Nia Jones

Nia Jones
Nia Jones 2015
Personal information
Date of birth (1992-04-06) 6 April 1992 (age 32)
Place of birth Wrexham, Wales
Height 1.70 m (5 ft 7 in)[1]
Position(s) Defender
Team information
Current team
 Swansea City
Number 24
Youth career
Northop Hall Girls
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2010–2015 Cardiff City
2015–2017 Reading
2017 Yeovil Town 8 (0)
2024- Swansea City 0 (0)
International career
Wales U19
Wales 30 (2)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 10:37, 15 August 2017 (UTC)

Nia Jones (born 6 April 1992) is an athlete who has represented Wales internationally at both netball and football. She won the FAW Young Player of the Year Award in 2011. She was nominated for the SportingWales Magazine and UWIC Rising Star Award in 2013.[2] She currently plays for Adran Premier club Swansea City.

Early and personal life

Jones was born in Wrexham.[2] After attending school at Ysgol Maes Garmon she later studied Sports and PE at the University of Wales Institute, Cardiff.[2]

Netball career

Nia Jones
Personal information
Born (1992-04-06) 6 April 1992 (age 32)
Wrexham, Wales
Height 1.70 m (5 ft 7 in)[1]
School Ysgol Maes Garmon
University University of Wales Institute, Cardiff
Netball career
Playing position(s): GD, WD
Years Club team(s) Apps
Cardiff Dragons
Years National team(s) Caps
2012–2019 Wales

Jones plays netball as either goal defence or wing defence.[1] She began her career at Mold Netball Club, and she captained the Welsh national teams at under-17 and under-21 youth level. She also played for Manchester Thunder Youth and Junior Dragons.[3] She was also Co-Captain of the Wales Senior Team.[2]

She was captain of the Celtic Dragons for their 2019 Super League season.[4]

During the 2021-2022 season she captained the Celtic Dragons, before moving to play for the Leeds Rhinos in the 2022-2023 season.[5] For the 2023-2024 season she returned to Cardiff Dragons[6] (renamed from the Celtic Dragons in August 2023).[7]

Jones played for the Welsh Feathers, and was a squad member at the 2013 Netball Europe Open Championship where they won Gold.[8] She was also part of Team Wales at the 2014 and 2018 Commonwealth Games. In 2015, she was not selected for the Netball World Cup team due to clashes between netball training and an international football fixture. In 2017, she was selected for the Celtic Flames, playing in an International Super Cup competition.[9]

She was captain of the Welsh Feathers during the 2023 Netball World Cup, hosted in South Africa.[10]

In 2024, after the Cardiff Dragons failed to renew her contract for the 2024-2025 season, she decided not to trial for the Welsh National Team, and subsequently announced her retirement from professional netball.[11]

Football career

Jones began her career at Northop Hall Girls, and played for Wales at under-17, under-19 and under-21 level before scoring on her senior debut aged 18, as a substitute in an 8-1 victory over Bulgaria in 2010.[2]

She played club football for Cardiff City, before moving to Reading in the FAWSL in July 2015.[12] She left Reading when her contract expired in 2016.[13] She has also played numerous times at senior international level for Wales.[14] Since 2018, Jones has been a regular pundit and co-commentator at Welsh International matches on behalf of BBC Sport Wales, having also attended the FIFA World Cup in Qatar.

On 5 September 2024, Jones signed for Adran Premier club Swansea City on a semi-professional contract for the upcoming season.[15]

References

  1. ^ a b c "Profile". England Netball. Archived from the original on 24 September 2015. Retrieved 3 July 2015.
  2. ^ a b c d e "Netball: Nia Jones shortlisted for national award". Daily Post. 11 April 2013. Retrieved 3 July 2015.
  3. ^ "194 – Nia Jones - Wales Netball". 13 June 2023. Retrieved 2 October 2024.
  4. ^ "Celtic Dragons 'play best as underdogs' - Nia Jones". BBC Sport. 3 March 2019. Retrieved 2 October 2024.
  5. ^ "Nia Jones joins Leeds Rhinos after departing Celtic Dragons". BBC Sport. 26 August 2022. Retrieved 2 October 2024.
  6. ^ "Nia Jones: Wales skipper returns to Cardiff Dragons from Leeds Rhinos". BBC Sport. 5 September 2023. Retrieved 2 October 2024.
  7. ^ Waterhouse, Richard (31 August 2023). "Celtic Dragons unveil new identity as Cardiff Dragons". Netball Super League. Retrieved 2 October 2024.
  8. ^ "Uncapped Nia Jones named in Wales squad for Euro championship". BBC Sport. 29 May 2013. Retrieved 3 July 2015.
  9. ^ "Netball: Celtic Flames add Chelsea Lewis and Nia Jones". BBC Sport. 20 June 2017. Retrieved 2 October 2024.
  10. ^ "Jones Joins Swansea City Following Netball Blow". BBC Sport. 5 September 2024.
  11. ^ "Jones 'hurt' as Feathers and Dragons career ends". BBC Sport. 18 August 2024.
  12. ^ "Nia Jones: World Cup netball omission leads to Reading move". BBC Sport. 3 July 2015. Retrieved 3 July 2015.
  13. ^ "Nia Jones: Wales defender leaves Reading Women as contract expires". BBC Sport. 19 December 2016. Retrieved 2 October 2024.
  14. ^ "WALES WOMEN'S SENIOR SQUAD ANNOUNCED". Football Association of Wales. 19 February 2015. Archived from the original on 22 February 2015. Retrieved 3 July 2015.
  15. ^ "Swansea City Women sign defender Nia Jones | Swansea". www.swanseacity.com. Retrieved 5 September 2024.
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