Phillips

Jamaican international Demar Phillips has signed a three-year deal with English Championship division club Stoke City for what has been reported as an undisclosed but significant fee.

The 23-year-old Phillips, who plied his trade locally for 2005-06 Premier League champions Waterhouse, officially signed for the club on Friday and will join fellow Reggae Boy Ricardo Fuller there. A talented left-sided player, Phillips has stepped into the limelight recently with a string of solid performances for the national team.

Despite quite a few ugly results in recent times under new technical director Velibor Milutinovic, Phillips, part of an experimental local contingent, has looked solid playing on the left flank either in midfield or at leftback. After four games Stoke City, led by two goals from Fuller, are currently eighth in the Championship division, which is directly below the Premier League.

Stoke City manager Tony Pulis seems satisfied with his new acquisition and believes midfielder Phillips is one for the future.

"I'm delighted we've signed an exceptionally exciting player from Jamaica," Pulis told the club's official website,

www.stokecityfc.premiumtv.co.uk.

"He's a quality left-sided player with plenty of pace and one we hope to develop for the future," he added.

Phillips, who also made a solid impact at the youth level for Jamaica, has 27 appearances for the national team so far.

In the meantime, fortune did not favour Portmore United defender Rudolf Austin, as despite having an impressive trial with Stoke, he was denied a work permit by the United Kingdom Home Office.