Angharad James: The story behind the Cymru star
- Morganna King
- Nov 25, 2024
- 3 min read
by Morganna King (25/11/24)
Angharad James is the youngest player ever to accumulate 100 caps for Cymru. She may sometimes fly under the radar, but she is an imperative asset to both her club and country.
James has experience playing for a multitude of clubs across the globe, including her current team in the National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL); Seattle Reign. Included in this are spells at Notts County, Yeovil Town, Everton, Reading, North Carolina Courage, Orlando Pride and Tottenham Hotspur.
As a midfielder, who also played as a fullback in her second season at Spurs, she is fantastic at controlling the midfield and unselfishly providing assists to her teammates. If you need to dispossess an opponent and quickly gain back possession, Angharad James is your player for the job.
James started out at Manorbier Ladies in Pembrokeshire, close to her hometown of Haverfordwest. Not only was she talented at football, but she also played cricket for Cymru Under 15s. In football she has represented Cymru from Under 17s all the way through to Senior international level.
Joining Arsenal's academy aged 16 in 2010, she made her first team debut in the UEFA Women's Champions League Round of 32 on the 5th October 2011. In 2012, she was signed by Mark Sampson and joined Bristol City's Academy. James made her first team debut in 2014, before leaving the club in 2015; she accumulated 52 appearances and 4 goals for The Robins.
Before her departure from Bristol City, manager Willie Kirk said "Angharad played a big part in the club's successes over the past few seasons, and at only 21 has bags of potential and can achieve a lot in the game.”
A truer statement could not have been said as fast forward to present day, aged 30, James has been named Cymru captain. Not only this, but she is leading her team through the Euro 2025 play-offs, a tough job when the likes of Sophie Ingle is your predecessor. However, she takes it all in her stride and her teammates are full of nothing but praise for the number 8.
James has a multitude of international experience to add to her club experience, including being named to represent team GB at the London 2012 Olympics. She made her senior international debut aged 17 on the 27th October 2011, reached 100 caps on the 6th September 2022 (the same day Cymru qualified for World Cup play-offs for the first time) and was appointed captain on the 4th October 2024.
James is a proud Welsh speaker and is often seen doing interviews in the language. When she was younger she attended a welsh-speaking school, but being away from Wales since she was 16, there isn't as many opportunities to speak Welsh. She spoke out about this in an Instagram post on the 20th November:
"For anyone who knows me knows how nervous I get before doing any Welsh interviews. Trying to be open and honest but finding the Welsh word is difficult at times. Not speaking the language as often as I’d like has its difficulties when I’m trying to elaborate on certain things. One thing I will never to do is stop. The language is a big part of me and I’m so proud to be able to speak it. I hope I inspire people to know that you don’t have to be perfect but we must do our best to keep it alive. I will continue to learn it, speak it and promote its viability."
Off the pitch, James is a proud co-owner of a coffee van (now coffee cart) called Two Sides Grind which she works at with her partner Amy James-Turner (and can't forget dog Betsy) and has ambitions of owning a coffee shop one day.
So what's next for Angharad James? It would be an honour to see her play at an international tournament such as the Euros or World Cup. But it would also be great to see her return to playing in the Women's Super League, despite how amazing it is to see her playing in the top flight of women's football in the USA (minus the time zones). The sky really is the limit for this incredible player!
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