Poor preparation the bugbear again for ‘Green Machine’ Team now turn to Pan American games in Peru

Jul 11, 2019 Sports

The Guyana Rugby Football Federation (GRFU) held a customary press conference yesterday at the Guyana Olympic Association (GOA) to update the media on their performances at the just concluded the Rugby Americas North (RAN) Sevens tournament that was contested last weekend at the Truman Bodden Sports Complex in the Cayman Islands.

Head of the GRFU, Peter Green.

Guyana’s ruggers that are known as the ‘Green Machine’ finished sixth in the tournament, continuing their horrid form of recent, losing 19-7 to Trinidad & Tobago (T&T), 14-12 to Cayman Islands before being crushed 42-7 by Jamaica and 47-5 by Canada. The Guyanese managed one win against T&T in the plate semifinals before losing the plate final to a six-man Cayman Islands.
However, both the Captain of the team; Jamal Angus along with Player/Coach; Claudius Butts, noted that poor preparation and lack of domestic tournaments were the major factors towards a sub-par performance by the teams.
Guyana last won the RAN tournament in 2016 but lost agonisingly in the 2017 and 2018 finals which made this 2019 performance even more shocking.
Butts noted that, “We tried to do something different. We had a two-day camp comprising of 14-players in the Cayman Islands and judging on our performances, I think it was simple mistakes that led to our

Captain of the Green Machine; Jamal Angus.

downfall. The same things that we would have worked on during the campus we failed to execute efficiently.”
The player/coach further posited that, “We need to go back to our domestic rugby. We need to be playing consistently. We also need high level training matches against some good opposition in our region like Canada, Venezuela etc.”
Next on the GRFU radar is the men’s Sevens team participation in the 18th Pan American Games which will be held in Peru from the 26th of this month to the 12th of August.
Head of the GRFU, Peter Green, shared with the media during yesterday’s brief that he has made a request to the Guyana Football Federation (GFF) to use their National Training Center’s artificial turf at Providence to help the team prepare in dry conditions during the current wet season.
The GRFU boss noted during the brief that the executive is willing to work along with all stakeholders to

Player/coach; Claudius Butts.

help get Guyana’s rugby back on track.
The Guyana Olympic Association (GOA) are funding the arrival of three overseas players to Guyana on the 15th of this month but Green disclosed that last weekend’s RAN championship which also served as an Olympic qualifier, was enough international exposure for the Green Machine heading into the Pan Am games with the likes of Canada, Jamaica participating. (Calvin Chapman)

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