Dubai, 19th Apr. 2014 (WAM): UAE Rugby?s 24-man squad that will compete against Singapore in 2014?s Asian 5 Nations Division 1, at 7he Sevens in Dubai on Wednesday April 23rd 19:30, has been announced.
Wednesday night?s match-up is crucial to both sides as this solitary game will decide who will stay in Division 1 and who will be relegated to Division 2 for 2015?s revamped Asian Championships. UAE is ranked 1st in the Asian 5 Nations Division 1 rankings, after relegation in 2013, with Singapore ranked 4th, after winning Division 2. Newly appointed Performance Manager and National Coach, Roelof Kotze, has been impressed with the talent he has seen since his arrival in February, after monitoring player performance at both the UAE Rugby Conference and the Gulf Top 6 - where the top 2 teams competing for the title were UAE-based clubs. Kotze is also acutely aware of the Federation?s mandate to integrate Emiratis into representative rugby. After consultation with technical team of Wayne Marsters and Ben van Rooyen, including valuable insight from former Seven?s Captain and recently accredited IRB level 1 Coach, Yousef Shaker, 5 UAE Nationals have been named in the squad, including Adel Al Hendi ? winner of Best Youth Emirati Player at the first annual UAE Rugby Awards. ?The essence of course is to win the match and remain in Division 1 for 2015. Secondly is for our players to play to the best of their ability and to effectively execute our game plan? said Kotze. ?I?m expecting it to be a fast, open game with Singapore playing a running style of rugby? he added. ?UAE Rugby is committed to the ongoing Asian 5 Nations tournament through the revamped Asian Championships (starting in 2015) and its development into a leading series within the ARFU and the IRB calendar? said UAE Rugby?s Secretary General Qais Al Dhalai. ?We are pleased to be hosting this Division 1 game in the UAE and we will be proud to, once again, see our expatriate players stand alongside our Emirati players when the anthem is played?.Copyright Emirates News Agency (WAM) 2014.
