Roberts Wesleyan Redhawks

On July 2nd, 2023 Malcolm Shaw walked through the tunnel of Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte, North Carolina to the tune of 50,000 screaming United States soccer fans. Walking onto a soccer pitch wasn't anything new for Shaw, as the former Roberts Wesleyan standout soccer player has spent most of his life with a soccer ball at his feet, but this moment in time felt different.
 
"I'm on an international stage and I came from a small school in Rochester," Shaw thought. "It was one of the biggest games of my career. Probably the biggest." The Pickering, Ontario native was entering the field to play for the Trinidad and Tobago men's national team in a CONCACAF Gold Cup match against the United States. Shaw played 70 minutes in the game, which saw the U.S. win 6-0.
 
Shaw grew up in Canada, but his mom was born in Trinidad which gave him eligibility to play as a member of the Trinidad and Tobago national team. The team had been evaluating Shaw for some time, ever since he had joined Atletico Ottawa in the Canadian Premier League, but without all the correct documentation, Shaw was unable to attend a tryout or camp with the squad.
 
Receiving the opportunity to play on the national team for Trinidad and Tobago was a long process for Shaw, a story of patience that only he might be able to fully share and understand, but enduring that process was already a skill Shaw had learned during his time at Roberts.
 
"Being just good at soccer would not have sustained me through all the challenges I've faced," Shaw said
 
Shaw joined the Redhawks in the fall of 2013 and played in all 18 games while tallying four assists. By his final two seasons, Shaw was a double-digit goal scorer and one of the top attackers in the East Coast Conference.
 
"During his time at Roberts, Malcolm matured as a young man and transitioned from being a good player to a dominant player," said Roberts Wesleyan head men's soccer coach, Scott Reber. "He gained confidence in himself during his four years and was captain and a leader on the team in his senior year."
 
But the journey wasn't always a straightforward path for the star player. Shaw had considered leaving Roberts to attend a larger division I institution. At the time, he felt that was his best move to develop as a player at a higher level. Despite feeling conflicted, Shaw stayed at Roberts, mostly in part to the people who surrounded him.
 
"Looking back now, it all makes sense," he said. "It was the place I was meant to be. Roberts was the best place to build and shape my character."
 
Shaw mentioned that he has come across plenty of extremely talented soccer players who have all the athletic gifts, but never worked on developing their character and that it's plagued them as a player.
 
It took two years for Shaw to pull together all the needed documentation for the Trinidad and Tobago national team. The club had wanted to call him up in both 2021 and 2022. "I was elated to be able to secure my documents because that was the one thing holding me back," Shaw said.
 
From his time at Roberts, to playing in Erie, Pa. to Sweden to losing opportunities due to the COVID-19 pandemic to heading back home to Canada to play, Shaw was more than ready to handle any challenge and adversity.
 
"All the work I put in, I was seeing the fruits of my labor," Shaw thought as he ran onto the pitch vs the U.S. with those 50,000 screaming fans.
 
Shaw has now played in five international matches with one goal that came on Sept. 11, 2023 in a 3-2 win against El Salvador.
 
"To see Malcolm now and see his success has been exciting to watch," Reber said. "During his junior and senior years, I felt like he had the ability and drive needed to play at the next level. I'm just so happy for him and was honored to be a small piece of his journey."
 
Just recently, Shaw signed a one-year deal with Cavalry FC in the Canadian Premier League. He is still in the pool for the Trinidad and Tobago national team and is hoping for another call up on the international stage.