Wales star Joe Allen prepares for Qatar World Cup

Despite being the man hailed as the Welsh Xavi (or, if you'd prefer, the Pembrokeshire Pirlo), and currently working his way back to fitness for the World Cup in Qatar, Mr Allen is downright crazy about hens.

He's even been featured in the Chicken and Egg magazine where he revealed, all too clearly, that his favourite place, apart from the football pitch, is his chicken coop at home.

“I guess it all stemmed from my wife Lacey because, like me, she shares an interest in animal welfare,” said Allen, who grew up in Narberth.

“It was originally Lacey's idea to start keeping chickens and most of them are rescued, which means we rehome them after they’ve finished their commercial lives.

“But I must admit that while it’s great to have them, I’d be lying if I said I did the cleaning… as soon as it’s time to clean the coops I disappear!"

The Allens started out with just two little peckers but their flock has grown to 16, comprising two cockerels and 14 hens.

Joe Allen’s concerns for wildlife stem way back to his childhood in Narberth when he attended the town’s primary school and later Ysgol y Preseli in Crymych.

And it was here that his football prowess first began to be noticed.

One of his first games of recognition was his stellar performance during the Britanny-based under 13s international tournament ‘Mondial Pupilles’ as a youngster.

And after scoring a 20-yard screamer for his school side, Ysgol Y Preseli's former headteacher Mike Davies was inundated with questions from professional sides about the small schoolboy in the number six shirt.

“At the time Joe was already contracted with Swansea so there were naturally a few disappointed faces among the scouts,” said Mike Davies, who was himself a former semi-pro footballer.

“It was obvious from those early days as a pupil at Preseli that Joe had a very special talent.

“I was deputy head at the time and one day I was inside the school when a group of sixth formers came rushing in saying ‘Sir, you’ve got to come down to the tennis courts to see this – there’s a little boy running rings around everyone’.

“When I got there I saw this small little boy doing all sorts of incredible tricks with the ball and I knew straight away, that he was something special.”

Joe Allen as a schoolboy at Ysgol y Preseli (Image: Western Telegraph)

Despite his busy schedule travelling to and from Swansea after being selected for their youth team, Allen also showed a strong academic ability.

“That kind of constant travelling can be hard for an adult let alone a youngster, but without fail Joe would always be back in school on time on a Monday morning,” said Mr Davies.

“He had excellent GCSE results and was a very good linguist getting good grades in French and Spanish. He’s also been an excellent ambassador for the Welsh language.”

Meanwhile the 32-year-old midfielder is currently nursing a hamstring injury and all hopes are pinned on him being fit for Qatar.

Joe Allen (Image: Western Telegraph)

"He is absolutely key as he breaks up the play. He intercepts the opposition passes and sets up the first line of attack,” added Mr Davies

"There's nobody else in the squad who can do that job as well as Joe does.

“We’re all hoping that he will be fully fit for that first game against the United States.”