Annie James proves Leeds Rhinos netball pathway is producing homegrown Yorkshire players

Born in Sheffield, scouted by Yorkshire Jets and having spent 10 years in the system, she is now on the doorstep of playing for Leeds Rhinos.

“It all started for me at Sheffield High School when I was just 12,” begins James, a goal attack who is one of three training partners who sit just outside Rhinos’ 12-woman Netball Super League squad.

“I went to a Yorkshire Jets training camp in the Easter holidays and Anna Carter (then Jets director of netball) picked me up from there.

“She took me to Leeds Athletic and that’s how I got onto the Yorkshire pathway.”

James’s development accelerated under the Yorkshire umbrella, through satellite hubs and training camps.

By the time Yorkshire Jets were told they were no longer eligible for a Super League licence in 2016, James was already on the England Roses pathway as well. But her home county still kept her involved.

“They did a bit of a crossover and I’m thankful they did because otherwise a lot of us players would have been lost,” says James, pictured.

“Luckily for me during that time when there was no Yorkshire Super League team I was able to focus on the England pathway. But Yorkshire kept an Under-19s programme going until Rhinos came in and then we all moved across from that.

“It was fantastic when Rhinos came in (2021). You see all those areas with Super League teams and you want that for your area, so it was really positive and helped incentivise us players to have that to aim for.”

She may now wear the blue and yellow of the Rhinos, but whatever the name, James has represented Yorkshire’s premier team at Under-17s, 19s, and 21s, and is now in the training squad. “Through it all, I’ve always felt protected and involved and part of the future,” says James.

As a training partner she is treated like a member of the squad, taking part in all training sessions, going on team bonding events together, and playing pre-season games if any of the 12 contracted players are missing. Often at training, the 5ft 9in goal attack is up against 6ft 3in Geva Mentor, the England Roses veteran of six Commonwealth Games who has signed for the Rhinos for the 2024 season after spending the last 15 years playing in Australia and New Zealand.

“I’m still not over the fact I’m playing with Geva,” beams James, who combines her netball with studying medicine at the University of Leeds.

“Just to have someone of her experience in our environment is fantastic. I am physically and literally looking up to her.”

The ambition for James is to play in Super League for the club and the pathway that has given her so much. With the sport expressing ambitions to grow in 2025 and open up to more franchises, there may be increased opportunities in the future. But given her journey, it’s no surprise when she says: “The fact I’ve always been at Leeds, that’s where my heart is.”