Reece James Set to Start England World Cup Opener as James Siblings Make National-Team History
Updated
Updated · BBC.com · Jun 10
Reece James Set to Start England World Cup Opener as James Siblings Make National-Team History
3 articles · Updated · BBC.com · Jun 10
Summary
Reece James is expected to start at right back when England open their World Cup on Thursday, putting him on the biggest stage yet for the James family.
Lauren and Reece James have already become the first brother and sister in the modern era to win senior England caps, a milestone their father and longtime south-west London coach Nigel James called hard to believe.
Nearly 25 years into coaching in Wimbledon, Nigel said his academy is built around enjoyment and development, not only elite pathways, and has also produced Coventry City's Jack Rudoni plus players who went on to Cambridge and Oxford.
Sport England-backed campaign Play Their Way uses that approach as a model, arguing fun-first coaching matters as about half of children do not play enough sport and fewer than half of those who do say they really enjoy it.
Nigel plans to fly to the United States for the knockout rounds, saying he expects England to go deep enough that he can miss the group stage and still see the quarter-finals and semi-finals.