Former England goalkeeper David James joins League One Bournemouth

Goalkeeper David James (GETTY IMAGES)

Bournemouth have signed former England international goalkeeper David James until the end of the season.

The 42-year-old signed before the 12pm deadline which means he would be available to make his debut against Walsall.

The former Portsmouth keeper joined Paul Groves' squad for training on Thursday and will compete with Shwan Jalal for a place in the starting line-up.

He had been without a club after being released by Bristol City in the summer.

In a 20-year career, James has also played for Liverpool, Aston Villa, West Ham and Man City and earned 53 England caps.

James revealed Groves and former team-mate Richard Hughes helped persuade him to join the npower League One club.

"The experience I had with Grovesy at Portsmouth was invaluable as coming in to a manager who I had no idea about would be scary," he told the club's official website, http://www.afcb.co.uk.

"I understand the guy, I like his methodology and I like the way he thinks."

Former team-mate Hughes joined the Cherries last month and his feedback was also a major factor in James' signing.

He added: "Hughes joined and was speaking very positively about the club which is always a good indicator when joining a team."

PA