The Trinidad & Tobago Rugby Union (TTRU) was pleased to host His Excellency, Víctor Hugo Morales Meléndez, Ambassador of México in the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago on Wednesday, November 2, 2022 at The Harvard Sports Club.
The Ambassador accepted an invitation to meet the four (4) Trinidad & Tobago National Rugby 7s Teams – Senior Men, Senior Women, Under 18 Men and Under 18 Women, which will be representing their country at the upcoming 2022 Rugby Americas North (RAN) Age-Grade & Senior Super Sevens which is scheduled to take place in México City, México, from November 11 to 13, 2022.
Trinidad and Tobago and México have historically shared competitive encounters at various RAN events and the TTRU is excited for its National 7s Teams to compete on Mexican soil and the athletes are looking forward to experiencing the rich Mexican culture for which the country is known.
His Excellency’s visit allowed for an exchange of information and shared values and he spoke about the Mexican culture, what the teams can look forward to, the temperature and he even took the time to teach a few valuable greetings in Spanish. The Ambassador also expressed the Embassy’s desire for the National Teams’ success at the tournament which would showcase the level at which rugby is, in Trinidad and Tobago. He added that, “Rugby is a sport of passion that requires a high physical and mental level, which is why the Embassy of México predicts magnificent results for the Trinbagonian teams.”
Speaking on behalf of the TTRU, Vice President, Mr. Don Sucre expressed his pleasure at the exchange, explaining that it was nice to demonstrate the power of rugby to unite nations both on and off the field. “Rugby is known for its ability to bring people together, creating a global family and sense of belonging no matter where you are in the world. So, we relish this opportunity to demonstrate rugby’s values even before arriving in Mexico and sincerely thank the Mexican Embassy and Ambassador Meléndez for honouring us with their presence. We look forward to the trip and competing at the tournament.” said Sucre.
Mr. Sucre also took the opportunity to thank The Sport Company of Trinidad & Tobago (SporTT) and The Harvard Sports Club for their support. “The TTRU would also like to thank SporTT for supporting the development of Rugby in Trinidad and Tobago and the assistance provided for this trip. We also wish to thank The Harvard Sports Club for being gracious hosts to the National Teams and the Ambassador, as well as their continued support in rugby.”
The 2022 RAN Super Sevens will serve as a qualifying event for the 2023 Central American & Caribbean Games (CASCO), 2023 Pan American Games and 2023 World Rugby Challenger Series for the Senior Teams. This tournament will also provide valuable game experience for the Age-Grade Teams as they prepare for the 2023 Commonwealth Youth Games, to be hosted by Trinidad and Tobago in August 2023.
The Trinidad & Tobago National Rugby 7s Teams will depart for Mexico on Tuesday, November 8, 2022 and the TTRU would like to wish all 4 Teams success at the tournament.
NATIONAL TEAMS
Senior Men’s 7s Team – Shakeel Dyte (C), Christopher Hudson (VC), Keston Earle, Nigel Ballington, Joseph Quashie, Jonathan Taylor, James Phillip, Donte Hazzard*, Atiba Rodney*, Wayne Garrett*, Kelvis Figaro*, Zane Campbell*, Joshua Seechan. Reserves – Kaaleb Diaz, Johnathan Stewart, Vunrick Lyons, Wasim Ollivierre.
Senior Women’s 7s Team – Nicolette Pantor (C), Leah Kintiba (VC), Apphia Glasgow, Ketara Munroe, Kathleen Stephen, Akelar George, Shun-Shauna Mason*, Angel Jorsling, Jade Husbands, Fayola Jack, Carlina Phillip, Alix Lewis, Kadiera George. Reserves – Onica George, Marika Mendez, Ts Davis, Aqiyla O’Brien.
Women’s Under 18 7s Team – Anaya Ammon (C), Alisha Salandy (VC), Zaria Joseph, Alyssa Fields, Sarah Edwards, Zoe Mc Knight, Aaliyah Davis, Elektra Dennis, Chaneisha John*, Jinai Dickinson, Moesha Smith, April Dopwell*, Lycia James*. Reserves – Antonia Callender, Reinaqua Holder, Krista Gialdo.
Men’s Under 18 7s Team – Jovan Henry-Ali* (C), Nathan Achim, Jeremy Bonas, Christian Felix*, Joshua Grant, Juston Marcell*, Joshua Marson, Aaron Stanley, Jaheim Walton, Damian Wilkinson, Elijah Williams, Rhys Valere, Tom Wieczorek*. Reserves – Aiken Anderson, Ronaldo Spencer, Darrius Alleyne.
Players marked with an ‘*’ will be making their 7s debut. In the case of the Men’s Under 18 Team, the players marked with an ‘*’ will be making their National debuts. The Men’s Under 18 Team have not competed in this format before (they played 15s as a Team in July in Jamaica) and as such, they will all be making their 7s debut.
(Photos Credit – Shari John / Self-Authored Media)
