'It's a team sport,' Soca Warrior Nathaniel James embraces super-sub role

SOCA Warriors forward Nathaniel James said coach Dwight Yorke wants him to be more aggressive and to play to his strengths for the national men's team in the number nine role.

James, 20, has had a fine start to his international career – scoring a number of key goals in pressure situations. James has scored five goals in 13 outings for the Soca Warriors, including a goal in a 1-0 win over Curacao at the Hasely Crawford Stadium, Mucurapo in September 2023 in a Concacaf Nations League A outing. It was James' competitive debut, having played his first game for the senior team in a friendly versus Jamaica in March of that year.

Each of his James' goals has come off the bench, with the youngster scoring in his last two games – a tidy near post finish against Cuba in a 2025 Concacaf Gold Cup playoff on March 25 and the final goal in TT's 6-2 rout of St Kitts and Nevis in a Fifa 2026 World Cup qualifier in Mucurapo on June 6.

James said Yorke asked him to be "aggressive and explosive" and the Hearts of Pine forward did just that as he notched a goal and an assist in a lively 20-minute cameo.

"He (Yorke) wants me to use my runs, come in and play with my feet and move like that. He's more focused on building my confidence and making me understand what I'm good at. That's what I've been doing with him so far," James said, via a June 8 video from the TT Football Association.

In a team that also features strikers such as Spartak Moscow's Levi Garcia, Terminix La Horquetta Rangers' Isaiah Lee and Defence Force's Isaiah Leacock, who only debuted last month, James said he has received very clear instructions.

"He definitely has me working on my thinking of the game and understanding what I'm really good at. He doesn't want me to try things I may not be physically capable of. He likes to use me as a striker and I'm not the tallest or biggest."

In the 2023 TT Premier Football League season, James topped the scoring charts with 16 league goals for Club Sando before making a move to the Jamaican Premier League. With the ability to play varying positions in the attacking third, James' impact off the bench has certainly been felt thus far under Yorke, as well as former Soca Warriors coach Angus Eve. He's not making much fuss about his current role in the squad and just wants to produce once called upon.

"I try not to focus too much on worrying about starting because the coach wants to use the strongest team he feels can win the game from the start. As long as coach keeps me humble and motivated, I think I should be fine," he said, of his super-sub role.

"It's a team sport. I never try to think too ahead of myself and I never feel as though I should always be starting...I need to be able to understand that not everything comes so fast. I'm just trying to be patient and wait on my opportunity. And whatever opportunity I get, I try to grab it with both hands."

The Soca Warriors (seven points) are second in their second-round World Cup qualifying group with one game left against leaders Costa Rica (nine points). When the teams kick off from 9 pm in San Jose on June 10, James wants him and his teammates to put their best foot forward to make the final round.

"We saw Costa Rica play against the Bahamas. We believe we can definitely go out and compete. I think it's a good game for us to show ourselves as well and show our quality against a top team like Costa Rica. I think we just need to be focus, aggressive in our play and be mindful of our surroundings. It's definitely going to be a good game."

The top two teams will advance to the final round of qualifying, and TT will certainly have an eye on third-placed (four points) who will play away to St Kitts and Nevis from 3 pm on June 10 at Warner Park Football Stadium.