Personal information | |||
---|---|---|---|
Full name | Nyal Christian-Anthony Higgins | ||
Date of birth | January 19, 1998 | ||
Place of birth | Ajax, Ontario, Canada | ||
Height | 1.88 m (6 ft 2 in) | ||
Position(s) | Centre-back | ||
Team information | |||
Current team | York United FC | ||
Youth career | |||
Ajax SC | |||
Vaughan SC | |||
College career | |||
Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
2016–2018 | Oakland Golden Grizzlies | 49 | (4) |
2019 | Syracuse Orange | 19 | (1) |
Senior career* | |||
Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
2016 | Vaughan Azzurri | 5 | (0) |
2017 | Michigan Bucks | 8 | (0) |
2018 | Vaughan Azzurri | 3 | (0) |
2020–2021 | Toronto FC II | 9 | (0) |
2020 | → Nyköpings BIS (loan) | 17 | (1) |
2021 | → Atlético Ottawa (loan) | 8 | (0) |
2022 | FC Edmonton | 24 | (0) |
2023 | Vaughan Azzurri | 18 | (0) |
2024– | York United FC | 16 | (1) |
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of October 27, 2023 |
Nyal Christian-Anthony Higgins (born January 19, 1998) is a Canadian professional soccer player who plays for York United FC in the Canadian Premier League.
In 2016, he attended Oakland University, playing for the Golden Grizzlies soccer team. As a freshman, he was named to the Horizon League All-Freshman Team and the NSCAA All-Great Lakes Regional Third Team. In his sophomore and junior seasons, he was named to the All-Horizon League Second Team. [1] In 2019, he transferred to Syracuse University to play for the Syracuse Orange soccer team. [2]
During the 2016 and 2018 seasons, he played with Vaughan Azzurri in League1 Ontario. [3] In 2017, he played with the Michigan Bucks in the Premier Development League. [4] In 2018, he trained with three Major League Soccer clubs - Sporting Kansas City, Columbus Crew SC, and Nashville SC. [5] He later trained with Toronto FC in 2019. [6]
He was selected 19th overall by Toronto FC in the 2020 MLS SuperDraft. [7] He attended pre-season with the club, but ultimately did not make the final roster for 2020. [8] In July, he signed a USL contract with the second-team Toronto FC II. [9] He was soon after sent on loan to Nyköpings BIS in the Swedish third tier, following TFC II's withdrawal from the 2020 USL League One season due to the COVID-19 pandemic. [10] He scored his first goal on November 21, in a 7-1 defeat to IF Brommapojkarna. [11] He made his debut for Toronto FC II on May 22, 2021 against North Texas SC. [12]
In August 2021, Higgins joined Canadian Premier League side Atlético Ottawa on loan. [13] [14] He made his debut in a substitute appearance, on August 25, against Forge FC. [15]
In February 2022, he signed a contract with FC Edmonton in the Canadian Premier League. [16]
In 2023, he returned to Vaughan Azzurri. [17] He was named a league Second Team All-Star at the end of the season. [18]
In April 2024, he signed a one-year contract with a club option for 2025 with York United FC in the Canadian Premier League. [19] [20] He scored his first CPL goal on September 6, 2024, in a 1-0 victory over Vancouver FC. [21] [22]
He was a member of the U-18 and U-20 Canada national team talent pools. [23]
Club | Season | League | Playoffs | Domestic Cup | League Cup | Total | ||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
Vaughan Azzurri [25] | 2016 | League1 Ontario | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | ? | 0 | 5 | 0 | |
Michigan Bucks [26] | 2017 | PDL | 8 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 9 | 0 | |
Vaughan Azzurri [27] | 2018 | League1 Ontario | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | |
Toronto FC II | 2021 | USL League One | 9 | 0 | — | — | — | 9 | 0 | |||
Nyköpings BIS (loan) | 2020 | Ettan Norra | 17 | 1 | — | 2 | 0 | — | 19 | 1 | ||
Atlético Ottawa (loan) | 2021 | Canadian Premier League | 8 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | — | 8 | 0 | ||
FC Edmonton | 2022 | Canadian Premier League | 24 | 0 | — | 1 | 0 | — | 25 | 0 | ||
Vaughan Azzurri | 2023 [17] | League1 Ontario | 18 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 21 | 0 | |
York United FC | 2024 | Canadian Premier League | 16 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 19 | 0 | |
Career total | 108 | 2 | 5 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 118 | 1 |
Quillan Eon Myles Roberts is a professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for Western Suburbs in the New Zealand Central League. Born in Canada, he currently represents the Guyana national team after having previously represented Canada at both youth and senior level.
Dylan Jorge Guilherme Labao Carreiro is a Canadian professional soccer player who plays as a midfielder.
Jonathan Nicholas Grant is a professional soccer player who plays as a defender for Atlético Ottawa in the Canadian Premier League. Born in Canada, Grant plays for the Guyana national team.
Christopher Mannella is a Canadian former professional soccer player. He currently serves as the Academy Scouting Coordinator for the Philadelphia Union.
Klaidi Cela is a Canadian soccer player who plays for the Richmond Kickers in USL League One.
Dante Campbell is a Canadian professional soccer player who plays as a midfielder for Valour FC in the Canadian Premier League.
Daniel Gogarty is a Canadian professional soccer player who plays as a centre-back for Vaughan Azzurri in League1 Ontario.
Marcel Dominik Zajac is a Canadian professional soccer player who plays as a forward for League1 Ontario club Vaughan Azzurri.
Tristan Daniel Borges is a Canadian professional soccer player who plays as a midfielder for Canadian Premier League club Forge FC.
Matthew Arnone is a Canadian former professional soccer player who played as a centre-back.
Massimo Ferrin is a Canadian professional soccer player who plays as a forward for the HFX Wanderers of the Canadian Premier League.
Maximilian Ferrari is a Canadian professional soccer player who plays for York United of the Canadian Premier League.
Ijah Halley is a Canadian professional soccer player who plays as an winger for Simcoe County Rovers FC in League1 Ontario.
Jarred Phillips is a Canadian professional soccer player who currently plays for the Vaughan Azzurri of League1 Ontario.
Gianfranco Facchineri, also known as Frankie Facchineri, is a Canadian soccer player who plays for Canadian Premier League club Valour FC.
Baj Maan is a Canadian professional soccer player who plays as a goalkeeper for Vaughan Azzurri in League1 Ontario.
Ryan Robinson is a Canadian professional soccer player who plays as a forward for Vaughan Azzurri in League1 Ontario.
Colin Gander is a Canadian soccer player who plays as a defender for Guelph United FC in League1 Ontario.
Simon Triantafillou is a Canadian soccer player who plays for Burlington SC in League1 Ontario.
Riley Alexander Ferrazzo is a Canadian soccer player who plays for HFX Wanderers in the Canadian Premier League. Primarily a right-back, he has also played as a left-back, attacking midfielder and winger.