Abu Dhabi Saracens have the chance to “make amends” for their sole Gulf Top Six defeat to Doha in Friday’s ARFU West Asia Club Championship Cup final.
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Ali Thompson’s troops posted a nearly faultless set of GT6 results, winning their first eight games before they were dealt a body blow in Qatar a few weeks ago.
The Scotsman has played down the underdog tag, and rightly so. This is hardly a David versus Goliath encounter. The fact remains, however, that Sarries have to travel to Doha, which is set to provide a raucous cauldron of atmosphere on Friday.
They also have to front up to the fact that they finished runnersup in the GT6 when for so long it seemed as if they were destined to win it undefeated.
Thirdly, they must put the fact that they lost to Doha 14 days ago firmly to the back of their mind and get back into the mindset that saw them win 10 straight games between October 17 and March 6.
Head Coach Alistair Thompson gives the audience his assessment of Abu Dhabi Saracens season so far. http://t.co/9BolsYRd7J
— Gameday (@ADSaracens) March 18, 2015
“I don’t see us as underdogs, it’s 1-1 between us and this is a one-off game,” said Thompson. “I’m confident we can go there and perform. We evaluated the performance in Doha last time and it gave us a chance to reflect. We always learn lessons in defeat.
“It certainly wasn’t a disaster that we didn’t win the GT6 and we’re in the final so it wasn’t a catastrophe and we have a chance to make amends.
“The boys are relishing the chance to rectify the errors and show how well we can play. If you can’t get yourself motivated for a final you’re playing the wrong sport. Win or lose, we need to remember how far this club has come in four years.”
Sarries haven’t played since that 31-17 defeat two weeks ago, after Bahrain forfeited their final GT6 fixture last week, which Thompson sees as an advantage.
“It’s frustrating but it could be a blessing in disguise,” said the Scotsman. “The GT6 is quite intense, playing 10 physical matches in 10 weeks. We just had a two-hour session last week and then a team barbecue so it was quite a relaxed day.”
One big blow for Sarries will be the loss of influential captain Jaen Botes, who is unable to travel due to visa issues. The South African No. 8 has been a driving force behind Sarries’ surge to the final and is one of the leading candidates for the UAE Rugby Annual Awards’ Player of the Season accolade.
“Jaen is a big miss, he’s a big player and a big character and in a final you need these type of guys who can spark things, so it’s a big loss,” said Thompson. “But we have 19/20 other guys and a lot of very good players in that squad. Jaen leads from the front but we have boys waiting in the wings and I’ll be asking them to step up.”
Thompson admits Botes leaves pretty big shoes to fill, but the player/coach himself will attempt to do just that.
“It was never my intention to play in the final,” he said. Given Thompson’s experience and the fact he has eight international caps for the UAE, he may well just be the perfect replacement for Botes.
Winger Cormac Meyler returns to the squad after suffering a dislocated shoulder against Doha in the home game.
