Dubai Hurricanes lose thriller in Qatar

Matt Jones - Editor 08:09 24/01/2016
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  • Rumbling on: Doha won for a third straight game but they didn’t have things all their own way against a plucky Dubai Hurricanes.

    It’s a testament to their performance that Dubai Hurricanes flew out of Qatar on Friday night dejected by an 11-point defeat to Doha.

    Head coach James Ham had spoken of the desire to cause a shock in the build-up to the game and Canes very nearly managed that, losing an 83-point thriller 47-36.

    Ham will wonder about what ifs, but was also delighted by his team’s performance, which he believes can stand them in good stead for the remainder of their West Asia Championship campaign.

    “From our point of view it was a close game,” said Ham.

    “It was difficult to go there and give them too much in the first half like we did, but we stood up well and with a bit more confidence at taking points on, we could have got more from the game. It sets us up well for the games ahead though so I’m pleased with our performance.”

    Canes captain Daniel Perry was distraught by defeat but said the win proved why Doha are one of the favourites to go one better than last season and claim the title of being the best side in west Asia this time.

    “They are a class outfit who are so clinical when they want to be,” said the Englishman.

    “We are really gutted about the game, firstly for not winning and secondly, for not getting the second bonus point, but I think it’s a testament to the performance of the lads that for the last 20 minutes the only points they scored were off the tee.”

    The silver lining for Canes was an impressive try-scoring bonus point on the road at a venue that does not usually offer up many points for visiting teams.

    Daryl Johnson, Ged Moore, Chris Gregory, Paul Beard and Lindsey Fitzgerald all crossed the whitewash for Canes in a barn-storming spectacle.

    For Doha head coach Aaron Palmer, the result was certainly a reminder that their path to the championship won’t be a walk in the park.

    They have been in fine form so far with two wins, including a mightily impressive win at Abu Dhabi Saracens last week, but the New Zealander feels this wake-up call might be exactly what was needed ahead of the mouthwatering trip to Dubai to take on Exiles next Friday.

    “It was certainly closer than we would have liked and we’ll be working to fix that as we have the big match this
    coming week against Exiles,” said Palmer.

    “We always thought we had the game in the bag but then we made stupid mistakes in our 22 and Hurricanes pounced on those. But, we always had the lead and would pull away by two tries then leak one in. The game took that pattern.”

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