[dropcap]T[/dropcap]he St Lucia National Rugby 7s team participated in the Rugby Barbados World’s 7s in Barbados on December 9 and 10. The tournament took place on Trents Playing Field in Holetown, St James, Barbados.
Seven female teams and eight male teams took part in the two day round robin tournament. The competition was open to all levels of playing organisations from amateur to professional, all vying for a spot in the women’s division the, for the Women’s Open RBW7s Championship Trophy and US$1,500.00 and in the men’s division, the Banks Breweries Men’s Open RBW 7s Champions Trophy and US$1,500.00.
In the Women’s division the Saint Lucia team emerged sixth. Following are the final standings. (1) Scion Sirens, (2) Northeast Academy, (3) The Titans, (4) Atlantis Women, (5) T&T Police, (6) St Lucia Women, (7) Bajan Pride.
In the Men’s division the St Lucian team also emerged sixth. (1) Project X Waterboys, (2) Atlantis Men, (3) Xhosa Hurricanes, (4) Barbados Jet Blues, (5) Guadeloupe, (6) St Lucia Men.
In addition, Chantel John one of the few World Rugby Level 1 certified referees in St Lucia, officiated in her very first regional tournament. She received great reviews from the referees of international
calibre that she worked alongside with at the tournament.
Despite the tough two day tournament, the St Lucia team kept their heads high and ended up concluding the tournament with what is becoming the Saint Lucia Women’s Team’s signature warm down dubbed ‘soca haka’. The video of the ‘soca haka’ went viral on social media receiving 3,000 views in one day.
The tournament has provided a benchmark, which indicates the level of Saint Lucian Rugby today and the level which we have to aspire.
The Saint Lucia Rugby Football Union thanked all the sponsors, organisations and persons who helped make participation in the tournament possible: National Lotteries Authority, St Lucia Olympic Committee Inc, United Through Sports, Tropic Builder’s Ltd, Dr Tobias, Zhenya Allain (Team Physiotherapist), Valerie Farrel (Team Massage Therapist) Management Team and Fundraising Team of SLRFU and Coaching Staff of the SLRFU.
