‘A freak’ - Sheffield's Jamie Vardy reflects on non-league to Premier League in new Netflix documentary
Jamie Vardy’s new documentary Untold has been released on Netflix
Sheffield-born footballer Jamie Vardy’s remarkable journey from semi-professional football to Premier League stardom has been explored like never before in Netflix’s Untold documentary.
Vardy, a boyhood Sheffield Wednesday fan, was released by his local club for being too small as a youngster - an outcome which would have stopped many players from making inroads in the professional game, but not Vardy, who statistically speaking is the 14th highest scorer in top-flight history despite only making his debut in the big time at 27 years of age.
The striker’s rise to the top is viewed by many as a modern day fairytale. However, the documentary also touches on many of the lesser known battles, off the pitch, the Sheffielder had to overcome to achieve his dreams.
"A raw, caged animal, drinking, partying and fighting" is the exact opening line of the documentary which later goes on to mention the fact that the striker, in his words, had ‘no stability’ in his life when he first started playing men’s football with Stocksbridge Park Steels in 2006.
At the time, he had been convicted of assault when out drinking and had to wear an ankle tag for six months. Similarly he also had a 6pm curfew to contend with, which at times meant he had to leave certain matches early.
Woven throughout are "The Inbetweeners" - a nickname given to Vardy's small, all‑male social group from Sheffield - who act as his main support, alongside his wife, Rebekah.
"If one of us is having a problem, then get it in the group. Might get abused for a bit but at least it's us a lot keeping an eye on each other," Vardy says.
Vardy - during his time at Stocksbridge - is described as a ‘cheat code’ by his former teammates due to his blistering pace to run in behind defences, and his terrific composure in front of goal - something which top-flight fans would become accustomed to in years to come.
According to the Stocksbridge Park Steels website, he scored a combined total of 55 goals for the non-league outfit before continuing in a similar rich vein of form up top at both Halifax and Fleetwood Town respectively.
Vardy has always come across as confident and fearless. Both in his approach to the game and his interviews away from the pitch.
However, even his journey at Leicester City, which saw him become the first ever £1m non-league footballer, got off to a rocky start. He scored just four times in his first full season in the Championship, and suffered from an initial "culture shock" which at times resulted in him turning to alcohol and even "manufacturing his own Skittles vodka at home".
He even turned up hungover to training, leaving many fearing that he was going to squander his opportunity.
However, the help of then manager (and former Owls captain) Nigel Pearson, along with the work of a good psychologist, soon helped the footballer get his life back on track, with the the birth of his daughter Ella also helping him to keep going.
The 2015/16 campaign, Leicester’s second back in the top-flight remains the campaign where most of the country really started to take notice of Vardy and his goalscoring prowess. He smashed in 24 goals, won the Premier League title at odds of 5000/1 and notably surpassed Manchester United forward Ruud Van Nistelrooy’s record by scoring in 11 successive matches.
Even then, some saw it as a one season wonder that he’d struggle to repeat, but that narrative soon shifted as he hit double figures in the next six league campaigns while also helping the Foxes to a first ever FA Cup triumph in the process.
Reflecting on his rags to riches rise and whether it can be repeated, Vardy said: "It’s not the common way of doing things, is it? I don’t think it will probably happen again, but it did happen for me and it was hard work. It really was tough, but all worth it.”
Jamie Vardy's Untold documentary is available to watch on Netflix now.