Commonwealth Games: Jazz Brown’s Achilles injury puts Leeds Rhinos and England goalkeeper out of Glasgow 2026

England goalkeeper Jazz Brown will miss the rest of the Netball Premier League season and the Commonwealth Games this summer due to a serious Achilles tendon injury that will require surgery.

Brown, 24, who joined Leeds Rhinos from Birmingham Panthers at the end of the season, suffered the injury against Nottingham Forest on March 15, when he slipped on the pitch.

It was just the third league match with her new team for Doncaster-born Brown, who began her sporting career as a promising tennis player before switching to netball in her late teens.

She made her debut for England against New Zealand in November 2025, but will be denied the chance to feature for the Roses in Glasgow 2026 while she undergoes what the Rhinos expect will be a “lengthy” rehabilitation for her injury.

Her signing with the Rhinos was a coup after Brown was named to the NSL team of the season in 2025, but they will have to cope without her until next year.

“As difficult as this moment is, I choose to remain positive and more determined than ever to return stronger to the sport I love,” Brown said.

“I love a challenge, and I look forward to using this time to grow mentally and physically, with a strong focus on the 2027 season.

“Being ruled out for the rest of the season is tough, especially with the Commonwealth Games coming up, but I know this is not the end of my story and I will be back for more.”

Rhinos coach Lauren Palmer said: “We are all disappointed in her. She is a great talent and teammate, but she has a great attitude and is a determined player and we know she will come back stronger after this setback.”

The news of Brown not being available for England comes in the week that Roses coach Jess Thirlby unexpectedly stepped down four months before the Commonwealth Games.

Thirlby’s assistant, Anna Stembridge, who was England’s coach from 2011 to 2015, will lead the team at this summer’s Olympics on an interim basis.

England won gold at the 2018 Gold Coast Commonwealth Games but missed out on a medal at the 2022 edition in Birmingham.

The netball competitions will be held in Glasgow 2026 from July 25 to August 2, with England playing in Group A alongside Australia, the number one team in the world, in addition to South Africa, Malawi, Tonga and Northern Ireland.