James Hall (rugby union, born 1996)

James Hall

Personal information
Full name	James Robert Hall
Born	2 January 1996 Durban, South Africa
Height	1.70 m (5 ft 7 in)
Weight	78 kg (12 st 4 lb)
School(s) attended	Kearsney College, Botha's Hill
Club information
Playing position	Scrum-half
Current club	Eastern Province Kings / Kings
Youth career
2009–14	Sharks
2014–	Eastern Province Kings
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps^†	(Pts)^†
2016–	Kings	0	(0)
* Senior club appearances and points correct as of 29 December 2015. † Appearances (Points).

James Robert Hall (born 2 January 1996 in Durban, South Africa) is a South African rugby union player, currently playing with Super Rugby side the Kings.^[1] His regular position is scrum-half.

Playing career

Youth

Hall earned provincial selection as early as primary school level, when he represented KwaZulu-Natal at the 2009 Under-13 Craven Week held in Kimberley. He was the main kicker for the side and kicked five penalties during the competition, including three in their match against the Golden Lions.^[2]

At high school level, Hall attended Kearsney College, where he played rugby for their first team. He kicked a 62-meter penalty in a high school match against Westville Boys' High School in March 2014, with video footage of the kick appearing on several websites, both nationally^[3] and internationally.^[4] He earned a provincial call-up for the 2014 Under-18 Craven Week competition held in Middelburg, scoring one try for KwaZulu-Natal in their match against the Blue Bulls.^[5] He signed a contract to join Port Elizabeth-based union the Eastern Province Kings after school, and made a single appearance for their Under-19 side during the 2014 Under-19 Provincial Championship, in a 21–24 defeat to his hometown side the Sharks U19s in Durban.^[6]

He joined the EP Kings on a full-time basis for the 2015 season and he was a key member of the Eastern Province U19 side in the 2015 Under-19 Provincial Championship Group A, starting all fourteen of their matches in the competition. He scored one try during the season – in a 33–14 victory over the Leopards U19s^[7] – and also kicked nine conversions and seven penalties during the season for a personal points haul of 44 points, the second-highest in the team and joint-twelfth overall.^[8] He helped the Eastern Province Kings Under-19 side to eleven wins in their twelve matches in the group stage of the competition to finish top of the log to secure a place in the title play-offs. He started in their semi-final match against the Free State U19s, helping them to a 31–15 victory,^[9] and also in the final, where his side ran out 25–23 winners over the Blue Bulls U19s in Johannesburg^[10] to win the competition for the first time in their history.^[11]

Kings

On 13 December 2015, Hall was included on a list of 20 players released by the South African Rugby Union that will be part of the Kings squad for the 2016 Super Rugby season.^[12]

References

1. "SARU Player Profile James Hall". South African Rugby Union. Retrieved 29 December 2015.
2. "SA Rugby Match Centre – Lions 14-21 KZN". South African Rugby Union. 2 July 2009. Retrieved 6 May 2016.
3. "VIDEO: Kearsney scrumhalf James Hall slots a 62m penalty against Westville". SA Rugby Mag. 25 March 2014. Retrieved 29 December 2015.
4. "Video: Huge James Hall 62m Penalty Kick For Kearsney College". Balls.ie. 24 March 2014. Retrieved 29 December 2015.
5. "SA Rugby Match Centre – KwaZulu-Natal 15-36 Blue Bulls". South African Rugby Union. 19 July 2014. Retrieved 6 May 2016.
6. "SA Rugby Match Centre – Sharks U19 24-21 EP Kings U19". South African Rugby Union. 27 September 2014. Retrieved 6 May 2016.
7. "SA Rugby Match Centre – Eastern Province U19 33-14 Leopards U19". South African Rugby Union. 26 September 2015. Retrieved 6 May 2016.
8. "SA Rugby Top Scorers – 2015 Absa Under 19 Competition". South African Rugby Union. Retrieved 5 May 2016.
9. "SA Rugby Match Centre – Eastern Province U19 31-15 Free State U19". South African Rugby Union. 16 October 2015. Retrieved 6 May 2016.
10. "SA Rugby Match Centre – Eastern Province U19 25-23 Blue Bulls U19". South African Rugby Union. 24 October 2015. Retrieved 6 May 2016.
11. "WP young guns, EP clinch junior titles". South African Rugby Union. 25 October 2015. Archived from the original on 11 April 2016. Retrieved 11 April 2016.
12. "Southern Kings announce first signings" (Press release). South African Rugby Union. 13 December 2015. Archived from the original on 11 April 2016. Retrieved 13 December 2015.