From Port Williams to CanMNT: How Jacob Shaffelburg’s character drove took him away and then back home again

The weather is warm and inviting and the Halifax Waterfront — with its buskers, boats and crowded beer gardens — is busy with activity. It feels like summer, which is to say everything is working out splendidly for local star and Canadian men’s national team player Jacob Shaffelburg, who has sung Nova Scotia’s praises to his teammates ahead of their visit.

Shaffelburg, as well as the rest of Canada’s squad, is in Halifax for a short training camp ahead of the inaugural Canadian Shield tournament. An all-important Concacaf Gold Cup — which represents the program’s last opportunity to win a trophy before the 2026 FIFA World Cup — begins shortly after. But for a few days, Shaffelburg is home and only an hour’s drive from his hometown of Port Williams. And, as he walks the waterfront dressed casually in a Canada Soccer dri-fit and shorts, he marvels on how much has changed football-wise in Nova Scotia.

Only a day earlier, thousands of fans filled the historic Wanderers Grounds just for a chance to watch Shaffelburg and his teammates train. Red and white jerseys filled the grandstands. And kids lined up for a signature from the local kid who had made it to Major League Soccer and then exploded under CanMNT head coach Jesse Marsch last year at the Copa América.

The interest, if Shaffelburg’s packed media schedule is any indication, is palpable; it feels safe to say that Halifax is becoming a football town. And as Shaffelburg tells OneSoccer, it’s a reality he couldn’t have imagined a decade earlier.

“Honestly, I’m shocked every single time I hear the attendance (at a Tides or Wanderers match),” he says, sitting with a view of the water that pirates, sailors and soldiers have gazed upon for centuries. “I personally never thought that there were that many fans of (football) growing up. To see what they’ve been able to do with those two teams here is amazing.”

The national team’s visit is in itself, like the fortifications atop Citadel Hill, historic: the men’s program had never before been to Nova Scotia but Marsch, who has prioritized showcasing the team across Canada, made it a reality. Shaffelburg, in his own way, gave his coach some encouragement in January when he welcomed Marsch with a text “to the best province in Canada” during his stop on a cross country coaching tour. Marsch noted the possibility of visiting Halifax at that time but the fact it came to fruition only a few months later speaks to the connections the program is trying to build.

“I stand by that,” says Sharffelburg of his text to Marsch. “The weather’s been amazing. It just makes the province look even better and lives up to my text of the best province in Canada.”

MARITIME RAISED

Shaffelburg is from a small village, home to about 1,100 people, located in Nova Scotia’s agricultural heartland. He attended Port Williams Elementary School and played his youth football with Valley United SC. When he comes back to the East Coast, most of his time is spent with friends and family in Port Williams.

“I was kind of raised by the community. It kind of shows last night with the amount of people that were in my family section (during open training). I mean, I had my neighbours there. It’s a special place. Everyone loves each other,” says Shaffelburg.

Which is why, given the realities of trying to become a professional footballer from one of the country’s smallest provinces, leaving home was all the harder. Shaffelburg recalls one memory, when he’s about 14-years old, of having the youth national head coach visit and realizing he’d have to leave Nova Scotia to pursue his dream.

“I don’t know if he really watched us play, it was kind of just to check a box. That didn’t really sit right with me. If I’m going to do something, I’ve got to get out of here,” he says.

Shaffelburg says he and his parents made a plan and, at 15-years old, he headed off to the United States to attend a prep school to further his footballing career. He hasn’t looked back since.

Not that he hasn’t had his fair share of moments back home, highlighted by CanMNT's camp.

Before the Canadian Premier League was in full swing, Shaffelburg had the opportunity to compete with Atlantic Selects — a squad put together by the soon-to-be Halifax Wanderers — versus German club Fortuna Düsseldorf’s U-21s. The match was at the Wanderers Grounds.

“Honestly, I was a little annoyed because I didn’t start that game,” he says. “Stephen Hart was the coach but I mean, he probably says he regrets it a little bit, maybe now, but I was really hoping to start that one.

“It was my first real moment of just seeing how many fans and how many people really support the game here. It’s so cool to see and now we get to see it almost every weekend with the Wanderers and Tides.”

Later, as a member of Toronto FC, Shaffelburg would again grace the grounds but this time as a visiting player during the Canadian Championship. He scored the deciding goal which put Toronto FC over the edge.

NATIONAL TEAM RISE

Although he’s done well with Nashville SC, Shaffelburg’s international rise coincides with the appointment of Marsch. Like a sailboat harnessing the sea breeze, the 25-year old forward has gained momentum in Marsch’s energetic, press-laden system and hasn’t looked back.

Copa América, in many ways, highlighted both the potential of the program and that of a kid from Port Williams who had been searching for the opportunity to prove himself on the biggest stages.

However, Shaffelburg is not one to dwell on his achievements.

“I don’t have a lot to say about Copa América and all that success I had. I try to be proud of myself for what happened but I try not to think about it too much and just kind of live in the present, day by day,” he says.

“I don’t feel like I’ve made it yet. I’m always worried about my spot or being replaced or something like that. I’m never really comfortable ever. I guess that’s the Maritime grit and trying to make the province of Nova Scotia proud every time I step on the field.”

Shaffelburg has become a starter for Canada in recent months but strives to remain the unassuming, hard working person he was raised to be. When asked about being nicknamed ‘Maritime Messi’, which smacks of the grandiose, he can’t help but laugh.

“The Messi thing is funny because I couldn’t be more of an opposite player than that guy,” he says.

But there’s no doubt Shaffelburg has become emblematic of what Marsch is trying to instill in his squad: full-throttle pressing, a commitment to work and a willingness to rise to the occasion. It’s how a kid from Port Williams has been capped 23 times for his country. It’s how a player, who traveled the continent for opportunities, came back to score a goal with Toronto FC in his hometown. And it’s how Shaffelburg intends to continue as Canada prepares to play host for the World Cup.

“Jesse’s a great coach to play for. He’s given me a lot of confidence,” he says. “It’s the best style I can play.”

He’s bagged six goals for Canada so far and, with a little luck, there’s no reason he can’t add to that tally as Canada eyes all the possibilities 2026 will bring.