On Saturday, 6th of June I had the privilege to represent Guyana rugby in an international test against Barbados. Although we lost 21-3, it was an amazing experience as I was able to visit Guyana for the first time and learn about my heritage while representing the country. 

This was all possible due to Ryan Gonsalves who is the president of Guyana Rugby Football Union who contacted me a few months ago. After talking for a few days I was asked to send him a montage of my games, after watching it he asked if I would like to come to Guyana to represent the the country. I was delighted and so excited at the offer so naturally I took the opportunity with open arms. 

I flew out on the 29th of may to start training in Georgetown, Guyana. The team organised flights and accomodation for me. It was amazing to see the country and experience day to day life in Georgetown. Training in 30* heat was a new challenge for me that was difficult at first but with plenty of water I was able to adapt. The team embraced me with open arms and took me to plenty of local restaurants and bars, the food was amazing and I got to eat things my grandma used to make such as pepperpot, curry and roti, eggball and sour, cookup rice which are all local Guyanese dishes. As the country has a very diverse make up with around 40% East Indian, 30% African, 10% Indigenous and the rest mixed heritages the culture has many influences as reflected in the food.

on June 3rd, as a team we flew to Barbados to prepare for the match. We stayed in an villa and spent the days training, eating and building team chemistry in our free time. It was a thoroughly enjoyable few days in Barbados spent making new friendships and honing in on skills. Unfortunately we did not return to Guyana with a win, but as I return to England I still can’t put into words how grateful I am for the experience and how proud I am to have represented Guyana. 

Thank you to Jules for sharing this incredible experience with us! 

If you have any updates we'd love to hear from you, please get in touch at alumni@lingfieldcollege.co.uk