On June 15, Portland Hearts of Pine squared off against Union Omaha at Fitzpatrick Stadium. Coming out of halftime, explosive winger Natty James laced up his boots and headed to midfield to come on as a second-half substitute…
… almost 3,000 miles away at PayPal Park in San Jose, Calif., where he was representing Trinidad and Tobago in the Soca Warriors’ CONCACAF Gold Cup opener against the US Men’s National Team.
The match was one of five Trinidad and Tobago internationals James appeared in last month, along with 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers against Saint Kitts and Nevis and Costa Rica, and Gold Cup matches against Haiti and Saudi Arabia. He started for the Soca Warriors against Haiti, and contributed off the bench in the other four matches.
James ran rampant during the waning moments of the 6-2 win against Saint Kitts and Nevis, assisting Atlanta United midfielder Ajani Fortune in the 85th minute before scoring the team’s sixth and final goal in the 89th minute. James’ strike was his fifth in 17 all-time appearances for the Soca Warriors, and was his second during the current World Cup qualifying cycle.
James returned to Maine following Trinidad and Tobago’s elimination from the Gold Cup, and jumped right back into action for Hearts: six days after playing against Saudi Arabia at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas, he played the full 90 minutes of a USL Jägermeister Cup match against Rhode Island FC.