TT face USA South today in rugby clash

SIX changes were made to the TT senior men’s rugby team that will take on USA South in the 2018 Rugby Americas North (RAN) Senior Men’s 15 Championship today.

The fixture will be played at St Mary’s College Ground, Serpentine Road, St Clair, from 4 pm.

Jesse Richards and Christopher Hudson, who were included in the squad for TT’s 27-24 win over Bermuda, were omitted due to injuries while Travis Carmichael, Jimmel Doyle, Wayne Kelly and Dexter Snaggs were also left out but on tactical grounds.

The six players were replaced by Nicholas Lobo, Darren Clancy, Johnason Alleyne, Agboola Silverthorn, Karlon Alexander and Andrew Welch.

According to team manager Ronald Annandsingh, the mood in the camp is “up tempo” and the players “eager for the encounter.” Annandsingh said while he is confident of victory given the team’s extensive preparations, “a total team effort will be needed.”

Since its win over Bermuda, TT coaches have worked on the team’s defensive vulnerabilities with training devoted to scrummaging and execution.

While TT played to a narrow hard-fought win, USA South were still tested yet won comfortably, 48-28 against the same team.

Following today’s match, TT may face Cayman Islands depending on the availability of government funding requested by the TTRFU.

TTRFU president Colin Peters says he is confident the funds will be released given the importance of TT’s qualification for the 2018 Caribbean Championships.

Wins over USA South and Cayman Islands will ensure TT remain maintain 51st place in world rugby standings and remain in the top flight of regional rugby.

The TTRFU has asked supporters to turn out in large numbers wearing red.

TT Squad

1. Felician Guerra (capt) 2. Trizine McClean 3. Ernest Wright 4. Jamal Clark 5. Nicholas Lobo 6. Darren Clancy 7. Kirby Hosang 8. Gordon Dalgleish 9. Johnason Alleyne 10. Sebastian Navarro 11. Anderson Joseph 12. Joseph Quashie 13. Sefanaia Waqa 14. Jamaal Stewart 15. Leon Pantor 16. Anthony Rajkumar 17. Andrew Welch 18. Mark Griffith 19. Shakeel Dyte 20. Adam Frederick 21. Agboola Silverthorn 22. Karlon Alexander 23. James Phillip

Staff: Kyle Wynyard (coach), Rhett Chee Ping (asst. coach), Brendan O’Farrell (ass’t coach), Ronald Annandsingh (manager), Derek Ashby-Williams (physiotherapist).