Jamie Barnwell is adamant Bermuda rugby can continue to go from strength to strength as his time not only as head coach, but also on island, comes to a close.

In his five years at the helm of both the men’s national 15s and sevens squads, Barnwell enjoyed a highly successful tenure, which included a Americas North Championship triumph in 2019 and an historic run at the CAC Games last year.

While he steps away from the role with a heavy heart, Barnwell has backed those still involved within the BRFU to build further on the solid foundations laid during his time.

“I guess when you leave a role, no matter what it is, you always immediately start to reminisce,” he said.

“I’m just incredibly thankful that I came across a group who were not only highly motivated, but also highly talented. Over my time we constantly managed to punch above our weight and beat teams across the Caribbean and World circuits.

“My fondest highlights will be the relationships made with everyone involved with Bermuda rugby. That is what I will value most of you because to form those sort of bonds comes from having trust in one another and those relationships are ones that will last.

“On the field I will always remember being crowned Caribbean champions back in 2019 and also qualifying for the CAC Games was just phenomenal because it had never been done before.

“That in itself was achieving something we didn’t think we could, but then the team got their first-ever win at the Games and went on to win three matches which was incredible with an all-Bermudian team.

“I’ll certainly miss my day-to-day life in Bermuda and the hardest thing to leave behind is the rugby because we shared so much joy together as a group. Sport is such a passionate and emotional thing and so you become attached to it.

“While I’m moving on, at the end of the day I’ve also said that a coach is just a facilitator to help get a group of individuals where they need to.

“They are the ones who qualified for the CAC Games and won titles, not me. They have all the skill and leadership qualities from within, everything is in them.

“They have the blueprint of how to achieve what they want to and so I hope that as a group they can continue to add to what they have already achieved.”

As well as success on the field, one of Barnwell’s proudest achievements has been in helping to facilitate a transition of the squad to be made of a core of Bermudian players.

“One of the biggest things for me during my time has been the change in the team itself and a transition to have all Bermudian players in the national team,” he added.

“To have gone through that and still being able to compete at a high level was brilliant.

“Not only have they beaten some bigger nations in the region, but they were also incredibly close to qualifying for both the Commonwealth Games and World Cup, which is a huge credit to everyone and really puts things into perspective.”

He also took the opportunity to hail the imperative work of the Beyond Rugby programme, which is playing a major role in creating a sustainable future for the sport on island.

“I have to also highlight the Beyond Rugby Programme because I’ve been lucky enough to have had a great connection and relationship with it,” Barnwell said of the initiative which provides youth with academic and social-emotional support through the sport.

“The work they do, which includes Family Centre, has been so important over their history together.

“Not only so with the work they do in the community, but I’ve also been fortunate enough to work with them and help young players and coaches get into rugby which I really enjoyed doing.

“We’ve had incredible success with helping young coaches gain qualifications and that is so amazing because if the game is going to continue on island it needs to be self-sustainable.

“Having Bermudian coaches coming through is just as important as local players, because that way everyone comes through together and grows from within. To have great local players, you need great local coaches so that is vital for the future.”

On a personal level, Barnwell’s immediate future will be within the game after being offered an exciting opportunity to join the coaching staff of the Boston-based New England Free Jacks for pre-season ahead of the new Major League campaign.

“The opportunity came about to get involved and help out coaching staff at New England for a short period of time and I’m really thankful to be given that chance,” he added. “It will be interesting to see how the team operates and the sort of culture in a new place. Club rugby comes with a different pressure and expectations and so it will be great to be a part of that.

“I’m always keen to learn new things and so that opportunity to share ideas with others is really exciting for me.”