James Collins, 43, prepares for his first boxing bout

At 43, after a 19-year career that included spells with Cardiff City, West Ham, Aston Villa and Ipswich Town, James Collins is preparing for his first boxing bout. The former defender will face Charlie Robert, known as Big Stacks, on October 10 at the Copper Box Arena in London, as part of a Misfits event.

Collins has never boxed before, but believes growing up in Newport prepared him for physical confrontations. He is training at the Elite Pro academy in Epping with his coach Danny Barber. The opportunity arose after Tom Skinner withdrew from his scheduled bout with Big Stacks. Collins retired from football in 2019 but remained passionate about boxing.

He said he had accepted the challenge without hesitation: he did not want to look back in two or three years and wonder why he had not taken the opportunity. His playing days also included a confrontation with former West Ham teammate Andy Carroll during a pre-season training camp. A disagreement escalated into an exchange of punches before the two made up and shared a drink. Collins joked that he did not want to face “Big Andy” again.

The bout is a major sporting first for the former player, who is also encouraging other former footballers with an interest in boxing to return to training, including Wayne Rooney, Phil Bardsley and Darren Gibson.