Kane James Exclusive: “To see Henry play for us to skyrocketing into the Lions is pretty cool”
Kane James has played National League, University and Premiership rugby this season
©RFU Collection via JMP UK
Last Sunday afternoon in Verona, the England Under-20 men's team began their World Championship title defence with a commanding 56-19 victory over Scotland.
Key to the win was one of the squad’s more experienced players, Exeter Chiefs and Exeter University No. 8 Kane James, who scored two tries for England.
James’ second try was particularly impressive. A brilliant line break - followed by a turn of pace to round the covering defender - saw him touch down in the corner.
And on review, the line break resembled a charging run made just a day earlier by James’ former Under-20 teammate Henry Pollock, who was strutting his stuff for the British and Irish Lions.
“It’s crazy the stuff that he’s gone on to do,” James says of his former backrow colleague.
“To go from even playing with us in the first game of the Under-20s Six Nations this year, to skyrocketing into the Lions, it’s pretty cool to see someone do that.”
Pollock was, unsurprisingly, instrumental in England’s success in last year’s tournament, and also featured for Mark Mapletoft’s side in the opening game of the 2025 Six Nations.
He later made his senior debut against Wales at the Principality Stadium, scoring two tries from the bench, and has since continued to make his mark in Australia with the Lions.
“I think we really bounced off each other when we played together,” James continues.
“Although we’re quite similar players, we used each other's strengths to help each other out, connecting where we could.”
While Pollock continues to impress with his rapid line breaks and influence around the breakdown in Lions red, James was doing the same for England Under-20s in their opening win over Scotland last weekend.
“It was a good win,” James tells TRU. “On a personal level, happy to get the scores on the board, but classic credit to the boys for giving me the platform.
“The first one [try] was pretty easy! I just picked it up and plopped over but the second one, [Ben] Coen was pretty nice to put me through a decent hole, so I just had to finish it off.”
Whilst James is one of the eight players involved in last year's tournament, there are a few fresh faces included in this year’s squad that will undoubtedly help to create a new narrative for this group with players like James to support.
While the Exeter No.8 is one of eight players returning from last year’s tournament, there are fresh faces in this year’s squad that will help to create a new narrative for the group, supported by experienced figures like James.
“It’s literally just embracing and being yourself,” he says. “You saw Will Knight [Gloucester] on Sunday. He didn’t go into his shell. He was just carrying hard and accepted the physical challenge despite being a couple of years younger.
“I think we’re getting on really well as a group. We’re doing loads of stuff off the field. The longer we’re here, the closer we’ll grow as a group, so I think at the moment we’re at a really good place and looking forward to the rest of the tournament.”
However, James won’t need to build new bonds with everyone as he's joined in the England squad by seven fellow Exeter University players.
“It’s quite special to pull on different jerseys with the same boys, whether it be Chiefs, Uni and here, so it’s quite cool to do it alongside them, especially when you play together all season at university.”
On a personal level, it has been a standout year for James, one of the latest players to benefit from the pathway between Exeter University and Exeter Chiefs, marked by his Premiership debut against Bristol Bears in March.
“It was super cool to make my Premiership debut for the Chiefs,” James adds. “I did it alongside Ben Coen as well which was nice in a pretty full Ashton Gate.
“It was an amazing experience, and all of the Chiefs lads were super helpful, making sure I knew my knowledge around what we were going after.
“It’s really nice to have the likes of Haydn Thomas and Gareth Elliott [Head of Men’s Rugby at Exeter University] at both Uni and the club. It’s great to have that familiar face at either place, and it’s such an important connection to keep growing.”
Alongside making his senior debut for Exeter Chiefs, James has spent most of 2024/25 playing BUCS Super Rugby for Exeter University, where he was named in the Team of the Season.
He also gained valuable game time in the 2023/24 season with the Saturday team in National Two West, which contributed to his ongoing development.
“I played a lot of National League Rugby last year, and that was really beneficial, playing against some older guys who love to get in a scrum against university boys,” James jests.
“But I think that’s really important for physical development, and then the speed of BUCS Super Rugby really challenges our skillsets, which is important as well.”
Attention now turns to Friday night, where James will start once again in what could be a crucial game for England’s tournament hopes as they face South Africa.
James knows what it takes to beat the Baby Boks. He was on the bench for last year’s thrilling final group-stage game, where England secured victory in tough conditions thanks to an 86th-minute try, which saw them top their group and knock out South Africa in the process.
It promises to be another tough contest in the North-East of Italy, with South Africa having begun their campaign with a commanding 73-17 win over Australia.
Still, James insists England are ready.
“We know it’s going to be a big physical challenge. I think it’s going to be really important to front up physically and get that line set, and it’s going to be a tough 80 minutes but it’s also about bringing that stuff that we were good at against Scotland, like our counter-attack.”
