With an $8.5M budget required to ensure Guyana’s participation in the NAWIRA Regional RWC 2009 Sevens Qualifier Tournament in Nassau, the Bahamas, the Guyana Rugby Football Union (GRFU) has shown that such a task was possible with the right support.
In the boardroom of the Demerara Mutual Life Assurance Society Limited yesterday, the GRFU received a cheque for US$1,000 to assist the teams participation in the qualifiers.
A male and female senior team were recently selected after three months of preparation for the tournament which is set to take place this week-end.
President of the GRFU, Noel Adonis, stated yesterday that the union knew that a budget this large would be critical.
“We have approached numerous corporate entities and also the government and in the recent weeks they have begun to respond to our requests,” he said.
Adonis added that over the years the GRFU had demonstrated through its successful performances that they have a well-organized programme.
Guyana’s men’s Sevens team is seeded at number one in the Caribbean while the female’s Sevens team is ranked number two.
Adonis also noted that the union was pleased and proud to have a partner like Demerara Mutual once again supporting the GRFU.
Demerara Mutual Life Public Relations Manager, Marjorie Chester, stated in her brief remarks that the company has made a tangible contribution to the less popular sports disciplines.
She encouraged the entire business community to get involved in the sporting arena and to make the effort of bettering sporting facilities that will get youths physically active and take them away from the negative activities in society.
The teams depart today for The Bahamas but will spend one night in Jamaica.
