Jamaica made rugby league history last month as the Women’s Reggae Warriors picked up a momentous maiden victory on American soil. If that wasn’t a big enough story, that one match could lead team star Chevelle Clarke to the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.
IMAGINE stepping into Chevelle Clarke’s shoes.
Just a couple of years ago the York Valkyrie youngster was a normal teenage girl, with ambitions of playing top level rugby league. Today she is a Women’s Super League champion, an international player and an Olympic hopeful.
Life has come fast at the York star, but all these opportunities may never have come if Clarke hadn’t re-checked her emails.
Before we get into that, we need to set the stage. Let’s begin with Jamaica RL and the growing force that are the Women’s Reggae Warriors.
Over the years, the Jamaica women’s side have travelled to play America but always came up short. Last month, the national side took on the USA Pioneers and ran out 48-12 winners – their first ever win away in the States.
The match was part of the Americas qualifying tournament for the 2026 Women’s Rugby League World Cup. Jamaica ultimately failed to seal their spot in the showpiece, but their victory over the Pioneers is a positive sign.
The event in Florida not only marked a historic moment for Jamaican rugby league but also for York Valkyrie youngster Clarke who made her international debut.
Clarke’s opportunity almost passed her by having missed an email from the RFL. She said: “My mum’s friend got in touch and said that they [Jamaica] tried to reach out.
“I checked my emails, and I got one from the RFL. I thought I missed the opportunity because I read the email and it was two months old.
“It was from the Jamaica coach, Romeo Monteith, and he said that he’s interested, and he’s seen me play at York and he’s just wondering if I want to play in America. I messaged him on WhatsApp and said I was 100 per cent interested.
“I didn’t really know much about the Jamaica women’s rugby league team, but I heard of the men’s team. So when I heard that I had the opportunity to play internationally I couldn’t believe it.
“I’ve only just started to become professional at rugby and to play international, it was just a shock.”
Clarke travelled from Leeds to Jacksonville with her mum by her side. Not long after, she went on to meet the rest of the squad – a daunting experience considering she was the second-youngest player.
“It was a bit nerve wracking,” said Clarke. “Obviously I’d never met any of these girls before, and they’d already had this team before I came into it.
“But they were just welcoming. And it was nice for these bunch of girls who represent the same heritage, to be in the same environment playing rugby. It was just a great environment to be in.”
From the time of her arrival in Jacksonville to matchday itself, there wasn’t much time for training. In fact, there was little time to gel at all. But once you travel across an ocean for your international debut, it’s not a game you’re willing to lose.
Clarke said: “We were going into this game saying, we’ve come all this way, the most we can do is win. We put a number on them, basically.
“I feel like everybody wanted to win, as we were going home and that was the last game, and we had a point to prove.
“I feel like everybody just came together. We only had around six hours of training before we played our first game. We all just stuck together and came up with the win.
“We were all celebrating and all so proud of each other. And I just think it was a great way to end the competition. We were all celebrating, jumping around, throwing water everywhere. It was just great. Everybody was happy.”
Clarke’s heritage stems from her parents with dad being full Jamaican and mum half-Jamaican.
While her family are normally big on football, they made an exception for Clarke as they decided to proudly watch the youngster represent the nation on her 19th birthday.
“Before my game, my sister sent me a video,” said Clarke. “Half of my family was in the living room watching the game live. I thought that was so nice of them.”
Fellow York Valkyrie Jamaicans, Kelsey Gentles and Savannah Andrade, both supported Clarke ahead of her international journey.
“Kelsey sent me a big message and she said that she’s proud of me,” said Clarke. “She said I need to go out there and show everybody what you can do. And I think that’s definitely what I did.
“Savannah also said that she’s proud of me. I just think these two were kind of my inspiration when playing with York. They’re so supportive of me.”
In a crazy twist to the story, Clarke’s debut performance for her national side caught the eye of the Jamaica Sevens selectors.
With the team building for the Pan American Games and the Los Angeles Olympics, Clarke has an opportunity to do something every athlete dreams of.
“I’m currently in the process of getting my Jamaican passport,” said Clarke. “I can’t play for Jamaica Sevens if I don’t have that.
“When I’ve got that, then I will qualify to play the Pan-Am Games in Uruguay, which is in August. Then also the World Cup qualifying games.
“It was on my bucket list to play the Olympics when I was young. I now have a chance. I think it’s crazy. It’s truly crazy to say I’m only 19.”
When asked what it would mean to her to represent Jamaica and her family name on the greatest sporting stage imaginable, she added: “It would mean the world to me, honestly.
“I only started playing rugby because my friends started playing rugby, and to say I have a chance to stand on an Olympic field, I think it’ll just show that people who look like me, with the same skin colour as me, and even girls, can do whatever they put their mind to. And I think that’s a great message to have moving forward.”
First published in Rugby League World magazine, Issue 504 (January 2025)