The Phoenix Sports Management takeover of the Rusea’s High School’s football programme has come with the possibility that Chapelton Maroons will find themselves at a new home come the 2026-27 Jamaica Premier League season.While questions swirled around whether the Craig Butler-led management group had the resources to take on Mona High School, Vauxhall High School, its own Phoenix Academy, and Jamaica Premier League outfit, the Chapelton Maroons, as well as Rusea’s, a happy middle ground seems to have been found.Not long before the announcement that Phoenix would take charge of Rusea’s, the management group had learnt that its Turners Oval home ground had been bought by Cavalier Soccer Club.According to Butler, without a home field in Clarendon, playing at Rusea’s may just be the filip.“We don't have a home ground in Clarendon any more,” said Butler, pointing out that while Chapelton will remain part of the Clarendon Football Association, he has had to give serious thought to the way forward.“So we will now be considering putting our games at Rusea’s, because it's a nice field.“The location is really good, the people are good, and we'll get the support, especially with our Rusea’s and Mona players playing on the team,” said Butler.According to the Phoenix boss, the partnership could lead to daCosta Cup title in as little as two years. “Within two years, we will win the daCosta Cup. The players at Rusea’s have the quality to go ahead and win already. All they need is a good, proper system with guidance and motivation,” said Butler.According to Butler, the support from the school and community has given his Phoenix group reason to be optimistic.“We have not chosen to switch the FA affiliation just yet but to play our games where we will have full support, and the people of Hanover and Rusea’s have been extremely open, welcoming, and decent to us and we appreciate it,” he said.“We are looking to fill those stands. We are looking to move our JPL team games to Rusea’s, so it’s really to include those young players into the JPL team as well.“It’s an overall package of development, of growth, of advancement for the school and for the players and the community of Hanover and Lucea.”The Phoenix administrative team replaced Paul ‘Tegat’ Davis at Rusea’s, former kingpins of rural schoolboy football with 11 daCosta Cup titles, second only to Cornwall College with 12. The Hanover-based school won its first daCosta Cup in 1984, and over the years it has produced some well-known players in Jamaica's football, including Aaron Lawrence, Mark 'Hagler' Wilson, Stephen 'Shorty' Malcolm, Caple Donaldson, Michael Graham, and Donald Hewitt from the golden era of the mid-1980s, along with others who came later, such as Easton 'Fuma' Smith, Deshane Beckford and Brian 'Rambo' Brown, most of whom went on to represent Jamaica.In 1985, the Lucea-based school created history, as in addition to retaining their daCosta Cup title, they also won the Ben Francis Cup, the Olivier Shield, and the Nutrament Shield.The 'Russians' have also won or shared the Olivier Shield a total of six times, and won the Ben Francis Cup on four occasions.However, the last daCosta Cup title was won in 2017, when they defeated Clarendon College, who were champions at the time.Since then, Rusea's have failed to advance past the second round.
New home for Chapelton? - Butler plans to combine Chapelton, Rusea’s programmes
The Phoenix Sports Management takeover of the Rusea’s High School’s football programme has come with the possibility that Chapelton Maroons will find themselves at a new home come the 2026-27 Jamaica Premier League season.While questions swirled around whether the Craig Butler-led management group had the resources to take on Mona High School, Vauxhall High School, its own Phoenix Academy, and Jamaica Premier League outfit, the Chapelton Maroons, as well as Rusea’s, a happy middle ground seems to have been found.








