Bullard has an extra reason to smile

IT IS a breach of etiquette for millionaires to talk money when there is a microphone in the vicinity.

Jimmy Bullard, however, differs from the affluent others in the England squad because he can discuss earnings that are remarkable only for their insignificance. The Fulham midfielder was fully entitled to a touch of self-satisfaction when he recalled the £60 a week that Gravesend and Northfleet once paid him in non-league football.

No one can know when, or if, another player with that type of background will next come into consideration for an England cap. His ascent has obliged him to overcome other obstacles as well.

After a dreadful knee injury at Newcastle United in September 2006 he could not return to action until the beginning of this year.

"There were a few dark times. I was in that gym wondering if I would ever kick a ball again professionally," said the 29-year-old. "I had to show a great deal of strength and character to come back from the injury. It makes you a stronger person as well as a stronger footballer. To get back to playing and then to get called up is just brilliant."

He is proud of the perseverance he showed to resume his career. The way had also seemed barred to him when he did not make the grade as a youngster at West Ham United. This week he is unexpectedly reunited with individuals he knew then.

"People like Joe Cole, Rio Ferdinand, Jermain Defoe and Glen Johnson were all there," he recalled. "We've had some good chats about old times."

It was as if he were the surprised subject of a This Is Your Life programme. The reminiscences welled up. He talked about the three years when he used to work as a painter and decorator with his father, who would give him a day off when an important match was imminent. "It was quite a hard job," Bullard said, "rubbing down walls and ceilings."

His obscurity, it has to be conceded, is tending to be exaggerated at the moment. Two good years at Peterborough United earned him a move to Wigan Athletic and since promotion with them in 2005 the Premier League has been his place of work. His part in Fulham's win over Arsenal last month impressed the England manager, Fabio Capello. His liveliness catches the eye, even if coaches might prefer him to be more restrained on occasion.

The absence of Steven Gerrard opened up a space for him in the squad and there is a chance that he will represent his country shortly. Frank Lampard, along with John Terry, Ashley Cole and Wes Brown, missed training yesterday - none of them is in serious difficulties but it is not beyond the bounds of possibility that Bullard will get on to the field at some point in Saturday's World Cup qualifier with Andorra in Barcelona.

The prospect of him taking on Croatia in Zagreb four days later does defeat the imagination, but he can revel in the prospect of even being in the vicinity of that match. Hitherto, celebrated footballers may have been rather bewildered when in his company. When Fulham had a pre-season match with Real Madrid in Austria two years ago Raul, David Beckham and the others were treated to a song from the guitar-playing Bullard in the hotel shared by the two clubs.

He relishes whatever he does, often reaching a high standard. He has, for instance, played golf off scratch and he is a match angler. People respond to his spontaneity.

"I hope I am liked," he said. "I play my football with a smile on my face. That's how I play my best football - I can't get too uptight. I just go out there and enjoy my football and enjoy life."

There is, inescapably, a solemnity about England, and Bullard had hitherto joined the rest of the nation in agonised watching of international games on television. In that sense he has always been an onlooker, because he was not picked to represent England at any level whatsoever.

He speaks about Capello shaking his hand and of the effect of donning new training gear bearing the three-lions badge. The practice sessions could not come soon enough. He must be compulsively reliving the spell from the arrival of a letter last Wednesday, informing him that he was in contention for the squad, to confirmation of his selection on Sunday. He now has to stow those distracting memories away. Capello might yet have an assignment for him.

Guardian Service