| Full name | James Olds | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Date of birth | (1991-04-06) 6 April 1991 (age 33) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Bridgend, Wales | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 169 cm (5 ft 7 in) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weight | 76 kg (168 lb; 12 st 0 lb) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Notable relative(s) | Ollie Olds (brother) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Rugby union career | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Rugby league career | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Playing information | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Position | Centre, Wing | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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James Olds (born 6 April 1991) is an international Welsh rugby league player who currently plays for Fortitude Valleys Diehards in the Brisbane Rugby League. He mainly plays at centre or on the wing.
Club career
Olds was born in Bridgend in Wales, beginning his career at local side Tondu RFC before moving to Bridgend Athletic RFC, winning the Ospreys Youth League championship. He made his 1st XV debut at 18, playing at the club until 2012 he scored 12 tries in 34 appearances.
He moved to Australia with his brother, Ollie Olds. Playing for Albury Wodonga RUFC winning the Southern Inland Rugby Union Premiership in 2013 and 2015, before joining Brisbane Rugby League side Wests Panthers, winning a minor premiership with the side. In 2020 he joined Albury Thunder. In 2022 he joined Fortitude Valleys Diehards scoring 76 points in his first season.
International career
He made his debut for the Wales national rugby league team in the European Championship 2018, scoring a try and three goals in a 18–54 loss against France. On 11 November 2018 he scored 8 goals in a European Championship win over Ireland, this put him at joint-third for the most goals by a player in a match for Wales, and joint-sixth for most points by a player in a match for Wales. His efforts helped secure a second-place finish for Wales, qualifying them for the 2021 Men's Rugby League World Cup.
In 2019 he played in the 2019 Rugby League World Cup 9s featuring once, in a 23–6 loss against France.
After the 2019 Rugby League World Cup 9s he didn't feature again for Wales until being named in the Wales squad for the 2021 Men's Rugby League World Cup, he did not feature in the competition however started on the wing in a warmup match against Lebanon scoring a solitary goal.
References
- "James Olds – Playing Career – RLP". www.rugbyleagueproject.org. Retrieved 2024-02-27.
- "James OLDS – Player statistics – It's rugby". www.itsrugby.co.uk. Retrieved 2024-02-27.
- WalesOnline (2010-04-14). "Rugby: Same Olds story as Athletic Youth home and dry". Wales Online. Retrieved 2024-02-27.
- "Current & Recent BARFC Player – Centres". Bridgend Athletic RFC. Retrieved 2024-02-27.
- "Premiership player Olds heads up north". The Border Mail. 2016-05-17. Retrieved 2024-02-27.
- "Border footballer beats spider bite to play in World Cup 9s". The Border Mail. 2019-10-16. Retrieved 2024-02-27.
- "Thunder form can only help my World Cup chances". The Border Mail. 2021-05-21. Retrieved 2024-02-27.
- Moore, Glenn (2022-10-03). "Diehards' Olds bros to play in World Cup". Blue Mountains Gazette. Retrieved 2024-02-27.
- "International returns as Albury look to get back on field". The Daily Advertiser. 2020-12-09. Retrieved 2024-02-27.
- "Team: Valleys Premier A-Grade 2022". www.playrugbyleague.com. Retrieved 2024-02-27.
- "Gwylio'r Cymry: Mis Mawrth 25–28 2022 – Wales Rugby League (WRL)". 2022-03-30. Retrieved 2024-02-27.
- "Wales – Records – RLP". www.rugbyleagueproject.org. Retrieved 2024-02-27.
- "Player Records – WRL International Sides". Retrieved 2024-02-27.
- "James Olds". National Rugby League. Retrieved 2024-02-27.
- "Rugby League World Cup 2022: Every nation's full squad | Sporting News United Kingdom". www.sportingnews.com. 2022-10-10. Retrieved 2024-02-27.