Cayman hosts rugby’s Caribbean Championships from Sunday which also double up as the first World Cup qualifiers anywhere in the world.
It is a great honour and the World Cup trophy is on the island and doing the rounds in schools and sports centres to signify its historical significance as this is the first match that will lead all the way up to the World Cup final in New Zealand in 2011.
Cayman play Trinidad and Tobago at the Truman Bodden Complex, kick-off 10.30am.
Cayman lost 19-14 to the Barbarians on Saturday in the their last warm up game, but it was no disgrace as the Baa-Baas comprised of many of the best players on the island who are ineligible to play for here. Also, Cayman had some of their top overseas players missing.
This match will be six months to the day after a global audience of billions watched the Rugby World Cup 2007 final in France when South Africa became world champions.
The six-day knock-out qualifying tournament will feature Barbados, Bahamas, Bermuda, Guyana, Jamaica, Mexico, Trinidad & Tobago and the Cayman Islands, with the final played on April 26.
The winner will progress to meet the winner of the South America Division B Championship involving Colombia or Venezuela, Paraguay, Brazil and Peru.
The second match on Sunday is Guyana v Jamaica (12.30pm) then Bahamas v Bermuda (2.30pm) and Barbados v Mexico (4.30pm).
The semi-finals are on Wednesday at the rugby club in South Sound (2.30pm and 4.30pm) and the final is on Saturday at 4.30pm.
Richard ‘Grizz’ Adams, rugby technical director, said: ‘Things are looking good in the final stage. Everything’s in place to make sure the tournament goes off smoothly.
‘Everybody’s fit and ready to go. I rested up some players on Saturday to make sure all the injuries and knocks had fully recovered.’
There is a limited number of 1,800 tickets on sale for Sunday’s matches. Good value for money, a $10 ticket covers all four matches. They can be bought at the gate.
Related Videos
