Sporting Jax Announce New Super League and Championship Signings, Kickoff Times Announced

Welcome to the Cowford Report

Welcome to the latest Sporting Jax update. The Cowford report, in honor of Jacksonville’s original name, will appear from time to time catching up on recent news. What have Sporting Jax been up to since taking an almost insurmountable lead in the Battle for the Florida Triangle, oh and topping the Gainbridge Super League table at Christmas? Let’s take a look.

Julia Lester Leads Super League Winter Signings

In news that dropped this week, Sporting Jax announced 3 winter signings for their Super League roster. The first is a player the team is very familiar with. Julia Lester has agreed to terms on a permanent deal after her contract with Seattle Reign ended. Lester has been a stalwart for Sporting Jax leading the club in minutes played and starting every match in the first half of the season.

“I’ve really enjoyed my time with Sporting JAX and I’m happy to be sticking around,” Lester said. “I’ve been able to finetune my skills while playing with some great teammates this season.”

Sporting Jax also announced additional two signings that will add depth to the squad. The first is a bit of a homecoming in former Florida State Seminole Cristina Roque who joins on loan from Racing Louisville. The keeper has primarily been a backup in her time with the Utah Royals and Racing Louisville in the NWSL and push Jamie Gerstenberg to be the number 2 behind Kaitlyn Parks.

The final Super League signing announced was Kacey Smekrud. A former College of Charleston and Clemson midfielder, Smekrud had 12 appearances for Aland United in the Finnish Liga Finlandesa and will complete for minutes off the bench.

The additional depth, along with having Julia Lester joining full time, is something head coach Stacey Balaam is looking forward to in preparation for the second half of the season. “Cristina and Kacey are exciting pieces that will strengthen our roster, and we’re thrilled to have Julia join us permanently. Securing a player like Lester, along with the added depth and talent, will certainly help the squad as we push ahead through the remainder of the season.”

USL Championship Side Sign an Additional Nine

As Sporting Jax prepare for their first Championship season, nine additional players have been signed. They were announced in 4 phases, the UK midfield contingent, the defensive played in the US contingent, the loan signing that gave away who they expect their number 1 keeper to be and the forward line.

Let’s start with the UK contingent announced on January 6th. They all have 1 thing in common, playing in Premier League youth or under 18/23 teams where Mark Warburton hopes one turns into the next Kyle Scott. Defensive midfielder Jordan Rossiter, 28, joins having played last year in the League of Ireland. The former Liverpool youth product has wandered the lower leagues of England before a season in Ireland where he played 8 times for Waterford after being out of contract at Shrewsbury Town. He did spend the first half of 2025 in the National League where he helped Oldham Athletic out of the National League and back in the EFL.

Attacking midfielder Kieran Sadlier, 31, joins after being without a club since the end of the 24/25 season with Wycombe Wanders where he spent a large portion of the season out after hernia surgery. The former West Ham youth product came back late in the season as a substitute as Wycombe missed out on promotion to the EFL Championship. Sadlier can play any of the 3 attacking midfield positions and is looking to find the form he had during his time at Cork City where he scored 31 times in 69 appearances for the club.

Rafferty Pedder, 23, joins having played for Tottenham Hotspur U18 and Premier League 2 sides. However the last 3 seasons have seen 3 different teams in QPR, Oxford City and last season with MLS Next Pro side Tacoma Defiance. A primary central attacking midfielder, Pedder can play any midfield position attacking or defense which will come in handy in the USL Championship.

These 3 signings feel like last chance saloon situations for the players.

January 9th brought news Sporting Jax picked up keeper Christian Olivares on loan from St. Louis City for the 2026 season. Olivares, 23, has played 45 times over the last few seasons with St Louis City 2 with 11 clean sheets. This is a prove it year for Olivares as he’s making the jump up in divisions looking to get steadier playing time. He only played in 15 matches last season.

January 13th brought the next phase of signings, all on the defensive side of the pitch with experience in the United States. The first signing is a home coming in the signing of 25 year old center back Ethan Dudley. Dudley returns home having played high school ball at Bartram Trail. He made 17 appearances with Chattanooga FC in MLS Next Pro last season. He’s also looking forward to playing at home. “Playing professionally so close to home means a lot to me. Being part of an inaugural team makes it even more special.”

Tyshawn Rose joins Sporting Jax having spent time in MLS Next Pro with North Texas SC and Huntsville City. The 25 year old left back has made 56 appearances across all competitions in the last 3 seasons with 12 total assists to his name.

The recognizable name in the Championship to be signed is former Phoenix Rising left back Mohamed Traore. This is also a risk/reward signing. When Traore is on the pitch he is one of the better defenders in the Championship. The key phrase is on the pitch. in 2025 he only played 90 minutes 4 times and 3 of those were the first 3 matches of the season. He then only played 14 minutes in the next 7 matches before featuring in the next 2 fixtures. Traore hasn’t played since June 7th. In 2024 he missed a 7 game block in the middle of the season as well.

The forward line was announced today. The first has former Championship experience in attacking midfielder/center forward Adonijah Reid. Reid spent the beginning of his career with Ottawa Fury and Miami FC before moving north as part of the Canadian Premier League. Last season with York United, Reid scored 5 goals along with 5 assists in helping York United (now Inter Toronto) reach the quarter final round of the postseason. Familiar with the heat and humidity of Florida he should be a solid contributor.

Sporting Jax’s last signing almost seems like a steal in the signing of 2025’s 7th overall pick in the MLS Super Draft by St. Louis City Emil Jääskeläinen. If your wondering if you remember that last name it would be because his father was long serving Bolton Wanderers keeper Jussi Jääskeläinen. The former Akron Zip contributed 7 goals last season for St. Louis 2 while contributing 11 assists across all competitions. He even made the occasional jump up to St. Louis City. For him to be available at this point in the winter makes absolutely no sense, and I for one am looking forward to see him further his development this year. He’s a player I don’t expect to be with Sporting Jax for too long before being sold.

Sporting Jax’s roster stands at 14 as the club heads into training camp next week.

Championship Kickoff Times Announced

With the USL Championship schedule already announced, Sporting Jax on Wednesday announced kickoff times for all scheduled home matches for the 2026 season. Assuming there isn’t a lockout or strike, Sporting Jax will take the pitch at Hodges Stadium for their first home preseason fixture against Charleston Battery on Saturday, February 21st at 5:00 pm.

Sporting Jax has 14 Saturday home fixtures. I like their opening fixture in March is at 3 pm and the 2 October fixtures are at 5 pm. The weather should be very ideal on those dates. The summer kickoffs rotate between 7 and 7:30 pm. All 3 Wednesday fixtures are 7:30 pm kickoffs.

Here’s the home fixture list:
Saturday, February 21st 5:00 pm: Charleston Battery (Preseason)
Saturday, March 7th at 3:00 pm: Hartford Athletic
Wednesday, March 25th at 7:30 pm: Miami FC
Saturday, April 4th 7:30 pm: Tampa Bay Rowdies
Saturday, April 25th 7:30 pm: Miami FC (USL Cup)
Wednesday, May 27th 7:30 pm: San Antonio FC
Saturday, May 30th 7:00 pm: Brooklyn FC
Saturday, June 6th 7:00 pm: Tampa Bay Rowdies (USL Cup)
Saturday, June 13th 7:00 pm: Detroit City
Saturday, June 20th 7:00 pm: Charleston Battery
Wednesday, July 15th 7:30 pm: Pittsburgh Riverhounds
Saturday, July 18th 7:00 pm: Brooklyn FC
Saturday, August 15th 7:00 pm: Indy Eleven
Saturday, September 5th 7:00 pm: Lexington SC
Saturday, September 12th 7:00 pm: Rhode Island FC
Saturday, September 26th 7:00 pm: Loudoun United
Saturday, October 3rd 5:00 pm: Louisville City
Saturday, October 10th 5:00 pm: Birmingham Legion