‘We’ll be back’
Treasure Beach already plotting return to JPL
Although admitting that the Wray & Nephew Jamaica Premier League was too big of a step for the club, Treasure Beach FC Chairman Jason Henzell says he’s putting plans in place to make a return for the 2025-26 season.
The newcomers in the league ended a four-decade drought for the parish of St Elizabeth in the top division, but couldn’t avoid relegation as they only managed to win three out of their 26 matches, ultimately finishing 13th with 13 points which sees them return to the Jamaica Football Federation Championship, the second division, for next season.
Omar Wedderburn, who guided the club to promotion, resigned as head coach in February with the club in the relegation zone. He was eventually replaced by Victor Ebanks.
However, Henzell says a coaching change earlier in the campaign could have made a difference.
“I was really hoping Coach Wedderburn would have had better results and I wanted to give him a really honest true test but he was not getting the results, no matter which way we looked at it,” he told the Jamaica Observer. “Victor was able to pick up the players without losing a beat and we ended the season in a way we could look back and well, we did the best with what we had.”
Treasure Beach played most of their home games at the St Elizabeth Technical High School (STETHS) Complex. Prior to the start of the season, Henzell said it was a ‘blessing in disguise’ as he expected a great turnout in terms of supporters. However, that wasn’t the case as the season went along.
“Even though STETHS was a good partner to us, we didn’t make the most of our home support from Treasure Beach,” he said. “Jamaicans, by culture, follow winners and we don’t tend to stay with our teams when they’re down so, of course, that is hard to accept but that’s just the reality of our culture. We thought we would have had a bigger fanbase than we did but after the losses that we suffered, we realised our fanbase was diminishing quite quickly. It was a reality we had to deal with and accept.”
Henzell, though, says he’s learnt valuable lessons which his team couldn’t prepare for.
“There’s a very big learning curve between tier two, which you could argue is a semi-professional league, and the top league,” he said. “It changes the game in every single way — expectations of players, coaches, medical bills and the truth is it’s a very quick learning curve that you have to adjust to. It’s our first time in the league, so some things caught us by surprise and the honeymoon period doesn’t last very long.
“[But] as a newcomer, I would say I have no regrets and I got a lot of support from fellow Premier League managers, chairmen and the leadership of the league. I’ve learnt a lot, we’ve all learnt a lot. What to do and what not to do.”
Henzell says youth development and upgrading their home venue will be a priority over the next year as they look to make a swift return.
“Our intention is to build stands and upgrade our field at the Treasure Beach Sports Park so that when we do come back to the Premier League, our games will be held right there in our community where we know we will have a tremendous amount of support,” he said. “I understand that level of competition and I feel as though we will be ready with our grounds and our coaching staff and to keep a stronger alliance not only with STETHS but with also Munro, BB Coke, Newell, Black River, other high schools in the parish to really nurture the young talent among us.”