Portmore United Football Club is a Jamaican professional football team in the top flight Jamaica Premier League. With 7 Jamaica Premier League titles, 5 domestic cups and 2 Caribbean Club Championships, Portmore United is the most decorated club in Jamaican Football.
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| Full name | Portmore United Football Club | ||
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| Nickname(s) | PMU | ||
| Founded | 1985 (as Hazard United) 2003 (as Portmore United F.C.) | ||
| Ground | Ferdi Neita Sports Complex Portmore, Jamaica | ||
| Capacity | 2,500 | ||
| Chairman | Garwin Tulloch | ||
| Manager | Shane Nelson | ||
| Coach | Rodolph Austin | ||
| League | Jamaica Premier League | ||
| 2023–24 | Regular season: 4th Playoffs: Quarterfinals | ||
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The team plays its home matches at the Ferdie Nieta Park.
History
editHazard United
editThe club was formed as Hazard United and has been around for more than 20 years. They started out in the Clarendon League in Division 2, then played two years in Division 1 when they qualified for Craven A Premier League. They have been in Jamaica National Premier League ever since. Hazard United were based in May Pen and won two league titles (1993 and 2003).[1]
Move to Portmore and rebranding as Portmore United
editPortmore United was founded in the late 20th century in Hazard as Hazard United. In the early 21st century, the club moved to Clarendon and renamed itself to honor its Clarendon home. JFF regulations stipulated that each club have stands with seating capacity of at least 1,500 persons, which Clarendon did not have. In order to honor this requirement, the team subsequently moved to St. Catherine and began to use the Ferdi Neita Sports Complex. Initially, Clarendon and the St. Catherine football club agreed to share the same stadium. However, in 2002, St. Catherine suggested Clarendon change its affiliation to become a St. Catherine team. However, due to an anaemic growth rate in support due to a club name which was not locally identifiable, Clarendon instead chose to move to Portmore and rebrand itself as Portmore United.[2] The club has won four (4) Premier League titles since it relocated to the Portmore community.
The club also has teams in youth divisions, including Under 20, Under 17, Under 15, and Under 13. A number of players from these teams have been capped with their respective Jamaica national teams.
In October 2008, Portmore were stunned as technical director Donovan Duckie quit the club for personal reasons. Duckie had only recently succeeded Horace Reid in August 2008 after Portmore won the league title.[3] The team’s current management staff includes Andre Waugh as technical director and joint head coaches Philip Williams, Rodolph Austin and Kevin Deerr.
Modern Era
editPortmore United defeated Cavalier 2-0 in the inaugural 2023 Lynk Cup all-island knockout final to claim the first ever Lynk Cup trophy.[4] Adding to the team existing 4 JFF Champions Cup titles, Portmore United now has a record setting 5 all-island knockout titles.
Rivalries
editPortmore Derby
A local derby has developed between Portmore United and Dunbeholden since the latter’s promotion to the premier league in the 2018-19 season. Both clubs are closely located in the city of Portmore, the matchup is coined the Portmore Derby.[5]
Current squad
editNote: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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Honours
editOfficial trophies (recognized by CONCACAF and FIFA)
edit- Jamaica Premier League
- JFF Champions Cup
- Champions (5): 2000, 2003, 2005, 2007, 2023
International
editDoubles
edit- League & JFF Champions Cup: 2002–03
- League & Caribbean Club Championship: 2018–19
Trebles
edit- League, JFF Champions Cup & Caribbean Club Championship: 2004–05
Former players who played at international clubs
edit
Jason Morrison- Alvas Powell
- Omar Daley
- Claude Davis
- Rodolph Austin
- Jermie Lynch
- Duwayne Kerr
- Ricardo Cousins
- Lamar Walker
- Andre Lewis
- Chavany Willis
- Shakeone Satchwell
- Cory Burke
- Maalique Foster
- Javon East
- Ricardo Morris
- Tremaine Stewart
- Ewan Grandison
- Shavar Thomas
- Linval Dixon
- Paul Young
- Rafe Wolfe
- Wolry Wolfe
- Demar Stewart
- Roen Nelson
- Damian Williams
- Eric Vernan
- Venton Evans
- Tevin Shaw
- Michael Binns
Former coaches
edit- Leebert Halliman
- Horace Reid
- Bradley Stewart
- Lenworth Hyde
- Donovan Duckie
- Neville Bell
- Calvin Lewis
- Andre Waugh
- Paul Young (2005–07)
- Linval Dixon (2007–09), (2010)
- Shavar Thomas (2017–19)
- Ricardo Gardner (2019–21)
- Lenworth Hyde (2021–22)
- Philip Williams (2022–present)
References
edit- ^ Portmore United kick off against newcomers Cosmos Archived 2013-11-09 at the Wayback Machine – Jamaica Gleaner
- ^ Portmore United move ahead Archived 2005-03-18 at the Wayback Machine – Jamaica Gleaner
- ^ Duckie walks;Portmore TD quits to be closer to young son in Portland Archived 2008-10-29 at the Wayback Machine – Jamaica Observer
- ^ "Portmore claim Lynk Cup title". jamaica-gleaner.com. 2023-05-26. Retrieved 2023-10-03.
- ^ Walker, Howard (2023-03-19). "Portmore, Dunbeholden in derby clash for play-off spots". Jamaica Observer. Retrieved 2023-11-11.
- ^ "Portmore United FC – Jamaica Premier League". 2023-10-20. Retrieved 2023-11-17.
- ^ "Jamaica - Portmore United FC - Results, fixtures, squad, statistics, photos, videos and news - Soccerway". us.soccerway.com. Retrieved 2023-11-17.
- ^ "Jamaica — List of Champions". rsssf.org. Archived from the original on 2024-06-27. Retrieved 2023-10-21.
External links
edit- Team profile at Golocal Jamaica (archived 8 November 2003)
- Portmore captures End-of-Round final – Jamaica Observer
- Portmore ready for more in RPL – Jamaica Gleaner