DON'T WORRY, I CAN MANAGE

Furious pigeon has spoken to the foot-soldiers and now it's time to speak to the general...Player/Manager James Walker.

From the moment we began talking it becomes obvious that James Walker is a down to earth 'player's manager', which there are not enough of in football today: "I'm sure that it helps that I play every game and the lads have an affinity with me, I watch them, I play with them and I understand them. I love the coaching job and I'm so grateful for it since I recovered from a broken leg in 2006." That injury almost ended Walker's involvement in football but that fractured tibia was the 'big break' that the brummie gaffer needed: "Two months back into playing and I was given the managers job from Mathew Cross (with whom Walker used to play) and eventually I started 'JD-Lions' as a rival to Cross's Bryan Munich and took Richie Summerfield with me and I've never regretted it."
Walker cites beating his former club, along with his team-mates with Richie Summerfield and Dave Sorensen, as his most memorable moment as a player and manager: "Oh, it was absolutely great, so satisfying considering they'd had the better of the derby games prior to that night. Dave, Rich and myself go back over twenty years so, for us, it was a great feeling and then 'Bryan' as a club fell apart that week and are now defunct. That was a shame because we all love a derby match, if we win it!"

Winning a derby match is all well and good and may sound as though Walker has been starved of success, far from it; as a youngster Walker was involved with the highly successfull with Vora Lions FC winning a six-a-side trophy handed over by Doug Ellis, the owner of Aston Villa who Walker has supported his entire life, idolising David Platt. Walker has many great memories from his school team Colmers Farm (now 'Colmers'-a bit like Emmerdale!) and won they league with Frankley however missed out on a cup final win due to his age, despite having scored the winner in the semi-final! "Yeah, that still winds me up even today, red-tape won that year but I'd done my bit."

Walker's only real achievement with JD was gaining promotion with JD-Lions from division five just over a year ago and believes that the only way is up: "We've been treading water for twelve months due to signing new players and galvanising the squad but now that I know my group of players, their strength's and weaknesses I believe that this season we can get into division one which is where this club belongs. Carlos and Dandy are free-scoring and we don't have many problems at the back, Richie Summefield is always the first name on the teamsheet and I've sorted out the revolving-door which was our goalkeeping position. Dave Sorensen, Slater and Swannick are as reliable and determined as ever, we just hope that Steve Harris can recover and we will give ourselves the best opportunity of getting promotion."

FAN'S E-MAIL'S
What would be your all-time six-a-side team to play at Birmingham University leisure leagues if you had a 'Roman Abramovic Time-machine'? Tom, Slough
1.Schmeichel 2.Maldini 3.Cafu 4.Zidane 5.Messi 6.Shearer

Who is your favourite 'JD' player? Paul Slater, Birmingham
Don't have a favourite player, it's like if you have children you love them all equally.

Who has the best haircut out of all the 'JD' team? Paul Slater, Birmingham
Certainly isn't Alex Dandy.

Is it true that you turned down the England job? Carl Taylor, York
I applied for it but I didn't like the hours so I withdrew my application.

James Walker's autobiography: "A 'Walk' in the park" is available from WHSmiths and Waterstone's priced £7.95 (which is a bit steep considering all of the spelling mistakes over a mere 127 pages)