The Guyana Police Falcons will begin the defence of their Saint Lucia International Sevens rugby title on Saturday, August 1, with three group-stage matches during the one-day tournament.
The Falcons have been placed in Group One alongside SLU Select, MADA Sevens and SVG Vikings Select. They will open their campaign against SLU Select at 10:30 a.m. before facing MADA Sevens at 11:45 a.m. and SVG Vikings Select at 1:45 p.m.
The defending champions will be coached by Theodore Henry, with Michael Whitehead serving as assistant coach and Ronaldo Griffith as team manager.
Several other Guyanese players will also be involved in the tournament. Some members of the women’s contingent will join the Saint Lucian teams competing in the female division, while selected male players will represent the SLU Rogues.
The men’s competition will feature eight teams divided into two groups. Group Two consists of the Martinique Jokers, SLU Academy, Pirates Rugby and SLU Rogues.
Each men’s team will play three preliminary matches, with the top two teams in each group advancing to the main championship semifinals. The teams finishing third and fourth will move into the Plate competition.
The championship semifinals are scheduled to begin at 3:15 p.m., while the main final is set for 5:30 p.m. The Plate semifinals and placement matches will also be contested during the afternoon.
The women’s competition will feature SL Blue Ice and SL Blue Flames playing three matches against each other. The team recording the most victories will be declared champion.
Tournament organisers initially planned a two-day event but changed the competition to a one-day format because of difficulties teams and officials experienced in securing flights. The Under-20 division was also removed, while the men’s competition was reorganised into two groups of four teams.
Matches will be played over two seven-minute halves with a one-minute interval. Drawn playoff matches will proceed to five-minute periods of extra time, with the first team to score declared the winner.
The prize-giving ceremony is scheduled to begin at 6:00 p.m., shortly after the conclusion of the final.
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