Canada Games Rugby Team Named

Twenty-four Nova Scotian rugby players will be having fun in the scrum this summer in Regina, Sask. at the 2005 Canada Games from Aug. 6 to 20.

The final team was selected after a full year of open try-outs, culminating in a two-and-a-half week training camp in South Africa.

"We played a lot of rugby," said head coach Troy Myers. "It was like boot camp -- more work than holiday."

In preparation for the Games, the team will practise every weekend and compete at the Atlantic Championships July 9 and 10 in St. John's, NL.

Along with Mr. Myers of Dartmouth, the team will be led by assistant coach Derek Short and manager Glenn Johnson, both of Halifax.

"I've been involved in rugby in Nova Scotia since the early 1990s and this is the best under-18 team I have ever seen," said Mr. Myers. "It is very realistic that we can make it into the medal rounds in Regina."

Team Nova Scotia will have a maximum of 357 athletes competing in 16 sports during the two weeks of the Games. They are supported by 45 coaches, 20 managers, one boatman and 18 mission staff. Four young artists will participate in the National Artist Program at the Games, bringing the team's total to 445 Nova Scotians.

Names of the rugby team and others who have been selected for Team Nova Scotia are available in the Meet the Team section of the team's website at http://ns.canadagames.ca/summer2005.