James: Always a proud moment representing Sale

Sale Sharks’ Sam James says that it is always a ‘proud’ moment when he represents his club and is hoping for more appearances at the AJ Bell Stadium this season.

James, who can play fly-half or centre, made his Premiership debut last year against Northampton, more than a year after pulling on the Sale shirt for the first ever time in an LV=Cup match v Saracens.

The 21 year-old studied at Wilmslow High School and was an integral part of the side that reached the Daily Mail Cup Semi-Finals (Now the NatWest Trophy) in 2011 where he played up against Wasps’ Elliot Daly.

There is no doubt that James is an exciting prospect and he is in a great position to progress as we are now seeing a number of youngsters in the English domestic game get a chance at the top level.

“Every opportunity I get to play for Sale is a proud moment for me, said James.

“I look forward to every match, getting out there and gaining experience and I think Sale as a club provide a lot of their young players the opportunity to do that.”

Life as a young professional rugby player for a Premiership side may seem straight-forward, but the reality is that it really isn’t

Since joining the north-west side, James has had a number of injuries have hampered his chances of progression into the first team set-up.

But, James has now bounced back from those set-backs and is looking forward to the new campaign.

He added: “My career has had its ups and downs mainly through injuries really. For me it was always about gaining the confidence back.

“I've enjoyed all the experience so far and it's a really good atmosphere at the club and it's a joy to be part of.

“I'd love to get some more appearances this season. I know what I have to work on to progress with my game and become better as a player.

“The coaching staff we have here at the moment with Mike Forshaw and Paul Deacon will help me out a lot. They are both really good coaches and it's good to learn from the best even if it's not the right code.”

James played three times last season for the senior team in the LV=Cup and now he is currently building up his fitness in pre-season.

One of the ways the former Manchester Senior Colt has been doing this is in the Premiership 7s where Sale have reached the finals after qualifying from Group D.

James made his Sevens debut for Sale at Kingston Park on Saturday and his side needed a last-gasp try to claim a late draw with Worcester in their first group match.

This ultimately proved vital result for Sale as they finished in that all important second qualifying place on points difference ahead of Worcester.

And James admits Sale will be looking to step up their performance in Friday’s finals at The Stoop as they go in search of their first Premiership 7s title.

“It was good to take part in such a closely fought round of the 7s and there was some good rugby shown by all the teams.

“I feel like, as a team, we've got a lot more to show and will be looking to step it up a gear come Friday.”

That result for Sale means that they will be taking on last year’s runners up Newport Gwent Dragons in the quarter-finals.

While James knows the match will be tough, he says that this is a massive opportunity for the side to give the finals a real go.

“It will be another tough day for us with our first match against The Dragons who looked sharp in their first round but it will be a big opportunity for us, he added.

“We're all looking forward to getting out in front of a packed crowd at The Stoop and in 7s anything can happen, so we fancy our chances as much as anyone else.