James Tomkins is rested, relaxed and cannot wait for the biggest game of his career.
West Ham United's No5 has enjoyed a fantastic season at the heart of the back four, being voted into both the npower Championship Team of the Year and as Hammer of the Year runner-up to close pal Mark Noble.
The centre-back has forged a rock-solid partnership with Winston Reid and has also weighed-in with four important goals. Now he is hoping to complete the best season of his life by helping the Hammers to gain promotion in Saturday's npower Championship Play-Off final with Blackpool at Wembley.
Tomkins sat down with Newham Recorder reporter Dave Evans to talk about his season, his fantastic form and his first trip to Wembley.
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James, you have had nearly two weeks to prepare for the Play-Off final. Has that been a help or a hindrance?
JT - I think it has been nice. We have had some time off and let it sink it that we have made the final and prepare for the fact that we have got Blackpool. We have enjoyed the time off. It is a long season we have had a lot of games so to have a few days to ourselves is important for our recovery to prepare for the weekend.
You have been at West Ham for about 15 years now, so did you go to the 2004 or 2005 Championship Play-Off finals?
JT - I went to the Ipswich Town semi-final game in 2005 and then I went to the final, so I know what it is like and the atmosphere was amazing. I have never played at Wembley and I have never even been to the new stadium. I went to the old Wembley when I was a kid, but I haven't been to the new one and it is just going to be unbelievable to play at my country's home stadium. The atmosphere is going to be unbelievable and I am really looking forward to it.
This season you have played consistently well. What has been the secret?
JT - I think this year I have come on a lot. I have grown in confidence and become a man this season. I think with my performances since I have come into the team, I have deserved to keep my place and I feel I am getting better and better. I don't want the season to end, really, but hopefully we can end it on a high and get where we feel we belong. I think it helps with the manager believing in you and playing you regularly, which is important for my confidence. I feel that I am a big part of the team this year and I have tried taking that in my stride and I feel that I am just getting better and better.
You have formed a great partnership with Winston Reid in recent weeks. Do you enjoy playing alongside him?
JT - Yes, I do. I think we are both enthusiastic, young and eager. We complement each other really well as we have similar attributes. We can cover each other and we both feel we can play on the floor as well as being good in the air.
Has it been easier to play in the Championship to your previous seasons in the Premier League?
JT - I think it is different. In the Premier League you are going to get punished more often than not, while in this league you can sometimes get away with it. It is more physically demanding here, though, with so many games and a quick turnover. You have got to recover well and you feel that you are not always 100 per cent fit. Sometimes you can play three games in a week and that is a lot to ask really. That is the key difference, it is not necessarily easier, it is just that you have to show different attributes in your game.
You scored at Blackpool earlier this season and have netted four times in total. Do you feel you are an important part of the team's attacking threat these days?
JT - We do a lot of set-plays in training and that is something that we have worked out this year. I have got on the end of quite a few of Matt Taylor's and Mark Noble's crosses this year. My timing has improved this year and I am taking the ball well. We do work on them in training, but not as much as you think, but it is something that is important and we have not conceded as many this season either. I feel that when I go up, I do have a chance of scoring and that's important because if you are going up half-hearted then there is no point in going up at all. It is important that we keep improving there, keep scoring from set-pieces and not conceding from them.
You must be excited about the prospect of playing in the Play-Off final and winning promotion back to the Premier League?
JT - Definitely. I think I will have a few sleepless nights this week just because of the excitement the weekend is going to bring, but hopefully we can win the game and we are really confident that we can. It is massively important for us to get to the Premier League. Every player would be lying if they said they didn't want to play there. It is vital that the club bounces straight back up and it is something that we are all aiming to do. It is something that I targeted this year. When I signed a new contract I had it in mind to get the club back where we belong.
Is this the biggest game of your career so far?
JT - Certainly it is going to be my biggest game up to date, just because of what is on it - that is Premier League status which is a massive thing. We know how big this game is. For the neutral it is going to be brilliant, the atmosphere is going to be unbelievable, so hopefully at the end of the day, we can win.