The invitation came from Tom Nevin, chief executive officer of High Speed Transfers Ltd (HST), the crew transfer specialist based in Swansea, Wales, when he learned that the Welsh team were attending a ten-day, hot weather training camp near Antalya.

It was fortunate timing as Nevin and his fellow HST director Chris Monan were scheduled to be at Damen Shipyards Antalya to view HST’s third and fourth Fast Crew Supplier 2710s ‘Harri’ and ‘Euan’.  14 members of the squad took the opportunity to attend the commissioning and take a tour of the ‘HarrI’ and to see the ‘Euan’ in build.

“It was just too good an opportunity to miss,” says Tom Nevin. “When I heard that they would be in Antalya at the same time that we were commissioning ‘Harri’ I got in touch with the team management and they were more than happy to give some of their valuable time to support a Welsh company. They even signed a Damen / HST flag for us as a memento of the occasion!”

The visit, rounded off with lunch afloat and a cruise around Antalya Harbour, was a two-way gesture of support ahead of the start of the Rugby World Cup 2019 taking place in Japan from 20 September. Nevin added,” As number one in the current world rugby rankings Wales is one of the favourites to win the World Cup and we will be cheering them on all the way!”

Damen delivered HST’s first FCS 2170 in early summer 2018. ‘Harri’ is due to be officially handed over to HST on the same day that the World Cup gets underway and ‘Euan’ is scheduled for launch in mid-October.