Cheshire Phoenix

British professional basketball team

Cheshire Phoenix

League| SLB
Established| 1984; 41 years ago (1984)
History| Ellesmere Port Jets
(1984–1988)
Chester Jets
(1988–2007)
Cheshire Jets
(2007–2012)
Cheshire Phoenix
(2012–present)
Arena| Cheshire Oaks Arena
Capacity| 1,400
Location| Ellesmere Port, Cheshire
Team colours| Navy blue, yellow, sky blue

Head coach| Ben Thomas
Championships| 2 BBL Championship
1 BBL Playoffs
2 BBL Cup
6 BBL Trophy
Website| CheshirePhoenix.com

Home

Away

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The Cheshire Phoenix are an English professional basketball team based in Ellesmere Port, Cheshire. Founded in 1984, they are members of the Super League Basketball and play their home games at the Cheshire Oaks Arena. From 1993 until 2015 the team was based in Chester, where they enjoyed their most success. Under previous ownership, the team was known as Cheshire Jets, but due to financial difficulties the franchise was withdrawn from the League in November 2012 and reformed as the Phoenix. The team's head coach is Ben Thomas.

The Phoenix have won two BBL championships, one BBL playoffs, two BBL Cups, and six BBL Trophies. Home games of the Phoenix are played in the Cheshire Oaks Arena, which holds capacity for a maximum of 1,400 people.

## Franchise history

[edit]

### Origin

[edit]

The team was first formed from the ruins of the Ellesmere Port team, the St Saviour's in 1984. The team was initially named after their sponsors 'Motocraft Centre Ellesmere Port'. However, after the loss of their sponsor, they renamed themselves Ellesmere Port Jets.

The Jets were admitted to NBL Division 2 in 1986 and finished last in their first season, with just a single victory. Edging up to seventh in 1987–88, they then changed their name to Cheshire Jets, though still continuing to play in Ellesmere Port. They continued a steady mid-table development until, in 1991, they won the divisional title despite suffering five defeats. The same year, the Jets moved up into the BBL joining in with Britain's elite basketball teams. Later however, the arena in Ellesmere Port became unsuitable, and so in 1993 the Jets were forced to move to Chester, and into the Northgate Arena. The move was reflected in another name change to the Chester Jets.

The real turning point for the Jets came in 1996, when the application of the Bosman ruling to basketball resulted in the departure of many of the top English players to European clubs, and the BBL changed its eligibility rule to entitle teams to use five non-national players.

Trans-Atlantic recruitment by coach and co-owner Mike Burton resulted in a team which finished fifth in the League table in 1997. Subsequent seasons have seen their best-ever performances in 2002 (Northern Conference Champions) and 2003 (3rd in the re-unified League), and a string of successes in the BBL trophy (4-times winners, from 2001 to 2004), culminating in the League Championship in 2005.

On 7 April 2007, prior to the Jets' season finale at home to Guildford Heat, an 81–102 defeat, club owner and head coach Mike Burton announced that he would be retiring from the franchise at the end of the 2006–07 season. Burton's announcement, after 19 years at the helm, raised serious doubts of the clubs' future,[1] with mounting debts and lack of financial backing. Shortly after the announcement, fans formed a committee to help save the club and received the backing of players including former Jet James Hamilton.[2] Following a sponsorship deal agreed during the summer of 2007 with local firm BiG Storage to save the club and preserve their future, the Jets was renamed as the BiG Storage Cheshire Jets to cover the wider demographic of Cheshire county in line with BiG Storage's market coverage. When BiG Storage terminated the sponsorship, the managing director of the company arranged a successor sponsor; Cheshire West and Chester Council.

The club was plunged into chaos in November 2012 when, after only 7 games into the season, the British Basketball League withdrew the club's franchise from owner Haydn Cook after he notified them that he was going to cancel the players contracts and cancelled all future fixtures.

A statement from the BBL said: "The BBL have withdrawn the Cheshire franchise from its operating company with immediate effect.

"The decision follows an urgent review of the franchise following notification from the club that they were unable to fulfil their fixture this weekend. The BBL is currently exploring a number of options to ensure the continuation of the franchise. It is anticipated there will be a further announcement in the coming days." (Cheshire Chronicle)[permanent dead link]

The club had until the end of November to find £50,000 to preserve its status in top-flight basketball. Local businesses were found to donate money and become sponsors, thus saving the club and fulfilling its fixture list as planned.

On 28 January 2024, the Phoenix won their sixth BBL Trophy following an upset win over the favored London Lions in the final.[3]

## Home arenas

[edit]

Ellesmere Port Leisure Centre (1984–1993)
Northgate Arena (1993–2015)
Cheshire Oaks Arena (2015–present)

## Logos

[edit]

* 2012–2020

* 2020–present

## Season-by-season records

[edit]

Seasons 1986–2024  Season  | Division  | Tier  | Regular Season  | Post-Season  | Trophy  | Cup  | Head Coach

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Finish  | Played  | Wins  | Losses  | Points  | Win %
Ellesmere Port Jets
1986–87 | NBL2 | 2  | 10th  | 18  | 1  | 17  | 2  | 0.056  | Did not qualify  |  | 1st round (NC)  |
1987–88 | NBL1 | 2  | 7th  | 18  | 7  | 11  | 14  | 0.389  | Did not qualify  |  | 2nd round (NC)  |
Cheshire Jets
1988–89 | NBL1 | 2  | 8th  | 20  | 6  | 14  | 12  | 0.300  | Did not qualify  |  | 2nd round (NC)  |
1989–90 | NBL1 | 2  | 6th  | 22  | 10  | 12  | 20  | 0.455  | Quarter-finals  |  | Quarter-finals (NC)  | Mike Burton
1990–91 | NBL1 | 2  | 1st  | 22  | 17  | 5  | 34  | 0.773  | Quarter-finals  |  | Quarter-finals (NC)  | Mike Burton
1991–92 | BBL | 1  | 11th  | 30  | 2  | 28  | 4  | 0.067  | Did not qualify  | 1st round (BT)  | 3rd round (NC)  | Mike Burton
1992–93 | BBL | 1  | 10th  | 33  | 10  | 23  | 20  | 0.303  | Did not qualify  | 1st round (BT)  | Quarter-finals (NC)  | Mike Burton
Chester Jets
1993–94 | BBL | 1  | 11th  | 36  | 11  | 25  | 22  | 0.306  | Did not qualify  | 1st round (BT)  | Quarter-finals (NC)  | Mike Burton
1994–95 | BBL | 1  | 12th  | 36  | 6  | 30  | 12  | 0.167  | Did not qualify  | 1st round (BT)  | Quarter-finals (NC)  | Mike Burton
1995–96 | BBL | 1  | 12th  | 36  | 8  | 28  | 16  | 0.222  | Did not qualify  | Quarter-finals (BT)  | 4th round (NC)  | Mike Burton
1996–97 | BBL | 1  | 5th  | 36  | 24  | 12  | 48  | 0.667  | Semi-finals  | Runners-Up (BT)  | 4th round (NC)  | Mike Burton
1997–98 | BBL | 1  | 10th  | 36  | 15  | 21  | 30  | 0.417  | Did not qualify  | 1st round (BT)  | 4th round (NC)  | Mike Burton
1998–99 | BBL | 1  | 11th  | 36  | 10  | 26  | 20  | 0.278  | Did not qualify  | Quarter-finals (BT)  | Quarter-finals (NC)  | Mike Burton
1999–00 | BBL N | 1  | 4th  | 36  | 17  | 19  | 34  | 0.472  | Quarter-finals  | Quarter-finals (BT)  | 1st round (NC)  | Robbie Peers
2000–01 | BBL N | 1  | 2nd  | 36  | 25  | 11  | 50  | 0.694  | Quarter-finals  | Winners, beating Newcastle, 92–81  | 1st round (NC)  | Robbie Peers
2001–02 | BBL N | 1  | 1st  | 32  | 24  | 8  | 48  | 0.750  | Winners, beating Sheffield, 93–82  | Winners, beating MK, 90–89  | Winners, beating Birmingham, 112–105  | Robbie Peers
2002–03 | BBL | 1  | 3rd  | 40  | 28  | 12  | 56  | 0.700  | Quarter-finals  | Winners, beating London, 84–82  | Runners-Up (NC)  | Robbie Peers
2003–04 | BBL | 1  | 5th  | 36  | 22  | 14  | 44  | 0.611  | Runners-Up  | Winners, beating Brighton, 68–66  | 1st round (NC)  | Paul Smith
2004–05 | BBL | 1  | 1st  | 40  | 32  | 8  | 64  | 0.800  | Runners-Up  | Semi-finals (BT)  | Semi-finals (BC)  | Paul Smith
2005–06 | BBL | 1  | 7th  | 40  | 17  | 23  | 34  | 0.425  | Quarter-finals  | 1st round (BT)  | Semi-finals (BC)  | Billy Singleton
2006–07 | BBL | 1  | 9th  | 36  | 10  | 26  | 20  | 0.278  | Did not qualify  | Quarter-finals (BT)  | 1st round (BC)  | Billy Singleton
Cheshire Jets
2007–08 | BBL | 1  | 11th  | 33  | 9  | 24  | 18  | 0.273  | Did not qualify  | Semi-finals (BT)  | Quarter-finals (BC)  | TJ Walker
Paul Smith
2008–09 | BBL | 1  | 8th  | 33  | 15  | 18  | 30  | 0.455  | Quarter-finals  | 1st round (BT)  | Quarter-finals (BC)  | Paul Smith
2009–10 | BBL | 1  | 4th  | 36  | 22  | 14  | 44  | 0.611  | Quarter-finals  | Runners-Up (BT)  | Runners-Up (BC)  | Paul Smith
2010–11 | BBL | 1  | 4th  | 33  | 20  | 13  | 40  | 0.606  | Semi-finals  | 1st round (BT)  | Semi-finals (BC)  | Paul Smith
2011–12 | BBL | 1  | 6th  | 30  | 13  | 17  | 26  | 0.433  | Semi-finals  | 1st round (BT)  | Quarter-finals (BC)  | John Lavery
Cheshire Phoenix
2012–13 | BBL | 1  | 11th  | 33  | 10  | 23  | 20  | 0.303  | Did not qualify  | Semi-finals (BT)  | 1st round (BC)  | Matthew Lloyd
2013–14 | BBL | 1  | 5th  | 33  | 18  | 15  | 36  | 0.545  | Quarter-finals  | Semi-finals (BT)  | 1st round (BC)  | John Lavery
2014–15 | BBL | 1  | 4th  | 36  | 26  | 10  | 52  | 0.722  | Semi-finals  | 1st round (BT)  | Quarter-finals (BC)  | John Coffino
2015–16 | BBL | 1  | 7th  | 33  | 16  | 17  | 32  | 0.485  | Semi-finals  | Quarter-finals (BT)  | Semi-finals (BC)  | John Lavery
2016–17 | BBL | 1  | 10th  | 33  | 11  | 22  | 22  | 0.333  | Did not qualify  | Semi-finals (BT)  | Quarter-finals (BC)  | Colin O'Reilly
Ben Thomas
2017–18 | BBL | 1  | 9th  | 33  | 15  | 18  | 30  | 0.455  | Did not qualify  | Quarter-finals (BT)  | Winners, beating Worcester, 99–88  | Ben Thomas
2018–19 | BBL | 1  | 7th  | 33  | 17  | 16  | 34  | 0.515  | Quarter-finals  | Quarter-finals (BT)  | Quarter-finals (BC)  | Ben Thomas
2019–20 | BBL | 1  | Season cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic | Semi-finals (BT)  | Quarter-finals (BC)  | Ben Thomas
2020–21 | BBL | 1  | 7th  | 30  | 14  | 16  | 28  | 0.467  | Quarter-finals  | Quarter-finals (BT)  | Pool Stage (BC)  | Ben Thomas
2021–22 | BBL | 1  | 6th  | 27  | 13  | 14  | 26  | 0.481  | Quarter-finals  | Winners, beating London (BT)  | Quarter-finals (BC)  | Ben Thomas
2022–23 | BBL | 1  | 5th  | 36  | 19  | 17  | 38  | 0.528  | Semi-finals  | Runners-Up (BT)  | Quarter-finals (BC)  | Ben Thomas
2023–24 | BBL | 1  | 2nd  | 36  | 23  | 13  | 46  | 0.639  | Runners-Up  | Winners, beating London (BT)  |  | Ben Thomas
Champions | SLB champions | Runners-up | Playoff berth

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Season  | Tier  | League  | Regular season  | Post-season  | Cup  | Trophy  | Head Coach

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Finish | Played | Wins | Losses | Win %
Cheshire Phoenix
2024–25 | 1  | SLB | 6th  | 32  | 14  | 18  | .438  | Quarterfinals  | Quarterfinal  | Semifinals  | Ben Thomas
Championship record  | 32  | 14  | 18  | .438  | 0 championships
Playoff record  |  |  |  | –  | 0 playoff championships

## Trophies

[edit]

### League

[edit]

* NBL Division One Winners: 1990–91 1
* BBL Championship Winners: 2001–02, & 2004–05 2
* BBL Championship Runners Up: 2000–01 1

### Playoffs

[edit]

* BBL Championship Play Off Winners: 2001–02 1
* BBL Championship Play Off Runners Up: 2003–04, & 2004–05 2

### Trophy

[edit]

* BBL Trophy Winners: 2000–01, 2001–02, 2002–03, 2003–04, 2021–22, 2023–24 6
* BBL Trophy Runners Up: 1996–97, 2009–10, 2022–23 3

### Cup

[edit]

* National Cup Winners: 2001–02, 2017–18 2
* National Cup Runners Up: 2000–01, 2009–10 2

## Players

[edit]

### Current roster

[edit]

Note: Flags indicate national team eligibility at FIBA-sanctioned events. Players may hold other non-FIBA nationalities not displayed.

Cheshire Phoenix roster

Players | Coaches
| Pos. | No. | Nat. | Name | Ht. | Wt. | Age |

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G | 0 |  | Eytle-Rock, RJ | 1.90 m (6 ft 3 in)  | 105 kg (231 lb)  |  26 – (1998-11-26)26 November 1998  |
F | 1 |  | Planutis, Bobby | 2.03 m (6 ft 8 in)  | 90 kg (198 lb)  |  28 – (1997-07-10)10 July 1997  |
G | 2 |  | Austin Jr, Larry | 1.88 m (6 ft 2 in)  | 83 kg (183 lb)  |  29 – (1996-02-18)18 February 1996  |
G | 5 |  | Scott-Grayson, Tyreek | 1.90 m (6 ft 3 in)  | 83 kg (183 lb)  |  26 – (1998-09-04)4 September 1998  |
G | 6 |  | Hudson, Jack | 1.82 m (6 ft 0 in)  | 86 kg (190 lb)  |  32 – (1993-04-28)28 April 1993  |
G | 8 |  | Wild, Greg | 1.82 m (6 ft 0 in)  | 86 kg (190 lb)  |  23 – (2002-05-20)20 May 2002  |
G | 9 |  | Holden, Cameron | 1.95 m (6 ft 5 in)  | 90 kg (198 lb)  |  25 – (2000-01-01)1 January 2000  |
F | 10 |  | Ulph, David | 2.00 m (6 ft 7 in)  | 100 kg (220 lb)  |  32 – (1993-05-04)4 May 1993  |
F | 15 |  | Atwood, TJ | 1.98 m (6 ft 6 in)  | 102 kg (225 lb)  |  27 – (1997-11-04)4 November 1997  |
G | 16 |  | Booth, Sam | 1.82 m (6 ft 0 in)  | 75 kg (165 lb)  |  17 – (2008-03-21)21 March 2008  |
G | 25 |  | Timberlake, Nick | 1.90 m (6 ft 3 in)  | 84 kg (185 lb)  |  |
F | 99 |  | White, Skyler | 2.03 m (6 ft 8 in)  | 106 kg (234 lb)  |  31 – (1993-08-24)24 August 1993  |

Head coach

*   * Ben Thomas (basketball)

Assistant coach(es)

*   * Jack Hudson
*   * Tom Fletcher

* * *

Legend

* (C) Team captain
* Injured

### Notable players

[edit]

Note: Flags indicate national team eligibility at FIBA-sanctioned events. Players may hold other non-FIBA nationalities not displayed.

Criteria

To appear in this section a player must have either:

* Set a club record or won an individual award while at the club
* Played at least one official international match for their national team at any time
* Played at least one official NBA match at any time.

* Dave Gardner
* Delme Herriman
* John Simpson
* Paul Sturgess
* Alto Virgil
* Elvisi Dusha
* Julius Hodge
* Adrien Sturt
* Simeon Naydenov
* Greg Meldrum
* Greg Francis
* Jorge Ebanks
* Joshua Fox
* Jason Killeen
* Colin O'Reilly
* Pero Cameron
* Tony Rampton
* Todd Cauthorn
* Correy Childs
* Martyn Gayle
* Kenny Gregory
* James Hamilton
* John McCord
* Louis McCullough
* Loren Meyer
* Billy Singleton
* TJ Walker
* Demond Watt
* Jordan Williams

### Retired numbers

[edit]

Cheshire Phoenix retired numbers

No.  | Nat. | Player  | Position  | Tenure
11 |  | Dave Gardner | C | 1990–1995, 1997–1998 & 1999–2003

### FIBA Hall of Famers

[edit]

Cheshire Phoenix Hall of Famers

Players
No. | Nat. | Name | Position | Tenure | Inducted
13 |  | Pero Cameron | G | 1999–2003 | 2017[4]

## See also

[edit]

* Cheshire portal

* Basketball in England
* British Basketball League

## References

[edit]

1. ^ Richard Taylor (7 April 2007). "Jets' future in doubt after Burton quits". The Independent. London. Archived from the original on 30 September 2007. Retrieved 7 April 2007.
2. ^ "Let's get on with it, says club legend Hamilton". Chester Chronicle. 2007. Retrieved 19 May 2007.[permanent dead link]
3. ^ Gains, Bradley (28 January 2024). "Cheshire Phoenix stun London Lions to recapture BBL Trophy title". Hoopsfix.com. Retrieved 22 February 2024.
4. ^ "FIBA.basketball". Retrieved 20 August 2019.

## External links

[edit]

* Official website

* v
* t
* e

British Basketball League

Former Teams|

* Birmingham Bullets
* Birmingham Knights
* Birmingham Panthers
* Brighton Bears
* Bristol Flyers
* Calderdale Explorers
* Caledonia Gladiators
* Cheshire Phoenix
* Crystal Palace
* Derby Storm
* Doncaster Panthers
* Durham Wildcats
* Essex Leopards
* Essex Pirates
* Glasgow Rangers
* Guildford Kings
* Leeds Force
* Leicester Riders
* Livingston
* London Capital
* London City Royals
* London Lions
* London Towers
* London United
* Manchester Giants (1989)
* Manchester Giants (2012)
* Mersey Tigers
* Newcastle Eagles
* Oldham Celtics
* Olympic City Giants
* Plymouth City Patriots
* Plymouth Raiders
* Portsmouth
* Sheffield Sharks
* Solent Stars
* Surrey Scorchers
* Thames Valley Tigers
* Worthing Thunder
* Worcester Wolves

Competitions|

* BBL Championship (BBL Playoffs)
* BBL Trophy
* All-Star Game
* BBL Cup
* Cup Winners' Cup
* Women's British Basketball League

Seasons
(List)|

* 1987–88
* 1988–89
* 1989–90
* 1990–91
* 1991–92
* 1992–93
* 1993–94
* 1994–95
* 1995–96
* 1996–97
* 1997–98
* 1998–99
* 1999–00
* 2000–01
* 2001–02
* 2002–03
* 2003–04
* 2004–05
* 2005–06
* 2006–07
* 2007–08
* 2008–09
* 2009–10
* 2010–11
* 2011–12
* 2012–13
* 2013–14
* 2014–15
* 2015–16
* 2016–17
* 2017–18
* 2018–19
* 2019–20
* 2020–21
* 2021–22
* 2022–23
* 2023–24

Awards|

* Coach of the Year
* Most Valuable Player

Other|

* BBL Player
* National Basketball League
* Scottish Basketball Championship
* National Cup
* Timeline of basketball on UK television

*[Pos.]: Position(s)
*[No.]: Jersey number
*[Nat.]: Nationality
*[Ht.]: Height
*[Wt.]: Weight
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*[t]: Discuss this template
*[e]: Edit this template