The Tribune

By RENALDO

DORSETT

Sports Reporter

rdorsett@tribunemedia.net

TEAM Bahamas was on the wrong side of history in regional rugby play over the weekend and suffered a home loss in the Rugby Americas North Cup Series.

The Bahamas fell 26-19 to the visiting Turks and Caicos Islands at the Winton Rugby Centre on Saturday.

It was an historic win for the visiting side as they secured their first-ever victory against a full member of International World Rugby on the international 15 a-side stage.

The Bahamas had an opportunity to tie the game late with less than one minute left to play, but a seemingly successful try was called back due to a penalty and the visitors were able to hold on for the win.

The game got off to a slow scoring start with just one try between the teams in the first half and the Bahamas clung to a 6-5 lead. The scoring picked up considerably in a fast paced second half which saw TCI outscore the Bahamas 21-13 to surge ahead for the win.

For the Bahamas, attention now shifts to June 3 when they travel to face first-time participants in the tournament, the Dominican Republic.

TCI took an 8-6 lead on a penalty kick, but the Bahamas suffered an ever greater blow when one of the team’s top players, Dan Woodside, had to be carted off the field with an injury.

The Bahamas responded with a go-ahead try, but the advantage would be short-lived as TCI retook the lead with a try of their own less than two minutes later.

The Bahamas fell one spot to a No.21 ranking in the latest edition of the Americas Rankings released yesterday. TCI rose to No.18 overall after being ranked at the bottom of the group at No.40 just months ago. The Bahamas dropped from 33.76 points to now have 32.29. TCI took the 1.47 points to now have a ranking of 33.53.

With the win over the Bahamas, TCI moved to 2-0 after they successfully defended home turf on May 4 with a 24-15 win over the Dominican in the first game of the series.

In their last appearance at the Rugby Americas North Championship in June 2016, the Bahamas suffered consecutive losses to Mexico, Cayman Islands, and Bermuda.

Originally formed in March 2001, under the name of North America and West Indies Rugby Association (“NAWIRA”), RAN is one of the six World Rugby regional associations. RAN is the governing body of the sixteen Unions in Rugby Americas North.

It’s membership is diverse and currently, consists of, Bahamas, Barbados, Bermuda, British Virgin Islands, Canada, Cayman Islands, Guyana, Jamaica, Mexico, St Lucia, St Vincent and The Grenadines, Trinidad and Tobago and the USA. In August 2011 the Turks & Caicos Islands and Curacao were admitted as Associate Members of RAN, with the Dominican Republic also joining as an Associate Member in 2015.

This year’s event marks the 10th edition of the RAN Championship, traditionally geared toward Tier 3 North American and Caribbean teams.

Pool play began on April 22 and will continue through July 1. Unlike last year’s tournament, 2017 will not serve as an iRB World Cup qualifying event and non-World Rugby full member teams return to take part.

The tournament has been divided into two competitions and three divisions, accompanied with a relegation and promotion system playoff. The two competitions are the Championship League (North Zone, South Zone) and the Cup League.

The Bahamas is a member of the Cup League, which features the aforementioned Dominican Republic and Turks and Caicos Islands. Championship League includes Bermuda, Cayman Islands, Mexico and USA South in the North Zone. The South Zone includes Guyana, Trinidad and Tobago and Barbados. 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. Each division plays a single round robin. After pool play is complete, the winners play in the final on July 1.