In just seven years, Theodore Henry has managed to become one of the most decorated and travelled local rugby player.
This, he says is as a result of him carrying his ‘must win’ philosophy each and every time he takes to the rugby playing fields.
Henry was a rookie to the sport in 2000, but it didn’t take him very long to make a drastic impact both locally and regionally. At present, he is one of the most well-known faces in rugby in Guyana.
Many rugby players were drawn to the sport because of personal interest or the influence of a family member but not Henry.
As humorous as it may sound, Henry saw the sport as a loophole to elude having to pay gym fees.
He revealed that the owner of the neighbourhood gym had relocated and he needed to stay fit.
One of his close friends informed him that he would not have to pay to use the gym in the National Park if he played rugby.
Henry jumped at the opportunity but did not intend to fulfill the other end of the bargain.
He thought that if he just attended one or two sessions he could stop playing the sport while continuing to benefit from the gym, but the coaches had other ideas for his obvious talent and after just two practice sessions Henry was thrown in at the deep end playing his first game for the Yamaha Caribs unit.
“I honestly never thought I would play rugby seriously,” he said.
“I always saw it as a foolish sport so I wasn’t planning to continue playing but since Caribs didn’t have much players they just sent me straight into the game and although I would not say that I played excellently, I think I played above the expectations of everyone, but the bottom line was that I really had fun.” Henry confessed.
After that there was no stopping him as he raced towards the national team selection in March 2001 which gave him the chance to represent his country at the Caribbean Seven-a-side Championships in Jamaica as well as the 15-a-side World Cup Qualifiers held in The Cayman Islands in November of the same year.
Just went things seemed to be going well for Henry disaster struck.
He twisted his ankle in the first minute of his regional career and although he was still able to play, he was not as efficient as would have liked to be for the rest of the tournament in Jamaica.
Later in the year when the team ventured to the qualifiers in the Cayman Islands he sprained his wrist in the first game and again, was not able to make much of a contribution to the team.
“Those were probably the hardest moments of my career,” Henry recounted.
But, Henry did not let those little bumps on the road to rugby stardom affect his goal of excelling in the sport and as soon as he overcame his injuries, he was once again unstoppable.
He showed that he could rise again after setbacks by grabbing the most promising player award in 2002 when he participated in the Trinidad invitational Sevens Tourna-ment.
Henry was adjudged MVP in the St Lucia Invitational 10-a-side tournament where he was a guest player for the Laparkan Hornets.
He also led the Guyana side in countless tournaments throughout the region, including the World Cup Sevens qualifiers in the Cayman Islands in 2004, where the team won the Plate competition.
He also participated for three straight years in the international Sevens tournament in the Cayman Islands from 2004-2006.
However, one of the most exciting moments of his career was being a part of the 2006 national squad which captured the first of two consecutive North America and West Indian Rugby Association Sevens championships.
“The first one was very special since I had been on many good teams for years it just seemed to elude us and to finally taste the victory was great and what made it even sweeter was knowing that it made me part of Guyana’s first ever Rugby championship side.”
He gives his title as a utility player since he plays in the scrum half, hooker and prop positions. He, basically, fulfills whichever position is lacking which makes him a coach’s dream.
Henry has earned his third straight selection for the International Rugby Board’s (IRB) Sevens World Series in San Diego, USA next February.
He said that he is totally aware of the great expectations that the region has for the West Indies side in San Diego and plans to do everything in his power not to disappoint supporters.
He is, though, looking forward to the greater good this experience will net as the experience that the five Guyanese players who have been selected on the team will gain will have tremendous benefits when Guyana has to compete as an individual nation in the Sevens World Cup Qualifiers, which will be held later next year.
Henry is very confident that the Guyana team will be able to make a significant impact in that tournament since most of the Guyana side would have gained experience from time spent on the international circuit.
Henry expressed thanks to assistant coach of the Yamaha Caribs, Oliver James and national coach, Sherlock Solomon, who is also head coach of the Yamaha Caribs rugby team.
James and Solomon are mainly responsible for shaping and moulding Henry into the player he is by imparting their knowledge and making adjustments to his technique.
Player profile
Name: Theodore Henry
Age: 28
Height: 165cm
Weight: 190 lbs
Position: Scrum-half, hooker and prop
Accomplishments: Captain of World Cup qualifying side in 2004 and 2005, current vice-captain of national rugby team, MVP, St Lucia 10-a-side invitational 2002, Caribbean’s most promising rugby player in the 2002 Sevens tournament in Trinidad, countless local MVP awards, three consecutive selections to rugby West Indies teams.
