KINGSTON, Jamaica — While many persons were surprised by Vauxhall High’s sojourn deep into the ISSA Manning Cup competition, head coach Kyle Butler does not buy the dark horse or ‘surprise team’ labels tagged on his team.

Just like the school’s motto, “Knowledge is Power” if you know of the boundless talent in the surrounding area, then one would not be surprised by their success.

“I feel like that’s a narrative, but it’s not true. There’s a lot of talent in East Kingston. There’s a lot of talent at the school,” Butler told Observer Online.

“I just felt they needed the right person to come in and give the boys hope. That’s all I did. The boys really worked hard and did their part,” he explained.

Vauxhall High, located on Windward Road in front of the Bellevue Hospital, was built in 1951 as a secondary school, before being upgraded to high school status.

Before the start of the season, the school made a bold move to bring in the young and unproven Butler to be head coach and the impact was immediate as they  announced themselves in the Maning Cup positively.

Usually the beating stick for the traditional schools, Kyle, the son of Phoenix Academy founder Craig Butler, has changed that perspective, quickly taking Vauxhall to their first quarter-final playoff. They had never reached that far in the competition.

“I put in a lot of work myself, along with the coaching staff, the school and the support of the community. Without them, it wouldn’t be possible. There’s more to come,” he promised.

“A lot of these boys can play next year. The new programme is going well, and we have more plans,” he stated.

Vauxhall lost 0-1 to STATHS on Friday and were eliminated from the Manning Cup, finishing third in Zone B with three points behind Eltham High (9) and STATHS (6). They were ahead of the pointless Calabar High which they defeated 1-0 for their only win in the quarterfinal round.

But before that they finished third in the first round with 17 points behind Jamaica College (23 pts) and STATHS (23). Vauxhall had five wins, three defeats and two drawn games.

Butler led Vauxhall to a 2-1 win over Camperdown High in the east Kingston derby and big 9-0 and 8-1 wins over Greater Portmore High and Spanish Town High, respectively. They followed up with a 4-2 win over Edith Dalton James and a 3-0 win over St Mary’s College.

One of their most significant results wasn’t a win but a 1-1 draw with many-time champion Jamaica College, widely considered the big favourites to regain the Manning Cup title.

“We have more things to accomplish. I feel like we deserve more,” said Butler.

“We have the Walker Cup to fight for and the boys’ careers after that. We have to ensure that it’s good,” he emphasised.

Vauxhall needed to beat STATHS to advance to a historic semi-final appearance, but they fell short, losing 0-1 in a gallant display where they did create enough chances to win.

“We fought well. We knew that we had to come into this game and get a win. But pushing numbers forward, you run a risk in the back,” he explained.

“STATHS is a great team. I really wish it were them and us in the semi-finals. Respect to them,” he added.

Vauxhall will now turn their attention to the Walker Cup and could be paired with St Catherine High in the quarterfinal stage.