Eliza James (footballer)

Eliza James (born 1 October 2003) is a professional Australian rules footballer playing for the Collingwood Football Club in the AFL Women's (AFLW). She played for Oakleigh Chargers in the NAB League before she was drafted by Collingwood. She is also an ex student of Star of the Sea College in Melbourne.

Eliza James
Personal information
Full name Eliza James
Date of birth (2003-10-01) 1 October 2003
Original team(s) Oakleigh Chargers (NAB League)
Draft No. 29, 2021 national draft
Debut Round 1, 2022 (S6), Collingwood vs. Carlton, at Ikon Park
Height 168 cm (5 ft 6 in)
Position(s) Forward
Club information
Current club Collingwood
Number 2
Playing career1
Years Club Games (Goals)
2022 (S6)– Collingwood 25 (17)
1 Playing statistics correct to the end of round 8, 2023.
Career highlights
Source: AustralianFootball.com

Early life and state football

James started her football career playing Auskick and played locally with St Peters.[1] As an under-14 she placed second in the South Metro Junior Football League (SMJFL) best and fairest award in 2017.[2] In May 2018, she played her 100th game for the club, kicking two goals during the milestone.[3]

James played three seasons with Oakleigh Chargers in the NAB League[1][4] and was described as an electric goalkicker.[5] With the club she won the 2021 NAB League premiership.[6][7] Following her strong performance in the 2021 season, James was selected in the Vic Metro team for the 2021 AFL Women's Under-19 Championships,[8] and played in their victory over Western Australia.[9]

AFLW career

James was drafted to Collingwood with the 29th pick of the 2021 AFL Women's draft, which was Collingwood's first pick.[10] She made her debut in the first round of the 2022 AFL Women's season at Ikon Park against Carlton.[1][11] In the third round, at GMHBA Stadium against Geelong, she kicked her first goal, showcasing her speed and adding another dimension to Collingwood's forward line.[12] At the end of the season she was awarded the Best First Year Player award.[13] During the 2022 AFL Women's season 7, James played in the Finals series for the first time with a breakout performance in which she kicked four goals, breaking the record as the first AFLW player to kick four goals in a finals game.[14][15][16] Her performance saw her claim the AFLW MVP of the Week award.[17]

Statistics
Statistics are correct to the end of the 2022 (S7) season.[18]
Legend
  G  
 Goals
  K  
 Kicks
  D  
 Disposals 
  T  
 Tackles
  B  
 Behinds 
  H  
 Handballs 
  M  
 Marks
Season Team No. Games Totals Averages (per game)
G B K H D M T G B K H D M T
2022 (S6) Collingwood 20105150368611230.50.15.03.68.61.12.3
2022 (S7) Collingwood 201110366259120340.90.36.02.38.31.83.1
Career 21 15 4 116 61 177 31 57 0.7 0.2 5.5 2.9 8.4 1.5 2.7

References
  1. Denton, Britt (8 January 2022). "Two debutants named for round one clash". Collingwood. Telstra.
  2. "SMJFL Best and Fairest Award Winners". St Peters. 20 September 2017.
  3. Barkas, Stephanie (22 May 2018). "St Peters Eliza James reaches 100 game milestone". South Metro Junior Football League.
  4. "Eliza James Draft Profile". Aussie Rules Rookie Me Central. Retrieved 9 November 2022.
  5. Black, Sarah (16 May 2021). "NAB League GF: Dominant Chargers take on soaring Falcons". AFL Women's. Telstra.
  6. Williams, Peter (16 May 2021). "Dominant first half helps Oakleigh secure first NAB League Girls premiership". Aussie Rules Rookie Me Central.
  7. King, Tom (16 May 2021). "Falcons fall at final hurdle". K Rock Football.
  8. "2021 NAB AFLW U19 Championships Booklet" (PDF). AFL Women's. Telstra. 10 April 2021.
  9. Alvaro, Michael (15 April 2021). "Vic Metro survives West Australian fightback at the death". Aussie Rules Rookie Me Central.
  10. Robertson, Tom (27 July 2021). "AFLW: Pies draft three to complete list for 2021/22". Collingwood. Telstra.
  11. "R1 selection: Pies name strong side for the Blues". Collingwood. Telstra. 8 January 2022. Collingwood will blood two debutants in Eloise Chaston and Eliza James against Carlton at Ikon Park on Sunday afternoon.
  12. Bastiani, Gemma (31 January 2022). "Eliza James on top of the world". Collingwood. Telstra.
  13. "Lambert claims historic third club best and fairest". Collingwood. Telstra. 22 April 2022. Archived from the original on 24 April 2022. In other awards on the night, Eliza James was presented as the Best First Year player
  14. Catalano, Alex (7 November 2022). "'She's a big stage player': James breaks out in finals thriller". The Inner Sanctum.
  15. Buchanan, Caitlin (7 November 2022). "Magpie takes flight in week one of AFLW finals". AFL Players Association.
  16. Vaughan, Roger (6 November 2022). "Pies beat Bulldogs in AFLW finals thriller". The Canberra Times.
  17. Buchanan, Caitlin (9 November 2022). "Magpie Magic: James Claims AFLW MVP of the Week". AFL Players Association.
  18. "Eliza James - Player Stats By Season". Australian Football. Retrieved 13 November 2022.
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