Ross Mills believes Friday’s ARFU West Asia Champion Club final will be contested by the two best clubs in the region, as his Jebel Ali Dragons side take on Abu Dhabi Harlequins at Zayed Sports City.
The Englishman labelled his team underdogs but could barely contain his excitement for a clash that pits the top two sides from this year’s Gulf Top Six (GT6) in battle for the second year running.
Indeed, the scenario could not be more similar than 12 months ago with Quins securing GT6 bragging rights, and the home advantage that brings with it.
Last season, the Dragons finished second only to secure a 29-20 victory in the capital to spoil their host’s day. The Abu Dhabi outfit are a different team this year, though, and have won 10 out of 10 matches in 2014.
Jebel Ali might be cup final specialists, having swept the board in domestic and Gulf rugby, but Mills does not think that will give them an advantage come 17:00 on Friday.
“We’ve won every final [in the last 18 months], so that gives us confidence. They’ve won 10 on the bounce, so that gives them confidence.
“So you’ve got two teams both going into the final thinking they can win it based on previous experiences,” Mills said. “Yes, it’s a final but to us it’s just another game, it’s about turning up, playing to our strengths and giving the Quins the respect they deserve.
“I think we’re quite fortunate as we’re going into the game as underdogs. They’re going into the game on the back of 10 straight wins so their confidence is going to be sky high.
“It should be a brilliant final and at the end of the day whoever wins they will have deserved to have won it. It’s as simple as that.”
Despite having a number of new faces in their squad this time around, Quins do not plan to endure the same pain again.
“I think the boys are hungry especially given a couple of them were involved last year. So, hungry and building and focused is where we’re at,” said Quins assistant coach Winston Cowie.
“It’s a different group, so what we have to do is make sure we meet each other’s expectations again, rise to the challenge of a final and make sure we’re the ones setting the standard and the tempo.”
The Dragons will be without both Ian Overton and Andy Russell for the final.
Wing Overton has had to returnto the UK to attend his father’s funeral and Mills is sure his teammates will be determined to end a difficult week on a high.
“That has brought a bit of a shadow to the club,” he said. “But it can be a double-edged sword and work in your favour as a motivator and I think everybody’s just looking forward to getting to Abu Dhabi on Friday and having a run-out.”
Murray Strang and Imad Reyal are in contention to start on Friday despite recent injuries and Mills is confident he will be able to select his strongest three-quarter line of the year at Zayed Sports City.
Their hosts will be without second- row Phil Brady and scrum-half Ed Lewesy, who are both away due to work commitments.
The two coaches also hope that a predicted thunder storm stays clear of the capital on matchday. However, Mills insists rain would not affect the way his side approaches the game.
He added: “We’ve trained all season to play our structure and whether it’s raining, whether there’s thunder, whether it’s blowing a gale, whether it’s sunny, whether it’s roasting hot, we go out every game and try to play our structure.”
Showpiece headlines a bumper day
While the WACC final provides the headline entertainment at Zayed Sports City, the action will get under way at 16:00 as the Quins under-7s and under- 8s take to Pitch 1 to play some games of mini rugby.
The final itself will kick-off at 17:00 with pitchside food and beverage outlets offering refreshment to fans throughout the game.
The Clubhouse will also be open from 12:00 until late, and if projected storms do arrive in the capital it may provide supporters with some shelter. Although that would mean they miss out on some thrilling rugby.
