Tom Healy, the Bermuda rugby sevens coach, insists his team “fear no one” ahead of their Central American and Caribbean Games campaign in Veracruz, Mexico.

The men’s sevens team play Colombia, Cayman Islands and Barbados in the preliminary group stage on Friday to determine seedings for the next day’s knockout phase.

It is the start of an intense period of games for the squad, who also compete in the North American Caribbean Rugby Association Sevens tournament in Mexico City the following Wednesday.

Only Bermudians are allowed to represent the Island at the CAC Games, while qualified expats can be incorporated into the NACRA squad.

After almost six months of intense training for club and country, Healy believes that his players have got their game faces on now things have “got real”.

He said: “We have some knowledge and familiarity with Cayman and Barbados. Barbados came second in the Caribbean [NACRA] last year and Cayman beat us in the quarter-final so we know we are up against it.

“However, although we’ve lost to those teams it hasn’t been by a big margin, and sevens is such a finicky game anyway, so the small teams can always beat the bigger teams. We’re certainly not afraid of any of the guys in our group.

“We have got what we consider to be better skills around the park. What we lack in maybe Caribbean athleticism, we more than compensate with experience and rugby know-how.

“Colombia are unknown [to us], I know nothing about them. We have never met as far as I am aware in a sevens competition, but I have played against a number of South American teams and I would expect them to be physical.”

The squad has been buoyed by encouraging performances at a warm-up tournament in Colorado, where Bermuda won the shield competition. Their results included a draw against the United States second string.

“That was a big half a scalp,” Healy said. “Winning the shield was a big step forward for us.”

Despite the progress made, Healy wants further “buy-in” from Bermudians in terms of training and participation. He has, though, been encouraged by the increase in numbers and the development of emerging players.

Andre Landy, he says, is evolving impressively into a senior sevens squad player, while Somers Brewin’s fitness work at college in the UK is bearing fruit.

“Somers has clearly been working on his rugby,” Healy said. “His fitness scores have dramatically improved as has his game awareness and general rugby skill level.”

Tashon DeSilva is another player who will be crucial in Mexico, especially Veracruz.

“He is the most senior Bermudian,” Healy said. “He’s an important guy from a physical perspective — he’s a very strong athletic man and it’s always important to be able to get buy-in and motivate the Bermudian members of the squad. So he’s important on a number of levels.”

With two national squad training sessions and two club training sessions a week, Healy says that the fitness levels in the squad are the best they have been for a number of years.

“We seem to be peaking at the right time,” he said.

“The standard in training has increased quite dramatically. There’s been a change in attitude to the players as we get closer. Things are getting real very quickly.

“We’re not the finished product, we have work to do but we are going down there and we won’t be afraid of anyone. We know what we can do.”