Caribbean Championships 2009 The Cayman National Women's team will be competing in Barbados for the Caribbean Championships. Daily updates will be provided from Barbados so keep checking this page. Below is the Cayman playing schedule. To wish the team well email Cayman Womens team in Barbados
Trinidad & Tobago V Cayman Islands The Trinidad & Tobago vs. Cayman Islands was the most anticipated game of the week for players, coaches and spectators alike. With the Caribbean Championships at stake all the players put their bodies on the line from start to finish. The first 20minutes saw the twice champions Trinidad play rugby hard and fast with no let up to the intensity seeing Trinidad match Cayman at every breakdown and play. The toughness of the game became apparent early on with Jane Robson suffering a broken nose in the first ruck and this set the tone for the rest of the game to come. Trinidad were at times above the law and seemed almost free to spoil and steel any precious ball Cayman could lay their hands on. A few early line breaks by Trinidad got the Cayman defense scrambling and it took Trinidad 20min for the defending champions to get on the board. Cayman showed their dominance in the scrum and lineout situation thanks to power and drive of Anne Story, Krista Pell and Cindy Blekaitis however with Cayman unable to build up any good second and third phase ball Trinidad became more and more confident in the broken play and were able to score 2 more tries before half time. With the score at 17-0 at half time, and the two teams looking evenly matched the game was still there for the taking for either sides and some ferocious tackling from Joe Ziegler and Jane Robson saw the top scoring Trinidad center being forced off with a knee injury early on. Trinidad’s fitness, size and clear advantage at the rucks would be Caymans ultimate downfall which allowed the creative playmakers from the Trinidad side to throw everything at Cayman and slowly wear the defense down. The final score being 48-0 not really reflecting the closeness of the game as Cayman showed unbelievable talent, bravery and heart. Some more consistent refereeing around Caymans strengths such as scrums, rucks and mauls would have seen the score much closer around the 22-10 mark however even such it would still have gone Trinidad’s way. The Trinidadians youth, size, pace and experience simply gave them the edge needed. Ultimately the better team on the day won however the Cayman women’s’ team have left the tour with their heads held high and definitely leaving the rest of the Caribbean teams with some seriously battered bodies and wary of what there is to come in the future. Trinidad wins Caribbean championships beating Cayman 48 - 0. Cayman moves from 4th to 2nd in rankings for 2009.
Thursday 25th June 2009 The day started with group water aerobics at a nearby hotel. The 22 female squad caused quite a stir in the pool as they vigorously enjoyed the workout and the opportunity to stretch – and one of the spectators at the hotel caused quite a sight as well! Once again, the squad has remained relatively injury free. Dr Marli is monitoring one or two knocks, but anticipates that everyone will be fit for selection on Saturday. After aerobics most of the team caught up on sleep, or spent quiet time at the hotel. A few ventured into Bridgetown for some sightseeing. Cara Hennessey had organized an afternoon sail on a catamaran. It was great time for team bonding and relaxing. There was an opportunity to swim with turtles who come into one of the local beaches to feed, and everyone enjoyed the dinner served on the boat. It was a relaxing day, ending with an early night, ready to reconvene at training at 9am on Friday.
Wednesday June 24th post match The mood amongst the Cayman camp was relatively buoyant after the St Vincent game, although the majority of the squad were keen to immediately focus on the challenges of the Trinidad game ahead. Although the final score in the game was high, the coaches were able to identify a number of weaknesses in the team’s play against St Vincent and areas that need more focus in the game against Trinidad. Once back at the hotel, the team unwound in the pool, took the compulsory ice baths and enjoyed a pizza dinner. Team Manager, Karen Kersey, continues to do an excellent job taking care of all the practicalities, leaving the team and coaches to focus on the rugby. The majority of the squad enjoyed a night out in a local Irish bar followed by some karaoke. Cindy Blekaitis’s continuing contribution in the front row, and as a key member of the squad, was honoured by the rest of the team wearing t-shirts emblazoned with her watchword – “Pulverize!”.
Cayman Islands 76 – St. Vincent & Grenadines 0
Once again an excellent performance by the Cayman team with the forwards totally dominating up front and some brilliant individual play by the backline seeing Cayman through to their final game on Saturday against the favorites Trinidad & Tobago. The game started with high anticipation that Cayman would simply run over the St. Vincent team, however some early mistakes and miscommunication saw Cayman only leading by 10-0 twenty minutes into the game. St. Vincent making an early run with the ball from their try line and breaking through Cayman’s defense seemed to wake up the team and put them into top gear with a brilliant try saving tackle by Lisa Bird on the Cayman halfway line preventing St Vincent from putting any points on the Board. Some strong 50 yard breaks by centre Olive MacDonagh were only just stopped as St Vincent scrambled on defense denying Cayman who were unable to round off and score more points. The first half had plenty of try scoring opportunities squandered but with some re focus the team seemed to dug deep and managed to pile on the points leaving the half time score at 32-0. The second half Cayman played downwind and seemed to be a different team on the pitch as they mounted the pressure and it was one way traffic for Cayman who stepped back into their game plan with St. Vincent having no answer to the onslaught by both forwards and backs. The try of the game had to be from newcomer Latoya Bariffe on the left wing, she received the ball at pace on the halfway line and performed a classic inside out with a handoff to see her sprint down the line for a 50m try in the corner. The try was converted by Loletta Hanna showing that Cayman has new found all rounded talent and skills to reckon with. Player of the match went to fly half Lisa Kehoe who put in an unbelievable all rounded performance on both defense and attack also leaving her with 2 well deserved tries. Tries: Olive Macdonagh (1), Jane Robson (1), Lisa Kehoe (2), Loletta Hanna (2), Krista Pell (2), Karen Hart (3), Joe Ziegler (1), Jess Lane (1), Latoya Bariffe (1) Conversions: Loletta Hanna (2)
Captain Row's Mid Week Blog Thank you to all for your well wishes and luck, it really does mean so much to hear how people are thinking of us at home. The game against Barbados saw us finally proving how much the team has come together and improved since reforming post Ivan in March 2007. We played a fantastic game but have still yet to play to the best of our abilities. Today's game against St Vincent and Grenadine will see us practicing our game plan for Saturday's crunch match against Trinidad & Tobago. We are confident that we will do our supporters proud. Morale is high and we are to inflict some pulverising at 4.30pm today.
Cayman Islands vs St. Vincent & Grenadines 3:30pm Kick off local Cayman time Team: 1 Anne Storie 2 Krista Pell 3 Cindy Blekaitis 4 Sumari Naude 5 Caroline Deegan 6 Jane Robson 7 Joe Ziegler 8 Jess Lane 9 Rowena Lawrence 10 Lisa Kehoe 11 Loletta Hanna 12 Karen Hart 13 Olive MacDonagh 14 Cara Hennessy 15 Lisa Bird 16 Desiree Sampang 17 Ann-Marie Douglas 18 Kadie-Ann Webb 19 Sharon Whitmore 20 Emily Davies 21 Annie Rankine 22 Latoya Bariffe 5.00pm - Tuesday 23rd 2009 The training session went very well and predominantly the focus was on sharpening up the defensive structure for the coming games. The girls looked very sharp and eager for the next encounter. Captain Rowena Lawrence continues to encourage and focus the squad on the challenges ahead in her first international tournament. Having recently moved from loose forward to scrum half, Lawrence is working well with Kehoe at fly half to keep continued control of the game plan and the challenges of the next game. Although the St. Vincent team must not be underestimated Cayman will be looking at using this game as an opportunity to run through their offensive and defensive game patterns to sharpen up for the heavily anticipated game against the much stronger Trinidad & Tobago team on Saturday. Starting lineup stilled to be announced. Tuesday June 24th Monday evening the team reconvened for a useful classroom session, with the coaches reinforcing the strengths from the first game and addressing some of the weaker areas ready for the next game. The coaches have been able to view some of the Trinidad vs St Vincent game and the game plan for Saturday’s has been adjusted to deal with Trini’s strong attacking players no.s 8, 13 and 15. The news from the St Vincent camp is that 3 extra players are being flown in for Wednesday’s match against Cayman. The Cayman coaches intend to use this game as part of the team’s preparations for Trinidad and to increase the experience of some of the newer players. Under the watchful eye of Dr Marli the squad has managed to remain relatively injury free. Possibly the most unusual injury of the first game was suffered by lock Sumari Naude who was unfortunate enough to be at the bottom of a ruck in a nest of fireants. Minor aches and pains have been dealt with using the ice baths, massage and rest. Rain dominated Tuesday morning. The squad enjoyed a very wet walk to the training game for a 9am session, but unfortunately the downpour became torrential, forcing the practice to be postponed for safety issues. After returning to the hotel, drying off and warming up, a classroom session was held with the coaches particularly focusing on the defensive plan for the Trinidad game. The clash with St Vincent’s will give the squad an opportunity to consolidate the slightly amended game plan. The Lion’s vs Emerging Sprinkbok’s game proved a useful teaching tool, with the South African coaches enjoying the end result!! The day has remained overcast but the rain has cleared up – perfect weather now for training. The training session has been rearranged for 5pm and after a fairly quiet day the team are raring to get on the pitch.
Sunday 21st June 2009 It seemed a short night after a long day of travel, and a late arrival at the Yellow Bird Hotel. But there was a mood of contained excitement as the girls met at 8.45am for a light training session. Joining the squad from the UK was ex-Cayman resident Jessica Lane as the starting number 8 and so it was important to work through some of the set moves together and settle the team into the game plan for the day. The backs ran well at the training session and the forwards worked through their set moves from the scrum and the lineout. The sight of the girls training caused quite some interest amongst the other people out on a Sunday morning! Once back at the hotel, everyone cooled off in the pool, ate lunch and then relaxed. At 1.30pm the team was ready to depart the hotel – everyone taped, dressed and with their game faces on! The Cayman team was first to arrive at the pitch and took some time to settle themselves and prepare individually before the team warm up. Loletta Hanna led the group in prayer before the warm up began and the team all wore black armbands in support of Bernadette Beckles (outside centre) whose mother sadly passed away earlier this week which meant that Bernie pulled out of the competition – she is missed both on and off the pitch. After a good warm up session together, the team felt quietly confident and extremely eager to get out on the pitch and prove themselves. Game on!!!
Cayman Islands 54 - Barbados 3 Cayman received the kickoff and with the forwards driving it up field almost 35 meters it became apparent early in the game that Cayman was going to be a team to reckon with. From the first scrum of the game Cayman started with a classic number 8 pickup from Jess Lane advancing forward, this was followed by some brilliant support from the likes of Jane Robson and Joe Ziegler to retain the ball, the tight five then drove up the side line setting up a quick ball for the backs who with great hands set Olive MacDonagh over the line within the first 4 min of the game. The conversion was successful. The kickoff, received by Cayman was knocked on giving the ball to Barbados . A brilliant tight head scrum from Cayman gave Cayman a classical 8,9,11 on the blindside with the captain Rowena Lawrence drawing the wing and setting away Loletta Hanna at speed for a great handoff and a clean pair of heels to the try line. From the following kickoff Barbados applied strong pressure and after Cayman spent a good 3 minutes defending their line Barbados received a penalty right in front of the posts. Realizing they weren't going to break the Cayman defensive line Barbados opted for a penalty leaving the score at 12-3 fifteen minutes into the game. Cayman again pressured well after the kickoff which left Barbados on their try line trying to swing the ball wide to their speedsters but strong tackling allowed Olive MacDonagh to intercept the ball and take the score to 19-3 after the conversion. Cayman continued with the pressure attack and when they won a Barbados scrum ten meters from the Barbados goal line Number 8 Lane picked and scored. This was followed in the last fifteen minutes of the half by tries from Hart, Kehoe and MacDonagh to see the first half over at a score of 34 to 3.
Lisa Bird opened the second half with a try after the ball was firstly turned over by the Cayman forwards. This was followed by a second try from Lane which followed solid lineout ball and drives from the forwards. From a penalty awarded against Barbados, Lane tapped quickly and went in. Barbados not to be denied came back into the game for the next fifteen minutes but Cayman also stepped up to the plate and refused to let Barbados get any of the upper hand. Fly half Kehoe managed to get onto a turn over ball on the Barbados 22 meter and managed to scamper over for a second try after a great period of pressure from the Cayman players.With twenty minutes to go and the game in control the coaches emptied the benches and Annie Rankine had some excellent runs before Lawrence scored the final try bringing the result to 54 – 3. A special mention to newcomers to the squad in Kadie-Ann Webb, Ann-Marie Douglas and Latoya Bariffe added some spark and showed that Cayman has a big future in rugby considering they've all only been playing for 3months. Overall Cayman has shown immense improvement in both defense and overall skills and a definite game plan and cool heads under pressure is sure to make this team a strong contender for the Caribbean Championship title Tries: Olive MacDonagh (3)Loletta Hanna (1)Jess Lane (2)Karen Hart (1)Lisa Bird (1)Lisa Kehoe (1)Rowena Lawrence (1)Conversions Olive MacDonagh (2) Team: Anne Storie Krista Pell Cindy Blekaitis Sumari Naude Caroline Deegan Jane Robson Joe Ziegler Jess Lane Rowena Lawrence Lisa Kehoe Loletta Hanna Karen Hart Olive MacDonagh Cara Hennessy Lisa Bird Desiree Sampang Ann-Marie Douglas Kadie-Ann Webb Sharon Whitmore Emily Davies Annie Rankine Latoya Bariffe After such a fantastic start to the tournament it was inevitable that the team would need to let off some steam and celebrate together. First stop was the hotel pool to help everyone relax and loosen up some muscle pain. Then, having survived the compulsory ice baths the girls enjoyed dinner out together. Special mention must be made of Karen Hart who was stopped by local police for wearing camouflage trousers (an arrestible offence in Barbados! – really!) and had to be sent home to change. The three coaches, who have invested a huge amount of time and effort in preparing the squad, thoroughly enjoyed the post match celebrations and their new found celebrity status. Monday 22nd June 2009 It was a slightly slow start to the day for the team, after celebrating their decisive win in the first match of the tournament! The aim of the day was to ease out some of the muscle pain, and to have a chance to relax and enjoy being in Barbados. The majority of the team met for a 9.15am water aerobics session at one of the other local hotels and then enjoyed free time at the Yellow Bird Hotel or in and around the town. Ten of the group took advantage of the chance to go diving with a local tour operator. The dive sights were beautiful and yielded fantastic sights such as an octopus, a couple of enormous turtles, and three seahorses. The atmosphere amongst the team is relaxed, happy and buoyant. With the first win under their belts, the team are finally seeing the rewards of their months of hard training.Although the first game was a huge success, there is some anxiety before Wednesday’s game against St Vincent. The Trinidad vs St Vincent game took a heavy toll on the small St Vincent squad and at this stage it is not clear if they will be able to field a full team. There is no doubt that it will be Saturday’s meeting between Trinidad and Cayman that will be the big test of the tournament. The Trinidad squad looks to be playing a very strong confident game and the Cayman team needs to stay focused and positive ahead of this match. Training sessions will be held tomorrow (Tuesday) and after the St Vincent’s game.
NAWIRA Women’s 15s 2009 Barbados June 2009
Format: Round robin competition with each of the 5 teams playing each other, as follows: Teams: 1. T&T 2. Jamaica 3. Cayman 4. SVG 5. Barbados
Sun June 21st - Jamaica v Cayman 11.30 a.m.
Mon June 22nd - T&T v Cayman 4.30 p.m.
Wed June 24th - SVG v Cayman 4.30 p.m.
Sat June 27th - Cayman v Barbados 3.00 p.m. Why should boys have all the fun?
Whether you're a seasoned pro or have never touched a rugby ball in your life, we'd love for you to give rugby a chance. Women of any age, ability, shape or size can play rugby with our team welcoming all levels of experience - all you need is a pair of trainers, enthusiasm and a love of mud!
The women's clubs of the Cayman RU welcome tours at any time. If you are interested in touring please click on Women's tours for more information. Women's training is every Monday and Wednesday at the South Side Pitch from 5:15pm onwards. All women are welcome, experienced or not. To find out more information on the women's programs please contact David Mays at crfucoach@candw.ky
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