TODD CAUTHORN will never forget helping Chester Jets secure a hat-trick of successive BBL Trophy wins.

Jets, now called Cheshire Phoenix, headed into the 2002/03 BBL season on the back of a famous trophy cleansweep.

And although they were unable to complete another ‘Jetwash’, Cauthorn and his men were delighted to beat London Towers 84-82 in Sheffield.

“The 2003 Trophy final was a special game that I will never forget,” final MVP Cauthorn, who had made the move to Chester from Sheffield ahead of that season, told the club.

“The journey to get to the final involved a last second shot by Kenny Gregory against Sheffield in the last group stage game, which put us through by one point after beating Sheffield at home by 23 points.

“That season playing Sheffield was always emotional for me, and in that particular game, my emotions got the better of me and I received two technicals and was resigned to watch from the bench unable to help my team-mates.

“As a result, I wanted to make up for what in the final, and the fact that it was in Sheffield Arena made it a ‘homecoming’ game of sorts for me.

“Kenny Gregory was top scorer in the final and John (McCord) and Pero (Cameron) played really well, but I had a good all-round performance, scoring 19 points and I think, due to me being from Sheffield, I got the sympathy vote and was given MVP.”

Cauthorn’s team-mate, Gregory was equally proud to have secured another piece of silverware for the Jets, who would make it four BBL Trophy victories in a row a year later with a 68-66 success over Brighton Bears.

“Winning the Trophy that season was great,” said Gregory. “The year before the team had a cleansweep, so it was a lot of pressure to repeat the same feat.

“We came up short in winning all the trophies, but that one was a great feeling.

“I do remember Todd Cauthorn played amazing in that Trophy final.”

Jets finished third in the BBL Championship standings, but went on to lose to Scottish Rocks in the last eight of the play-offs, while the then-Chester based side were beaten 89-79 by Brighton Bears in the National Cup final.

Cauthorn reflected: “The talent on that Chester team was immense, but we had some injuries at key times and with a six man rotation it hurt us at various points that season.

“I loved playing with those guys and we still keep in tough - mostly because John talks trash to the rest of us all the time!”

And there was something else to celebrate as Gregory, who scored 24 points in the BBL Trophy final, won the league’s MVP.

“Winning MVP was so unexpected,” he said. “At that point I was just happy to have an opportunity to play in the UK.

“I knew I had a pretty good season, but MVP never crossed my mind until it happened.

“I have to give credit to the coaches and other players from the team that were there the previous team. They let me play my game and welcomed the new guy with open arms.”

Cheshire Phoenix’s season is over after the British Basketball League has announced that the remainder of the 2019-20 season has been cancelled due to the coronavirus pandemic.

The BBL said in a statement that clubs had “unanimously agreed” to the cancellation.

BBL chairman Sir Rodney Walker said: “We looked at every option, including playing behind closed doors or restarting the season in the summer, in order that we could get to a League and play-off winners, but with the continued uncertainty, we just ran out of time and options.

“The clubs were united that now was the right time to bring the current season to a close.”

The independent directors of the BBL management board have agreed that there will be no winner of the 2019-20 championship title.