Green Machine places fifth at RAN Sevens competition

Guyana’s ruggers finished fifth after sandwiching a pair of wins in between three losses at this year’s Rugby Americas North (RAN) 7s Championships which was won by Jamaica yesterday in the Turks and Caicos Islands.

In the nine-time, two-day event, the locals opened and ended their campaign with victories but the three loses put paid to their efforts of regaining the coveted trophy which was surrendered to the current champions in 2017.

A blend of mostly youth with a sprinkling of experienced players, the Theodore Henry coached outfit playing at the Meridian Fields in Providenciales, started on Saturday with a 36-5 drubbing of debutant Belize, but lost 7-15 in their other Group C matchup versus Bermuda.

After recharging following a night’s rest, the ‘Green Machine’ looked promising but lost their next two key matches yesterday morning going down to eventual champs, Jamaica (0-24) and third place finisher, Barbados 5-26.

The former seven-time champions finally put their best game of the tournament together in their last match against the British Virgin Islands, transforming into robot mode for a 43-nil mauling of their opponent to end the tournament on a high.

Following the event, Henry told this publication: “I’m a little disappointed as a successful outing at these tournaments for us was at least a top four finish.

However, I’m satisfied with the performance of our debutants, who in my opinion, are the next generation of Guyana rugby.

They proved my confidence in them right and I’m excited to see what the future holds for them.”

He added “In my honest assessment, Guyana rugby will be a headache for opposition sooner than they think.”

Jamaica defeated Mexico 14-nil in the final to lift the coveted RAN 7s Cup trophy.

The tournament was as a qualifier for next year’s World Rugby Sevens Challenger Series, with the winning side gaining the opportunity to compete for the 16th and final spot on the HSBC World Rugby Sevens series.