Abu Dhabi Harlequins hooker Phil Abraham has revealed a chance meeting in a dope-testing room paved the way for his move to the club.
Abraham was playing for the Philippines against the UAE in last season’s Asian 5 Nations when he ran into future team-mates Graham Murphy and Malcolm Greenslade, playing for the opposition in Manilla that day, while undergoing his post-match duties.
Having relocated to the UAE last August for work, the 30-year-old American-born Filipino said the decision to join the Quins was a no-brainer.
“I met a couple of the boys in the dope-testing room after the [UAE] game,” said Abraham, who scored his side’s final try in their 40-27 win over Jebel Ali Dragons yesterday at the Jebel Ali Centre of Excellence.
“I told them I was moving to Abu Dhabi and asked them about clubs and they said ‘come play with us’, so it was pretty easy from there to make the transition.”
Abraham, a Chicago native, has an important couple of months ahead of him as the Philippines take part in the Top 5 with a 2015 WorldCup berth still a possibility for his national squad.
A second place finish in Asian rugby’s showpiece international tournament, Top 5, will mean they qualify for a 2015 World Cup playoff against teams from Africa, Europe and America.
“I’m just trying to get availability from work to go out there and play,” the school counsellor said. “It’s a big year for us.”
Defeat to the Philippines last May cost the UAE their place in the Top 5, but Abraham has been impressed with the quality of the club game since arriving here last summer.
“It’s good quality; when I first came over I really had no idea about it until I played against the UAE guys,” he added.
“So it was really a blessing to be able to step in and play. I played Super League in the US and played in Sydney with Randwick. So coming here with the massive expat population, a good standard of rugby and it’s very enjoyable.”
