Manjrekar James Comes To The Hammer

Three-time CPL champions Forge FC hase retained a staggering 19 players from its title-winning season last year, with the first brand new face being quite a head-turner in Manjrekar James.

The veteran centre-back arrives to Hamilton after accruing extensive experience at both the national team and club levels, where he’s featured in the UEFA Champions League.

James has signed on with the Canadian Premier League side after most recently featuring for Ukrainian Premier League side Chornomorets Odessa, for whom he featured in 13 matches.

💥 Primer gol de @ManjrekarJames con FK Chernomorets Odessa en la Premier Liha ucraniana 🇺🇦 #PremierLiha #RGplayers ⚽️ pic.twitter.com/EYtR1DeYtm

— ℝ𝔾𝔽𝕠𝕠𝕥𝕓𝕒𝕝𝕝 (@rgfootball_web) September 5, 2022

“We are very happy to have Manjrekar join our club ahead of the 2023 season,” said Forge FC Director of Football and Business Costa Smyrniotis. “He is a top defender, with tremendous international experience that will no doubt increase the quality of our squad.”

The North York native – who spent a few years developing with Sigma FC – has spent his professional career abroad, mostly in Hungry and Denmark. He got his professional start with top flight Hungerian side Pecsi MFC, going on to play for the likes of Diosgyori and Vasas in Hungary before a move to Denmark with FC Midtjylland.

A homecoming for @ManjrekarJames 🇨🇦#ForgeFC | #CanPL pic.twitter.com/qqQWNC8Awi

— Forge FC (@ForgeFCHamilton) March 10, 2023

It was with the Superligaen side where he featured in the UEFA Champions League, with James making 18 appearances before being loaned to PAS Lamia. After two loan spells with Fredericia and Lamia, he moved to Vejle before landing in Ukraine.

James has also made 17 appearances for Canada, making his debut in a friendly against Iceland in 2015 before his first competetive bout against his native Dominica later on. His last appearances came in 2020 in a 4-1 win over Barbados.

The Forge backline has enjoyed a consistent flow of national team veterans popping in throughout the years, with the likes of David Edgar, Dejan Jakovic, and Ashtone Morgan all having signed on with the team at on point or another.

Flashback: Edgar Says National Team Veterans Are Eyeing CPL

With James accruing 170 professional appearances in Europe, he arrives as a significant boost to the club’s back-line – and an excellent choice to fill in the big shoes left by Daniel Krutzen.

Not that defender of the year Alexander Achinioti-Jonsson did a bad job there, of course. The dynasty club of the young league is only getting stronger!

Forge FC did not disclose the length of Manjrekar’s contract with the club.