This interview appears in the latest edition of Sport
magazine. Download the free iPad app here.
Follow on Twitter @SportMagUK
“I wasn’t the toughest of kids when I was younger,” admits
Southampton’s James Ward-Prowse. “I needed a bit of help and a kick up the
backside.”
That kick came from National League South side Havant &
Waterlooville, where Ward-Prowse’s dad sent him for some extra training sessions
while he was at the Southampton Academy. He
was just 13 at the time. “It chucked me into the man’s game at a very young age
and made sure I manned up for the journey ahead,” he says.
Some eight years on, Ward-Prowse is the one providing
helpful advice, albeit with fewer profanities and bruising tackles. We speak
with him after he’s finished taking questions from youngsters at a school in
Southampton.
The 21-year-old is happy to call on his own experiences in
his answers. “I’m lucky enough to have had great support around me,” he says.
“So it’s nice to be able to try and do the same for others now.”
