The coaches of the Bermuda’s women’s volleyball team are ecstatic that the squad will be playing for a gold medal at the Eastern Caribbean Volleyball Championships on Tuesday night.

Head coach Shaela Rae and assistant coach Kayla Grant are presiding over the team for the first time, guiding them to victory in their first four matches of the competition, rendering the result of Monday night’s match against Grenada irrelevant.

Bermuda had not taken part in an international tournament since before the Covid pandemic and were seeded sixth in the six-team competition, and although the coaches were optimistic about the ability within the squad they have been delighted with performance levels.

“I don’t think we could have hoped for anything better than this,” Grant said.

““We hadn’t all played together in a long time. We had five of the girls off island at college, so the first game we had to get out some jitters and we’ve just been building our confidence since then with all the wins.

“They have adapted really well to all the changes that we’ve made so far and we’ve played well as a team and each win we get our confidence just grows even more. We’re really prepared for this match.”

Bermuda have cut a swathe through their opponents, with St Lucia, Sint Maarten, Anguilla and Antigua all beaten but Rae is keen to point out that there is still room for improvement.

“There are a few things that have really hurt us in this tournament so far, one has been missed serves,” she said.

“We did improve a bit against Antigua, but it’s really been hurting us and we also struggled with serve/receive in earlier games, where the passes were just going too close to the net and didn’t let the setter do what she needed to do.”

It might be easy for the players to cross that fine line between confidence and complacency given that they have beaten their final opponents already, but the coaching staff are determined to stop the team getting carried away.

“We’re doing a really good job at having communication with everybody together as a team,” Grant said.

“We know what the expectations are, we know what we’re coming up against now. I also expect to see a couple of different girls play and it might not be the exact same line up we’ve played before.

“The girls need to come with an open mind and they are doing a good job so far. Our confidence is high but we are not letting our guard down.”

Both coaches are former players making a transition to coaching and Rae admits it is easier to be in the game than watching from the sidelines.

“It’s funny, I didn’t think it could be more stressful than being on the court but it is so nerve-wracking being on the sidelines,” Rae said.

“I sweat just as much as any player and by the time the game is done I feel like I’ve played it with them.

“There is no good cop, bad cop, but we have taken the divide and conquer approach. There are very strict rules about being on the bench and Kayla is not allowed to stand up, so because she can’t stand I am prioritising my right to stand because I want to be close to the team and giving lots of energy.

“Kayla is giving our serving signals, telling servers where to go and we each have different roles. We can communicate with our eyes, we know each other so well.”

The team have been embracing the Caribbean spirit since arriving in Antigua last week and the welcoming atmosphere has been instrumental to helping them settle in.

“It’s a great tournament to be part of because it helps Bermuda come and join the Caribbean community as we are very isolated up in the Atlantic, so it’s great to feel part of the greater Caricom,” Rae said.

“Spirits are really high in Antigua and we’ve been welcomed with nothing but open hands and open hearts. The spectators, the coaches, the organisers, have been wonderful. It’s not a state-of-the-art stadium but they make up for it with a lot of heart.”

The other islands playing in the tournament have had more support from the stands in Antigua, but a band of Bermudians will be in the gym for the final, with the senior men’s team arriving on the island in time to watch.

“I think we’ve set a good tone,” Grant said.

“They’re going to be coming in with good energy, riding off of how well we’ve played so far, and it will be really good for the girls to have a bit more support in the stands.”