Paul James (soccer)

Canadian soccer player (born 1963)

Paul JamesPersonal information

Full name|  Paul John James
Date of birth|  (1963-11-11) November 11, 1963 (age 61)
Place of birth|  Cardiff, Wales
Height|  5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)
Position(s)|  Midfielder
Youth career
|  Wilfrid Laurier Golden Hawks
Senior career*
Years|  Team|  Apps|  (Gls)
1983–1984|  Toronto Blizzard|  21|  (1)
1986|  Toronto Blizzard|  |
1987–1988|  Hamilton Steelers|  46|  (4)
1988|  Doncaster Rovers|  8|  (0)
1989|  Ottawa Intrepid|  24|  (0)
1990|  Hamilton Steelers|  6|  (0)
1991|  Toronto Blizzard|  27|  (1)
1992|  London Lasers|  20|  (0)
International career
1983–1993|  Canada|  46|  (2)
Managerial career
1989|  Ottawa Intrepid
1992|  London Lasers
1994|  Le Moyne Dolphins
1996–1997|  Niagara Purple Eagles (men and women)
1998–2001|  Canada U20
2004–2010|  York Lions

Medal record

Representing  Canada
Men's Association football
CONCACAF Championship
Winner | 1985 North America |

* Club domestic league appearances and goals

Paul John James (born November 11, 1963) is a retired professional soccer player who played as a midfielder. He was a one-time CONCACAF champion who represented Canada at both the Los Angeles 1984 Olympic Games and 1986 FIFA World Cup in Mexico. He later worked as a soccer analyst and soccer coach. He is an honoured member of the Canada Soccer Hall of Fame.

In 1998, James was granted his Canada Soccer Coaching "A" Licence. After working as a player-coach in the Canadian Soccer League, he later served as a coach with Canada's national youth teams from 1998 to 2001, including the FIFA U-20 World Cup in 2001. A graduate of Wilfrid Laurier University, James has added to his academic credentials by completing the prestigious Football Industries MBA (FIMBA) at the University of Liverpool in England.

In February 2012, Paul revealed he had suffered from a crack cocaine dependency for many years.[1] Paul was on a hunger strike to protest his mistreatment by York University over his "Substance Disability".[2]

## Early years

[edit]

James lived in Cardiff until July 3, 1980 when at 16 years of age he emigrated to Toronto, Canada, with his parents and sister Julie.

Departed Wales with a Canadian equivalent Grade 12 education and an athletic career which included being awarded Whitchurch High School's Athlete of the Year in 1980; two time Glamorgan champion at 800 metres with the fastest recorded times in Wales in 1977/78 for his age group; a third-place finish at the British Championships in the 1500 metres; excelled in soccer which included competing for Cardiff Schoolboys, county of Glamorgan, Cardiff City Youth Team, and Newport County Reserves as a 15 year old; while also competing in first team high school rugby and cricket.

From 1980 to 1982, James played for the Oakville Minor Soccer club winning an Ontario provincial championship. In 1982, Paul John James played for the Ontario Provincial team who won the Canadian national championships.

## Club career

[edit]

James developed into a top class midfield player while with the Toronto Blizzard. On the Blizzard team, James scored against the then famed New York Cosmos. He played in the North American Soccer League and Canadian Soccer League,[3] where he earned first team all-star honours on four consecutive occasions. In 1986, he played in the National Soccer League with Toronto Blizzard.[4] He also had a short stint with English league outfit Doncaster Rovers.

## International career

[edit]

Welsh-born James became a Canadian citizen in 1983 and arrived on the international scene when he made full appearances for Canada at the 1984 Olympics in Los Angeles. He made his senior debut for Canada in a December 1983 friendly match against Mexico in Irapuato, James played in all four of Canada's games at Los Angeles Olympics including quarter final game against Brazil losing on penalty kicks

He made 46 international "A" appearances for Canada (two goals) as well as additional "B" appearances including the Olympic Games.

James scored a crucial equalizer for Canada against Costa Rica in Toronto in 1985 that would help Canada qualify for the 1986 FIFA World Cup finals in Mexico. He also played for Canada in the penultimate game in the 1985 CONCACAF Championship that would secure the national team the continental title along with the lone North American spot in the 1986 FIFA World Cup. A member of the country's 1986 World Cup team, he played in all three games in the group stage of the finals. He represented Canada in 7 World Cup qualifiers.[5]

James' last two games for Canada were a pair of friendlies in March 1993, a 2-2 draw against the United States in Los Angeles, and his final international match, a 2-0 loss against South Korea in Coquitlam, British Columbia.

### International goals

[edit]

Scores and results list Canada's goal tally first.
# | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition

|
|
|
|
|
|

1 | October 24, 1984 | Stade Moulay Abdellah, Rabat, Morocco |  Morocco |  | 2–3 | Friendly match
2 | August 17, 1985 | Varsity Stadium, Toronto, Canada |  Costa Rica | 1–1 | 1–1 | 1986 FIFA World Cup qualification

## Coaching career

[edit]

After serving as player/coach at Ottawa and London, James also coached at LeMoyne College in Syracuse, New York, leading them to within one game of an NCAA berth and an NCAA Division II national ranking as high as 12th, Niagara University and Canada men's national under-20 soccer team. As head coach of the Under-20 team, he led them to the 2001 FIFA World Youth Championship in Argentina. James thus became the first Canadian to represent Canada at a FIFA World Championships both as a player and coach.

Through his coaching career, Paul has garnered six coach of the year awards at varying levels including; CSL, NCAA, and OUA. In 2007, James received the CIS (Canadian Interuniversity Sport) national coach of the year award. James has a reputation for developing successful soccer programs. In 2008, James coached York to the CIS Canadian Championship game where they won the title. On January 16, 2010, James announced his departure from York University after serving with the Lions for six years.[6]

## Soccer analyst

[edit]

From 2004 to 2008, James was an analyst for The Footy Show on The Score television network, along with James Sharman and the late Brian Budd. He also provided soccer analysis for GolTV in Canada until April 2009. Paul has appeared on the CBC and Sportsnet on numerous occasions and has written for The Globe and Mail. James was also a frequent podcast contributor to RedNation Online.[7]

## Author, advocacy for human rights protection

[edit]

Authored Crack Open (2012); Owner Author Confronting the Stigma of Drug Addiction; Submissions to HRTO, Divisional Court of Appeal; Ontario Court of Appeal and Supreme Court of Canada (2012–2019).

## Honours

[edit]

Canada

* CONCACAF Championship: 1985[8]

## References

[edit]

1. ^ Article on Paul James' autobiography
2. ^ Ormsby, Mary (September 7, 2018). "He was a Canadian soccer star. Now he's homeless and starving himself in a Toronto park on a lonely crusade for justice". Toronto Star. Retrieved September 8, 2019.
3. ^ "Paul James soccer statistics on StatsCrew.com".
4. ^ "Soccer". Newspapers.com. The Province. March 20, 1986. p. 17. Retrieved August 10, 2020.
5. ^ Record at FIFA Tournaments – FIFA
6. ^ "CIS: Paul James leaves York". theScore.com. January 6, 2010. Archived from the original on October 9, 2011. Retrieved June 2, 2012.
7. ^ Paul James on Soccer
8. ^ "Torneo Premundial 1985 (IX Campeonato de Naciones (NORCECA) CONCACAF)". Retrieved April 20, 2024.

## External links

[edit]

* Official website
* Paul James at National-Football-Teams.com
* Paul James NASL stats and jerseys
* Paul James at the Canadian Soccer Association

Canada squads

* v
* t
* e

Canada squad – 1984 Summer Olympics

* 1 Lettieri
* 2 Lenarduzzi
* 3 Wilson
* 4 Moore
* 5 Bridge
* 6 Ragan
* 7 Norman
* 8 Gray
* 9 Garraway
* 10 Mitchell
* 11 Sweeney
* 12 Vrablic
* 14 De Luca
* 15 James
* 16 Catliff
* 17 Martin
* 22 Habermann
* Coach: Waiters

* v
* t
* e

Canada squad – 1985 CONCACAF Championship winners (1st title)

* GK Dolan
* GK Habermann
* GK Lettieri
* DF Baird
* DF Bridge
* DF Lenarduzzi
* DF Moore
* DF Samuel
* DF Wilson
* DF Lowther
* MF De Luca
* MF Gray
* MF James
* MF Norman
* MF Ragan
* MF Sweeney
* FW Catliff
* FW Garraway
* FW Karpun
* FW Mitchell
* FW Pakos
* FW Valentine
* FW Vrablic
* Coach: Waiters

* v
* t
* e

Canada squad – 1986 FIFA World Cup

* 1 Lettieri
* 2 Lenarduzzi
* 3 Wilson (c)
* 4 Ragan
* 5 Moore
* 6 Bridge
* 7 Valentine
* 8 Gray
* 9 Segota
* 10 Vrablic
* 11 Sweeney
* 12 Samuel
* 13 Pakos
* 14 Mitchell
* 15 James
* 16 Ion
* 17 Norman
* 18 Lowery
* 19 De Luca
* 20 Miller
* 21 Habermann
* 22 Dolan
* Coach: Waiters

Managerial roles

* v
* t
* e

Niagara Purple Eagles men's soccer head coaches

* Alphonse Montagna (1969–1970)
* Michael Gomez (1971–1972)
* Philip Humphries (1973)
* Jean Tassy (1974–1981)
* Richard White (1982–1983)
* Niels Guldbjerg (1984)
* Gus Campbell (1985–1990)
* Don Antonio (1991–1992)
* Joe DeTommaso (1993)
* Chris Spacone (1994–1995)
* Paul James (1996–1997)
* Tim Smith (1998–2001)
* Dermot McGrane (2002–2010)
* Chase Brooks (2011–2012)
* Eric Barnes (2013–2015)
* Bill Boyle (2016– )

* v
* t
* e

Canada Soccer Hall of Fame

Based in Ottawa, Ontario

Hall of Fame|

Players (144)

| Men|

| Pre-WW2|

* G. M. Anderson
* Bowman
* Campbell
* Clulow
* Coulter
* Derby
* Dierden
* Edmunds
* Findler
* Fitzpatrick
* Graham
* Halliwell
* Harley
* Lavery
* MacLaine
* Manson
* Matthews
* Moir
* Nelson
* A. Smith
* Stobbart
* Thombs
* W. Thomson
* Turner
* Wakelyn
* Woutersz
* Chedgzoy
* Kennaway
* McDonald

|

Post-WW2|

* Ambler
* Arends
* Ayre
* Bak
* Blundell
* Bolitho
* J. Brand
* Cairns
* M. Castonguay
* P. Castonguay
* R. Castonguay
* Chursky
* Cowan
* Crossan
* Douglas
* Ellett
* Gill
* Greig
* Harvey
* Hughes
* Iarusci
* Ion
* Johnson
* Kodelja
* R. Lenarduzzi
* S. Lenarduzzi
* Lettieri
* Marcantonio
* Matheson
* McGrane
* N. McLeod
* W. McLeod
* D. McMahon
* Newbold
* Parsons
* Pears
* B. Philley
* P. Philley
* Phillips
* Robinson
* Schepers
* B. Smith
* Spencer
* A. Stevens
* G. Stevens
* Stewart
* Stojanović
* Stothard
* Vazzoler
* Whent
* Whittaker
* B. Wilson
* Nicholl

Modern|

* Bernier
* Brennan
* Bridge
* Bunbury
* Catliff
* Corazzin
* Dasovic
* De Rosario
* deVos
* Dolan
* Forrest
* Gray
* Hastings
* Hooper
* Limniatis
* McKenna
* Miller
* Mitchell
* Mobilio
* Moore
* Onstad
* Peschisolido
* Radzinski
* Ragan
* Samuel
* Segota
* Stalteri
* Sweeney
* Valentine
* Watson
* Yallop

Women|

* S. Brand
* Burtini
* Cant
* Caron
* Chapman
* Chin Baker
* David
* Donnelly
* Franko
* Gayle
* Helland
* Hermus
* Hooper
* Kelly
* Lang
* LeBlanc
* Lemieux
* McEachern
* Mongrain
* Morneau
* Moscato
* Muir
* Neil
* Ring
* Ross
* Serwetnyk
* Simon
* Stoumbos
* Timko
* Walsh
* Wilkinson

Builders (45)

* G. Anderson
* Arnold
* Avey
* Barrett
* Capozzi
* Cross
* Davidson
* Donaghey
* Etchegarry
* Fenton
* Fleming
* Forsyth
* Fried
* Fryatt
* Gilhespy
* Gittens
* Gross
* Hoyle
* Hubay
* Hylan
* Jose
* Kerr
* King
* Leggat
* J. McMahon
* Moro
* Muldoon
* O'Connor
* Peto
* P. Quinn
* T. Quinn
* Richardson
* Robertson
* Russell
* Sanford
* Sayer
* Schwartz
* Simpson
* Sokalski
* Southard
* Stambrook
* Stavro
* Stirling
* L. Wilson
* Wisdom

Managers & Coaches (13)

* Adam
* Bearpark
* Beliveau
* Bennett
* Brown
* Buchanan
* Goldberger
* Howard
* Petrie
* Slade
* B. Thomson
* Twamley
* Waiters

Officials (10)

* Arrowsmith
* Denoncourt
* Evangelista
* Kulai
* Lyons
* Morgan
* Satwell
* Soupliotis
* Vergara
* Winsemann

Organisations of Distinction (21)

* Calgary Callies
* CNSC Windsor Croatia
* Darlington SC
* Edmonton Angels
* Edmonton Ital Canadians SC
* Edmonton Scottish
* Feildians AA of St. John's
* Holy Cross FC
* Lakeshore SC
* Montréal Carsteel FC
* North Shore United FC
* Robbie International Youth Tournament
* St. Lawrence Laurentians
* Toronto Scottish FC
* Toronto Ulster United FC
* Vancouver Columbus
* Vancouver Firefighters
* Vancouver St. Andrews FC
* Victoria West
* West Indies United Toronto
* United Weston FC

Teams of Distinction (18)

* 1888 Canada men
* 1904 Galt
* 1907 Calgary Callies
* 1924 Canada men
* 1928 Westminster Royals
* 1933 Toronto Scottish
* 1976 Toronto Metros-Croatia
* 1979 Vancouver Whitecaps
* 1984 Canada Olympic men
* 1986 Canada World Cup men
* 1989 Canada Francophone Games men
* 1995 Canada World Cup women
* 1998 CONCACAF Women's Championship women
* 2000 Canada CONCACAF Gold Cup men
* 2010 Canada CONCACAF women
* 2012 Canada Olympic Bronze Medal
* 2016 Canada Olympic Bronze Medal
* 2021 Canada Olympic Gold Medal

*[Apps]: League appearances
*[Gls]: League goals
*[v]: View this template
*[t]: Discuss this template
*[e]: Edit this template
*[Clulow]: Joe Clulow
*[Derby]: Eddie Derby
*[Dierden]: Fred Dierden
*[Edmunds]: Ernie Edmunds
*[Findler]: Bill Findler
*[Lavery]: Bobby Lavery
*[MacLaine]: Eddie MacLaine
*[Matthews]: Bill Matthews
*[Nelson]: Jimmy Nelson
*[A. Smith]: Alec Smith
*[Thombs]: Albert Thombs
*[W. Thomson]: Walter Thomson
*[Turner]: Dave Turner (soccer, born 1903)
*[Wakelyn]: Stan Wakelyn
*[Woutersz]: Artie Woutersz
*[Ambler]: Frank Ambler
*[Arends]: Arends
*[Bak]: Eddie Bak
*[Blundell]: Jim Blundell
*[M. Castonguay]: Marcel Castonguay
*[P. Castonguay]: Paul-Émile Castonguay
*[R. Castonguay]: Roland Castonguay
*[Matheson]: Don Matheson
*[Newbold]: Bobby Newbold
*[Phillips]: Harry Phillips
*[Spencer]: Spencer
*[G. Stevens]: Gary Stevens
*[Vazzoler]: Gino Vazzoler
*[S. Brand]: Sue Brand
*[Cant]: Connie Cant
*[David]: Tracy David
*[Lemieux]: Jane Lemieux
*[Simon]: Sue Simon
*[Arnold]: Arther "Pop" Arnold
*[Avey]: Brian Avey
*[Barrett]: Angus Barrett
*[Cross]: Jeff Cross
*[Davidson]: Sam Davidson
*[Donaghey]: Sam Donaghey
*[Etchegarry]: Gus Etchegarry
*[Fenton]: William Fenton
*[Fleming]: Jim Fleming
*[Fried]: Tomas Fried
*[Fryatt]: Dave Fryatt
*[Gilhespy]: Bill Gilhespy
*[Gittens]: Rudy Gittens
*[Hoyle]: William Hoyle
*[Hubay]: Jim Hubay
*[Hylan]: Alex Hylan
*[Jose]: Colin Jose
*[King]: Eric King
*[J. McMahon]: John McMahon
*[Muldoon]: Kevin Muldoon
*[O'Connor]: Christine O'Connor
*[P. Quinn]: Pat Quinn
*[T. Quinn]: Terry Quinn
*[Richardson]: John Richardson
*[Robertson]: Tom Robertson
*[Russell]: John Russell
*[Sanford]: Aubrey Sanford
*[Sayer]: Bob Sayer
*[Schwartz]: George Schwartz
*[Simpson]: William Simpson
*[Sokalski]: Leeta Sokalski
*[Southard]: Alan Southard
*[Stirling]: William Stirling
*[Wisdom]: Derek Wisdom
*[Adam]: Jimmie Adam
*[Brown]: Stuart Brown
*[Buchanan]: John Buchanan
*[Goldberger]: Bert Goldberger
*[Slade]: Ted Slade
*[B. Thomson]: Bill Thomson
*[Kulai]: Dan Kulai
*[Lyons]: Horace Lyons
*[Morgan]: Ray Morgan
*[Satwell]: Bob Sawtell
*[Soupliotis]: Dino Soupliotis