THE Guyana Rugby Football Union (GRFU) ‘7s Rugby League’ will get under way tomorrow at the National Park Rugby Field, where the likes of Yamaha Caribs, Pepsi Hornets, University of Guyana Wolves, Guyana Defence Force (GDF) and Guyana Police Force (GPF) will do battle. 

Windjammer Hotel, Golden Brook Oil, along with Sport Journalist Rawle Toney are the sponsors for the tournament that concludes on October 18.
President of the GRFU, Peter Greene, said that the tournament is one of the Union’s most important event on its calendar this year, since it will be used to help select Guyana’s team for the North America Caribbean Rugby Association (NACRA) Sevens Championship, to be held in Mexico City, Mexico from December 3 to 4.
Guyana won five consecutive championship from 2006 to 2011. They lost to Mexico in 2012 and lack of funding kept the Caribbean’s best 7s Rugby team out of the competition last year.
Under the guidance of strength and conditioning Instructor Barrington Brown, the GRFU had selected a provisional squad that commenced training in the later part of August.
Ten overseas-based players were invited but Terrence Grant said that so far only Kevin McKenzie and Richard Staglon have confirmed their readiness and will be in Guyana for camp. The others, the GRFU secretary said, have other logistical arrangements to put in place before doing the same.
“This is our gateway to the Olympic Games in 2016,” Greene said at a Press Conference hosted at the Windjammer Hotel in Georgetown to officially launch the GRFU 7s League.
However, Greene pointed out that the tournament will give the selectors a chance to see the players, especially those who have been training for close to two months.
Meanwhile, Windjammer Hotel proprietor Carey Griffith pointed out that this is his first time sponsoring rugby in Guyana and added that he’s happy it can be at an important junction since the Guyana team are aiming to reclaim the trophy that eluded them two years ago.
Representatives from Golden Brook Oil were absent. Toney expressed his happiness at also being a first-time sponsor for the sport.
“This is my first time doing sponsorship of any kind, actually, and Rugby happens to be the country’s most successful sport. I’m impressed by the fact they’ve been consistent at the international level and oftentimes doing such with very little resources and help from corporate Guyana,” Toney said.
The team captains present, however, zeroed in their chances of hoisting the championship trophy as Theodore Henry noted.
Henry is one of the most recognisable faces in Rugby in the Caribbean and the dreadlock wearing player and captain of the Yamaha Caribs said, “We fell short in the Banks 7s tournament when we lost to UG and we felt we could have won that tournament, so we’re aiming to walk away at the end with this title.”
Daniel Anderson, captain of the UG Wolves team, one of the teams to watch for in the tournament, said that his players are still riding high from winning the Banks 7s title and will be taking that momentum over to the 7s League.
The GDF team missed the last 7s tournament due to injuries to most of their top players and the team’s skipper and national player Dwayne Schroeder confirmed the Army’s readiness to be back in competition.
Ryan Gonsalves, captain of the Pepsi Hornets and the National team, said after a disappointing Banks tournament, his side will take new approach with the aim of not walking away empty-handed again.

(By Rawle Toney)