Neil James
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Neil James (14 February 1961 – 17 December 2014) was an English professional
rugby league Rugby league football, commonly known as rugby league in English-speaking countries and rugby 13/XIII in non-Anglophone Europe, is a contact sport, full-contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular Rugby league playin ...
footballer who played in the 1980s and 1990s. He played at representative level for
Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the north-west coast of continental Europe, consisting of the countries England, Scotland, and Wales. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the List of European ...
, and at club level for
Castleford Castleford is a town within the City of Wakefield district, West Yorkshire, England. It had a population of 45,106 at a 2021 population estimate. Historic counties of England, Historically in the West Riding of Yorkshire, to the north of the t ...
, Halifax, Gold Coast-Tweed Giants,
Leeds Leeds is a city in West Yorkshire, England. It is the largest settlement in Yorkshire and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds Metropolitan Borough, which is the second most populous district in the United Kingdom. It is built aro ...
and
Sheffield Eagles The Sheffield Eagles are a professional rugby league club based in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England. They play home games at the Olympic Legacy Park and compete in the Championship, the second tier of British rugby league. Sheffield's on ...
, as a , or .


Background

James was born in
Castleford Castleford is a town within the City of Wakefield district, West Yorkshire, England. It had a population of 45,106 at a 2021 population estimate. Historic counties of England, Historically in the West Riding of Yorkshire, to the north of the t ...
,
West Riding of Yorkshire The West Riding of Yorkshire was one of three historic subdivisions of Yorkshire, England. From 1889 to 1974 the riding was an administrative county named County of York, West Riding. The Lord Lieutenant of the West Riding of Yorkshire, lieu ...
, England, and he died aged 53.


Playing career


Castleford

James played as a right- in
Castleford Castleford is a town within the City of Wakefield district, West Yorkshire, England. It had a population of 45,106 at a 2021 population estimate. Historic counties of England, Historically in the West Riding of Yorkshire, to the north of the t ...
's 2-13 defeat by
Hull F.C. Hull Football Club, commonly referred to as Hull or Hull F.C., is a professional rugby league club based in Kingston upon Hull, East Riding of Yorkshire, England. Hull play their home games at the MKM Stadium and compete in Super League, the ...
in the
1983 Yorkshire Cup 1983 saw both the official beginning of the Internet and the first mobile cellular telephone call. Events January * January 1 – The migration of the ARPANET to TCP/IP is officially completed (this is considered to be the beginning of the ...
Final during the 1983–84 season at
Elland Road Elland Road, or Elland Road Stadium, is a football stadium in Beeston, Leeds, West Yorkshire, England, which has been the Home (sports), home of Leeds United F.C., Leeds United since the club's formation in 1919. The stadium is the List of foot ...
,
Leeds Leeds is a city in West Yorkshire, England. It is the largest settlement in Yorkshire and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds Metropolitan Borough, which is the second most populous district in the United Kingdom. It is built aro ...
on Saturday 15 October 1983.


Halifax

In 1985, James was loaned out to Halifax. The deal was later made permanent with Castleford receiving
Alan Shillito Alan Shillito is a former professional rugby league footballer who played in the 1980s. He played at club level for Halifax and Castleford, as a or . Playing career County Cup Final appearances Alan Shillito appeared as a substitute (replaci ...
and a fee of £5,000 in exchange. James made 34-appearances (including 4 as an
interchange Interchange may refer to: Transport * Interchange (road), a collection of ramps, exits, and entrances between two or more highways * Interchange (freight rail), the transfer of freight cars between railroad companies * Interchange station, a rai ...
/ substitute) in the in Halifax's victory in the
Championship In sport, a championship is a competition in which the aim is to decide which individual or team is the champion. Championship systems Various forms of competition can be referred to by the term championship. Title match system In this sys ...
during the 1985–86 season, scoring 3-tries in League matches and 1 in the Premiership Trophy. James appeared as a substitute (replacing
Ben Beevers Graham "Ben" Beevers (born 14 June 1961) is a former professional rugby league footballer who played in the 1980s. He played at club level for Ovenden A.R.L.F.C., Ovenden Ovenden ARLFC, ARLFC and Halifax R.L.F.C., Halifax, as a , or . Playing ...
on 70-minutes) in Halifax's 19-18 victory over St. Helens in the
1987 Challenge Cup Events January * January 1 – Bolivia reintroduces the Boliviano currency. * January 2 – Chadian–Libyan conflict – Battle of Fada: The Chadian army destroys a Libyan armoured brigade. * January 3 – Afghan leader Mohammad Najibu ...
Final during the 1986–87 season at
Wembley Stadium Wembley Stadium, currently branded as Wembley Stadium connected by EE Limited, EE for sponsorship reasons, is an association football stadium in Wembley, London. It opened in 2007 on the site of the Wembley Stadium (1923), original Wembley Sta ...
,
London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...
on Saturday 2 May 1987, and played left- and scored a try in the 12-32 defeat by
Wigan Wigan ( ) is a town in Greater Manchester, England. The town is midway between the two cities of Manchester, to the south-east, and Liverpool, to the south-west. It is the largest settlement in the Metropolitan Borough of Wigan and is its ad ...
in the 1988 Challenge Cup Final during the 1987–88 season at
Wembley Stadium Wembley Stadium, currently branded as Wembley Stadium connected by EE Limited, EE for sponsorship reasons, is an association football stadium in Wembley, London. It opened in 2007 on the site of the Wembley Stadium (1923), original Wembley Sta ...
,
London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...
on Saturday 30 April 1988. In April 1990, he was signed by
Leeds Leeds is a city in West Yorkshire, England. It is the largest settlement in Yorkshire and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds Metropolitan Borough, which is the second most populous district in the United Kingdom. It is built aro ...
for a fee of £20,000.


International honours

James won a
cap A cap is a flat headgear, usually with a visor. Caps have crowns that fit very close to the head. They made their first appearance as early as 3200 BC. The origin of the word "cap" comes from the Old French word "chapeau" which means "head co ...
for
Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the north-west coast of continental Europe, consisting of the countries England, Scotland, and Wales. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the List of European ...
while at Halifax, playing right- scored a try, and was
man of the match In team sport, a player of the match award (also known as man of the match or woman of the match) is often given to the most outstanding player in a particular match. This can be a player from either team, although the player is generally chose ...
in the 24-10 victory over France at
Central Park Central Park is an urban park between the Upper West Side and Upper East Side neighborhoods of Manhattan in New York City, and the first landscaped park in the United States. It is the List of parks in New York City, sixth-largest park in the ...
,
Wigan Wigan ( ) is a town in Greater Manchester, England. The town is midway between the two cities of Manchester, to the south-east, and Liverpool, to the south-west. It is the largest settlement in the Metropolitan Borough of Wigan and is its ad ...
on Saturday 1 March 1986.


References


External links


Statistics at rugbyleagueproject.orgStatistics at thecastlefordtigers.co.uk
*(archived by web.archive.org
RIP Neil James & Joe Anderson
{{DEFAULTSORT:James, Neil 1961 births 2014 deaths Castleford Tigers players English rugby league players Gold Coast Chargers players Great Britain national rugby league team players Halifax Panthers players Leeds Rhinos players Rugby league players from Castleford Rugby league props Rugby league second-rows Sheffield Eagles (1984) players 20th-century English sportsmen