My journey: Lauren James' rise from grassroots football to England international

I started playing football as soon as I could walk!

Growing up, every day my brothers and I would be playing at the back of our house in Mortlake. We had a massive field and loads of our friends would join in, pretty much every day.

Then I started going to my brothers’ football training and would be kicking a ball by the side of the pitch with the other siblings there, and we would also go to the local Goals in New Malden where my dad ran his football programme.

It was great growing up, being able to play with the boys all the time and kicking a ball about whenever I could.

Then when I was around six, I was at Cobham watching Reece play for Chelsea and one of the members of staff asked if I wanted to play for the girls’ team.

I wasn’t able to play in games at that point because you had to be eight years old so I was training with the under-10s from the age of six because that was their first age group.

So from the age of six I would be playing at the weekends for Epsom Eagles, a boys’ grassroots team, and training at Chelsea.

I played at Chelsea until I was about 13 when I then moved to Arsenal between 13 and 16 before the move north to Manchester United.

When I started playing matches for Chelsea at the age of eight, it meant I had to stop playing regularly for Epsom Eagles because the games would be on the same day but I carried on playing in grassroots tournaments over the summer for the likes of Epsom, Barnes Eagles and Kingstonian.

Because we were different age groups, I think I only played in one tournament with Reece for Epsom Eagles. I can’t really remember it too well but I’m sure people have seen the picture of us together!

But we played in other tournaments together for the likes of Kingstonian and I carried on playing grassroots tournaments until I was around the age of 12.

I loved grassroots football, especially those summer tournaments when it would just be game after game. They were so much fun.

Growing up playing with my two brothers, Josh and Reece, meant I was used to playing against boys and I think I dealt with it well.

Josh was at Reading and Fulham growing up and there were only two years between him and Reece and then me and Reece, so they helped me massively.

They kind of helped pave the way for me in football from the start and even now, they help me.

My oldest brother Josh obviously has that football brain as well so he really helps me.

With me and Reece playing for England and Chelsea, people from the outside are a bit like ‘wow’ but from our point of view, it is difficult to take it in. We are just both on our own paths and looking to enjoy our football.

We are supportive of each other, where I will go to his games and he will go to my games when he can. We kind of leave each other to it though. Anything to do with football, we both know what we need to do so we just leave the other one to it. 

But outside of football, we have a great relationship and we are all really close. I think with our age gaps that helps, with it only being two years.

My dad was obviously massive for me as well because he runs his own football academy, Nigel James Elite Coaching.

Even when I was at clubs, I would still be doing coaching with him and that carried on until I moved to Manchester when I was 16.

The quality of the training there and being able to play in tight spaces in the cages and things like that, it really helped me.

To any kid thinking of getting into football, I would just say try it and see if you enjoy it.

If you are enjoying it and you stick at your football, you just never know where it could take you.