GOING OUT: Watch the Rugby World Cup at Fibber Magee’s

03:38 04/12/2013
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Mail
  • Pinterest
  • LinkedIn
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • WhatsApp
  • Pinterest
  • LinkedIn
  • Sport360° is making a habit of dropping into Irish bars around Dubai, jus as the men in green are producing their best rugby in this World Cup.

    We were on hand to see an unlikely victory over Australia a couple of weeks ago, and yesterday we repeated the trick at Fibber Magee’s. Luck of the Irish? We’re certainly bringing our own with us, it seems.

    Fibber Magee’s – or Fibbers as it’s known to its extensive clientele – is located behind the Crown Plaza Hotel on Sheikh Zayed Road, Dubai.

    Cozy and compact, what it lacks in size it more than makes up for in atmosphere, friendliness, and, most importantly for an Irish bar, its “green feeling” – the resemblance to an establishment in Killarney, Skibbereen or Buncrana.

    Irish bars the world over make the mistake of going over the top – too many shamrocks on the wall, too much potato and cabbage on the menu.

    Fibbers, meanwhile, hits the nail squarely on the head. Nothing too exaggerated, just a well-decked out Irish bar, tables and chairs that look straight out of ‘Angela’s Ashes’, and a bar stocked with everything you’d expect from an Irish pub.

    We arrive in time for the crucial Ireland v Italy Rugby World Cup match, kick-off 11:30am on a working day. Empty and deserted? Think again. It’s standing room only in Fibbers, as the two European nations clash for the right to face Wales in the quarter finals next weekend.

    The match follows a predictable script – that is, if you read the one where Ireland win comfortably, play some beautiful rugby, and negotiate a potentially tricky knockout game with ease.

    As we mentioned earlier, we’re not taking credit for Ireland producing the goods once again, but can we at least thing we’re partially responsible?

    The Irish are happy, the Italians…well were not sure, as this was a strictly green affair, and after Brian O’Driscoll and his men did the business, we’d expect this Saturday to be an even noisier, more colourful affair.

    With an 8am kickoff for the Ireland v Wales quarter-final, we’d expect a number of rugby fans to stay in bed. Not this lot however, and after managing to be in work and Fibbers at the same time, we’re sure they’ll be out in numbers again this weekend.

    The food menu at Fibbers is extensive, and combines the traditional “pub grub” options of the likes of steak and chips, cottage pie and a full Irish breakfast, with other tasty bites such as tandoori chicken bites, king prawns, lamb shanks and, of course, Irish stew.

    Priding themselves on being “Dubai’s best secret,” Fibbers is as close as you’ll get to the feeling of an authentic Irish pub anywhere in the UAE.
    Being down a lane that on first and second look is difficult to find, the term secret is certainly apt, but the Irish contingent in Dubai certainly know about it, and flock here religiously.

    Fibbers is open for all Rugby World Cup games, along with English Premier League games, golf, horse racing and Formula One.
    With Ireland and Wales immediately preceding the clash between France and England next Saturday, grab your colours, head down, and catch the action from the biggest rugby tournament of them all.

    At Fibbers, the game is always on, and judging by the crowd there yesterday, the small matter of work isn’t a distraction from catching it.

    What: Fibber Magee’s Irish pub, open for all matches during the Rugby World Cup.
    When: Games take place on Saturdays and Sundays; this Saturday is Ireland v Wales at 8am, and England v France at 11am.
    Where: Behind Crowne Plaza, Sheikh Zayed Road, Dubai.

    Recommended