The Tribune

By RENALDO DORSETT

Sports Reporter

rdorsett@tribunemedia.net

THE Bahamas will officially begin its campaign in the North American Caribbean Rugby Association Championships this weekend.

The Bahamas is slated to host Mexico 3pm Saturday (May 17) at the Winton Rugby Centre. In the second game of the series, the Bahamas is scheduled to travel to face Turks and Caicos on May 31, and return home to face Jamaica on June 28.

The 2014 NACRA championships have been divided into two competitions and four divisions, accompanied with a relegation and promotion system playoff. The two competitions are the Championship League and the Cup League.

The Bahamas is a member of the Cup League which features eight teams in two divisions, North and South. The North Cup League features the Bahamas, Jamaica, Mexico and the Turks and Caicos Islands. The South Cup League includes the British Virgin Islands, Curacao, St Lucia and St Vincent and the Grenadines.

The winners in the Cup League will earn an opportunity to play their way into the Championship League by facing off against the third place side among the Champions.

The League consists of two three team divisions with Bermuda, Cayman and the USA South making up the North, while Barbados, Guyana and Trinidad and Tobago are in the South division.

NACRA play began May 10 in the Cup League’s South when Curacao defeated St Lucia in dominating fashion, 56-7, at Blue Bay Curacao Golf and Beach Resort.

Curacao will take on St Vincent and the Grenadines while St Lucia will face the British Virgin Islands on June 7.

In the Champion’s League, USA South opened competition with a 33-6 win over Bermuda.

The Bahamas is currently ranked No.92 in the iRB standings. Their last match was an exhibition against the Cayman Islands in Freeport, where the Bahamas lost 35-7.

“For the NACRA Championships, we have to improve on our ball possession. The scrum and the lineout are co-ordinated moves so it is difficult for us to maximise our potential in these areas unless we practice these scenarios together,” national team head coach Jose Viana said.

“When you play without ball control, you end up on the defensive end for much of the game, which is what happened in the friendly, and you see the result.”

The Bahamas was relegated to Division Two after being eliminated from the NACRA 15-a-Side Championships and iRB World Cup Qualification contention in 2013.

The Bahamas fell 16-8 to Bermuda in their second game of the North Zone group.

In game one, the Bahamas fell 27-7 to the Cayman Islands. It was the first time Cayman beat the Bahamas since 2003.