Cayman’s flag football scene rose a
few notches on the international scene over the weekend when they hosted a team
from the Bahamas. After a series of men’s and women’s matches from Friday night
to Sunday, Cayman were victorious in both at the Ed Bush Stadium in West Bay.
Teams were made up of local flag
players who chose to represent the region they are from.
Cayman men had a close encounter to
beat Bahamas 6-0 with the sole score 35 seconds from time by Baron Solomon to
retain the Caribbean Regional Cup (previously called the International Cup).
The main sponsors were Domino’s Pizza and Cayman Screen Print.
Cayman women beat World 18-14 in their
final to finish with a 6-0 record and take their version of the Caribbean
Regional Cup. The women’s World team had a record of 4-2, USA 2-3, Jamaica 1-4
and the newly formed Bahamas women who really came just for the experience,
lost all their matches. Cayman men only lost once in their five games and that
was in a league encounter with Bahamas who finished with a record of 3-2. USA
men were 2-2, Canada were 1-3 and World 1-3.
The tournament was chiefly
organised by USA player-coach Brendon Malice and Rex Whittaker who is a coach
and official. Both their wives were quarterbacks, Lisa Malice for the USA and
Dionne Whittaker for Jamaica.
“The Bahamians really enjoyed the
regional football atmosphere,” Malice said. “They really like the nationalism
that is injected into the tournament and how it brings a sense of pride when
wearing your country’s colours.
“The plan is now for Bahamas to
host the tournament next year. Maybe by then more teams such as St. Croix or
Puerto Rico will come on board and participate in the annual event.”
Malice and Whittaker hope to get
the Caribbean Regional Cup sanctioned. “When the Cup first started it was with
the intention of developing the tournament into a Caribbean regional event,”
said Malice. “Initially, we started with local players who played in the flag
football league. The teams were divided
up by nationalities and it was an opportunity to play on a team representing
your country. Two years later a men’s team from the Bahamas participated. This
year we had two teams from the Bahamas participate – a men’s team and a women’s
team. I think it is likely the tournament will continue to grow.”
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