. Yeah. I mean it was
quite far out. I think compared to the Aston Villa one. That
was a lot closer. So I kind of had to really get tops pinions
head over to that one.
Really get topspin in the Aston Villa 12. Yeah, to get it up
and down whereas this one was a little bit further out. So
I had a little bit more
room to get the ball down the other side. So it needed
a little bit more power and obviously against the hey, oh,
it's
incredibly difficult anyway and obviously, you know, big Idol
of yours David Beckham. He's
stuck one in that top left at Old Trafford hundreds of time.
Yeah. Does that make it more special for you? Yeah I think
because growing up watching Beckham and seeing him doing it
a number of times there it felt a bit special and
Remember talking to Ryan Bertrand, and
we were just saying about,
you know,
just replicating. What you're doing, your mom and dad's
Garden. It's what I did relentlessly as a kid. So,
yeah, just forget the noise, forget the environment and just
just do what you've always done. Okay, let's give it a go.
Then
you follow this one up.
Oh,
you got to be happy with you and just lower that have been.
All right? I mean
for that one, for instance, the Beckham so much front arm.
Yeah,
he almost kind of Lent backwards in there and then
I just looked at you, then there's quite a lot of
parallels with that. Are there, similarities differences? Yeah.
I think there's a few. I mean he's more stationary when he,
when he strikes the ball is more laid back. Like
you said, whereas I'm kind of
the opposite way, I tend to come over the ball to try and
generate some Top Spin to get it down. Other side. So yeah,
I just tried to copy his look how mean he was. He was the guy
I knew growing up. Everybody
idolized him and the way that he
went about his work so
since and everything no no I
wasn't, that was a great all over at one point just
you know did the old back and I think I might have had
a Mohican at one point,
wore the boots and and try to copy them in all those ways.
And obviously, he's the
target 18 free kicks,
is that in your mind at all? I mean, I know he's a childhood
hero and yeah, I think it's starting to to, you know, to To
creep into my mind but
it's still six free kicks to go. And that's that, you know,
that's a lot of free kicks. So
yeah, fair play to him and hopefully I can hopefully I can
reach him. I haven't met him yet. Have, you know, I know.
But
yeah, it would be nice to hopefully meet in one day and just
yeah, just to meet such an idol of mine. Growing up would be
nice. I'm expecting to walk in. Now if you do, I'm really
sorry. I'm A-Okay
him down next time apart instead of me,
right? I've got to have another go here. Yes. Go on. Then sorry
about that. Maybe you can tell me what I'm doing wrong.
He knows. Dying or trying to go anywhere? Yeah.
Oh, not bad. You get new for the Over the Bar, get new from
the crowds, not too bad.
Just a little bit too far out for for ward-prowse
supporting fancies it for a while. I was about to say
because he might actually have a crack here
at this late stage
but she did
This
has been James Ward browser. Now there's another example,
right? So this one, this one, to me,
personally, I've never seen you do this before. I didn't even
know you had it in your locker.
You told me off-camera that you were actually practicing it
the week before. But I mean,
did you really think that far out that it was, you know, it
was it was a likely. Yeah, I mean, when it was awarded,
yeah, everybody was a bit.
Annoyed during the game, you know, we're to know down away
from home, it wasn't really a cross in position.
I didn't really want to play out wide or just thought I've
got nothing. Nothing else here apart from having a dig. So
yeah, technique a little bit but it was mainly just just,
you know, trying to hit the target and trying to give
myself a chance to score. Okay, well let's give it a go and to
me this is interesting because it's a completely different
technique
tell us about it. There's obviously the valve that you use.
Yeah, there's a clip of me trying to find the valve and
I was trying to find it in. On my inner and outer do but
I actually couldn't find it in the end. They're really hard to
find on these balls so I didn't actually hit the valency
so there's a first but
yeah there's no no real sort of technique. In this one, it was
just more of a swag just whack it and
give it a go as interesting to hear because you know, with
Ronaldo there was all that chat about the valve and you see
Marcus Rushford going over. Yale, Gareth Bale did it as
well. So
quite simply for all those Sunday League football is like
me, is it just whack it? Yeah, no. I mean, I think maybe
a little bit more technique than just whack But
yeah, I like I said, I've been practicing a few during
the week and, you know, messing about with the lads and I just
thought, you know,
the old adage is, if you don't shoot, you don't score and
I thought, you know, there's nothing to lose. Worst case it
goes over the bar. But
yeah,
so go viral found. Let's just pretend I'm not on the spot
again. I mean, this one, I mean this one I don't feel like I've
got my routine or technique to like,
you know, replicate
but yeah, we'll see what we do. So give it a go.
Oh, I tell you what.
Not too bad, not too bad. It's okay. One of them again. So
this is where I
pulled my hamstring.
Yeah. And we get the ambulance in
what I call the physios on standby.
I can't not give it a go. So yeah. I think that's a bit
closer so we give it there. Yeah
I feel with these ones you just got to channel your inner
an alder. Everybody's done. The
give it that really just need to just have a go with it. You
never no idea, right?
Little Shuffle.
Whoa. Oh, not bad. That some Target decent effort. That
so I mean,
maybe when you started, hmm,
when you kicking hundreds of balls and I know used to
practice all the time when you're a young lad. Yeah, tell
us about it now. Are you
sometimes trying to replicate a game situation? Is it about
less rather than more? Yeah, I think I've just tried to Define
my practice a bit more into more pressure on
the situations. I find myself in because we don't get many
free kicks. There's no point taking loads. In training, you
know, we might get one or two every five or six games. So
it's how can I replicate my training to make it more
pressurized and more, you know, specific in these areas and
I've found that definitely helped me
and I mean we all love them. Don't, we were obsessed by
all the media ask you about your free kicks, all the time.
There's that real drama isn't there. What is it about it?
That kind of captures the imagination to do. I don't
know. I think, like I said,
it's really powerful and away, you know, the game so quick and
as a lot going on, and it's is a time when the Game Stops, and
it's in my control, and I really enjoy that. That
and it's a great feeling, you know, the one who scored
against Spurs at home, and we won the game.
When you can execute a skill that you've worked really hard
at to help you, you know, your team win the game. It's there's
no better feeling than that. Okay?
I want to bring blue Karin Lucas, you don't mind doing
a little star, this is the real star Luca.
So them to an academy star under nines scored an absolute
unbelievable free Kick the other day. Luca, how much
inspiration did James give you for that piano?
That's yeah, yeah, another player.
James. So let's talk through that goal because I mean when
you saw it, did you think hang on a minute? This is
quite ridiculous. Yeah, when I saw the clip with always, who's
this here, who's here saying and I thought I'd scored
the best goal of the month and then Along Came Luke with his
strike. But
yeah, great technique. And
it's something that I've only done in the last few years to
perfect the technique but Luke has done at the age of eight.
So
yeah, it's an incredible start and I'm sure he's going to be
hopefully,
you know coming in to break break the next record, either
mine or Becca. And who knows? But yeah, I was going to say,
you might be taking the ball off you. Yes. And
revisit you in a few years time, and
yeah, we'll be doing the same,
right? It's bit of a surprise. We got to do it, Luca. Do you
think James can score the same free-kick that you smash in
the top left? I don't know.
So I think it was probably
But you're working towards.
Yeah you can choose Luka. You choose Mewtwo's guys around
I would say probably about.
Oh yeah, yeah that's nice.
Right. So I'll go first. You lie.
Yeah.
I don't think I've ever School bum from this side.
What do you think the car got? Charles. I'm going to the top
left on. Oh yeah. Yeah.
Not channeling. My inner and outer. I'm channeling
in a luka. In a looka. Here we go.
Would you like
rubbish? Yeah. Hopefully you hit the wall that one.
So, right. Luca, your turn.
Let's
see. You give it a go.
I want to see you all routine as well. Look at everything you
do.
Do you know what? How many yards out it was? Your free
kick. Nah,
just put in the top Corner. Then that's it. That's what you
need to know.
Well, I'm
very good. Well played great effort. Luca, thank you, James.
That was a really fascinating insights. A the skill,
the Arts are free kicks. Thank you so much. Luke Armstrong in
to see you. And it's a d'ampton shirt and the future smash it
into the top corner.
So thank you very much to both of you. Thank you very much is
cheers. Thank you.
Nice to meet you. Look at