LONG READ Kane James: 'I think it’s really important to not like losing'

Kane James’ father Chris was a handy player in his prime, turning out for Swansea RFC, and the West Walian from Fishguard is now coaching Cross Keys in Gwent with former Wales wing Morgan Stoddart, so you’d assume his son, the Exeter Chief and England U20 No. 8, has been blessed with athletic genes on his paternal side, until, that is, you enquire about his mother, Audrey, and it all falls into place.

“Mum’s a Pacific Islander. She’s from a small island called Niue.”

For the uninitiated, Niue is a tiny, sun-kissed coral island, 2400km northeast of New Zealand, and 600km from Tonga. With a population of just over 1,600 people, it is one of the most remote places in the world.

Low-slung and muscular, James is hugely explosive and has enviable fast-twitch fibres, as witnessed by his 40m line break to bust the Scotland defence to score in the World Rugby U20 Championship’s opening fixture. At 6ft and 100kg, he thinks a fighting weight will be around 104-105kg (16st 4lb/16st 6lbs), when he’s fully matured.

A third generation rugby player, the family are steeped in the sport. James’ sister Crystal plays as a loosehead for Wales U18s, following her brother, and there isn’t a day when rugby is not being discussed on the family WhatsApp group. “For as long as I can remember, I have always wanted to be a rugby player. My whole family is obsessed with it. As soon as I was old enough to throw a ball around, my dad took me down to St Peters RFC, and I’m not sure I had choice,” he chuckles.

James was a student Corpus Christie secondary school in Cardiff, when his prodigious sporting ability saw him spirited to the Northeast at Sedbergh, a renowned rugby school which counts England greats Will Greenwood and Will Carling, and Welsh internationals James Botham and Tomas Francis among its decorated alumni. James’ athletic prowess was soon noted. “My stamina isn’t bad, I guess. I ran a 4m 35 sec bronco in school but to be honest, my biggest work-on has been putting on weight. I’ve had to work really hard shovelling in lots of food in. Fortunately, it’s a gym-heavy environment down at Exeter  which suits me because they’ve said I can pretty much eat anything I want.”

The backrow made his senior bow four days before leaving his teens with a run-out against Bristol Bears at Ashton Gate in a highly entertaining 52-38 win for the hosts. For James, the step up with the big boys was noticeable, certainly to his rib cage.

“The main thing is it takes a bit longer to get up after a collision before you’re soon sprinting back into position ready to go again. As well as the physical side, it feels a bit faster. Rob Hunter, my head coach at the time, gave me lots of positive feedback and said I’d done everything that was asked of me, which was good to hear.”

This two-year block [with England] has been seriously important to my development. The coaches have done an excellent job in preparing me for professional rugby. If we do as we’re told here, we’re giving ourselves the best possible chance of making it.

James’ dynamic profile will suit the Chiefs backrow. Already compared to Sam Simmonds by Rob Baxter, the legendary No. 8 with the jet-heeled acceleration from the base of the scrum, there are a few flyers at Sandy Park, with Ross Vintcent and Greg Fisilau no slouches, yet James is quietly confident about his chances in a footrace.

“I’m quite similar to Ross [Vintcent] with regards to my pace. I’m one of the fastest forwards at Exeter Chiefs, and I’d back myself as the fastest forward in the England U20 set-up,” he says, almost bashfully.

After representing Wales at U18 level, the fact  James was fully ensconced in the English age-grade system and had moved from Newcastle Falcons’ academy to go to university in Exeter meant he was available to represent the Red Rose. He has duly gone on to play 17 times for them. It is an opportunity he doesn’t regret.

This two-year block has been seriously important to my development. The coaches have done an excellent job in preparing me for professional rugby. If we do as we’re told here, we’re giving ourselves the best possible chance of making it.”

Though guided by the vast experience of Mark Mapletoft and his England coaches, James says dad Chris will always chip in with some paternal advice, as is the wont of fathers up and down the county, and he doesn’t expect those words of wisdom to stop any time soon. As well as the support in the bosom of his family, James is also benefitting from England’s psychologist, Mike Roberts’ feedback.

“He is really good with us. He sits down with us gets us to set out our goals. If we make mistakes on the field of play, he talks about ‘coming back to the present’ and getting a mental reference point, so if your head is spinning a bit in the chaos of the game, he asks you to look for reference point, like at a lineout and making sure you take it to reset and recharge.”

Set to make an 18^th U20 appearance from the bench against Wales, James is motivated to make a difference against the land of his fathers. “It sounds daft, but I think it’s really important to not like losing. Like when we lost to Wales in the Six Nations. It’s about storing that disappointment for fuel to use it for next time.”

Ardie Savea is the one. He’s someone I really like to base my game off. One of the Chiefs coaches, Hayden Thomas, will clip up his carries and defensive work but it’s the aggression in his carries and tenacity I really like.

Laid-back and quick to smile, James admits to getting on really well with the Northampton Saints boys in the England camp, casting aside university rivalries. “Guys like Oli Scola, Jonny Weimann, Archie McParland and Aiden Ainsworth-Cave are class lads. Being in camp changes perceptions. You play against some of them in the BUCS Super League and you think, ‘who is this idiot?’ but they turn out to be really sound. We’re all in it for the same reason, because we have a real passion for rugby.”

Away from the game, James is going into his final year at Exeter University, reading accounting and finance after unearthing an affinity for maths at Sedbergh, mooting that accountancy could be an option in later life, but for now a career in rugby is clearly his singular ambition, with one player in particular, a role model and inspiration.

“Ardie Savea is the one. He’s someone I really like to base my game off. One of the Chiefs coaches, Haydn Thomas, will clip up his carries and defensive work but it’s the aggression in his carries and tenacity I really like. You watch him and he’s screaming and shouting when he’s trying to manhandle someone much bigger than him, like Eben Etzebeth, in defence. He just refuses to go down – I love that.”

When you watch James on the field, you first notice first his de-rigeur mullet, but it’s his consistent match involvements that really impress. He is comfortable with the ball in hand, which makes you think he could easily switch to midfield like Ben Earl. Regularly hitting double figures for tackles, and topping the stats charts for post-contact metres, he drives into contact with a real venom. After the 36-33 win over the Wallabies in Verona, he emptied himself to the point he could barely walk. So where does the aggression and zeal come from? “I think it’s from Dad. He used to coach our team and if we were doing tackling drills, he’d leave me in the middle for ages to toughen me up. Growing up with the boys at St Peters, you had to stand up for yourself.”

In less than a week, the L-plates of age-grade rugby will be cast aside and James will take a well-earned breather. Indeed, he will return to the Southwest with Exeter for pre-season, hoping to challenge for a place in Baxter’s backrow. He knows nothing will be handed to him on a plate. “Hopefully in the next year or two, I can force myself into the team and pull on that Exeter Chiefs jersey on a regular basis. Anything positive that can happen will stem from that.”

The elephant in the room, of course, is whether he commits to the Red Rose, with their never-ending supply of high-quality backrows, or pins his colours to the Wales mast like a certain 58-cap Ross Moriarty in 2014, after winning the U20 World Championship, as James did last year. The young man, understandably, keeps his cards close to his chest on the eve of a winner-takes-all game against Wales, but whomever he throws his hat in with, will inherit a hugely accomplished athlete.

And if dad Chris claims credit for his gifted progeny, just ask mum where he got that talent from…