Jebel Ali Dragons capped off a perfect season by lifting the Gulf Men’s League to collect a hat trick of trophies this season after they won the UAE Premier League as well as the Al Ain 7s Tournament.
The Dragons put in a rampant second half performance to overcome a 5-0 half time deficit, winning 14-5 with two converted second half tries.
“Triple crown, you got to love that,” said Dragons coach Sean Thorton, “We put in a lot of hard yards n and the whole club from the women’s and the juniors have just supported us (to the end).
“It’s been an astounding effort for the Dragons this year, we keep on winning so we all have big smiles on our faces. It’s going to be a long night.”
Ali Common and Andy Russell were the heroes for the Dragons, with the latter levelling the scores just seconds into the second half after breaking through the Harlequins line and running nearly three quarters of the pitch to set up an easily converted try. Common ran in the final try to secure the win catching a trailing pass for the easy try.
“Overall for the club its been great,” said Thorton, “Everyones trying to knock us off at the moment but we’re a club and we all stick together. I just think everyone is so close as a club, we stick together and we train together (all the way through the club), we keep the family together and we’re a family at the moment.”
Elsewhere in the International Veterans, the Xodus Steelers pulled off a stunning last minute win to beat the CNCF Legends 14-10.
The two sides have fought out the last three finals including Saturday’s showdown with the Legends coming out on top both times, part of an overall six year winning streak.
Caleb Ralph picked up an offload to run in the winning try in the dying seconds to give the Steelers a dramatic win.
Ralph had given the Steelers a first half lead with a converted try before the Legends moved into a stunning lead, running in two unconverted tries before Ralph stole the show.
“It’s always a very close game so we’re delighted with the win,” Stuart Reid told Sport360°. “I think that’s what they call ‘at the death’.
“For those who have (lost) here over the last few years, this is very special. They’re always very physical and it adds to the sweet taste of victory,” said Reid who retired from the team after the game.
* For breaking news, follow us on @Sport_360 or find us on Facebook.
