Roelof Kotze is optimistic about the UAE’s chances of retaining their Asian 5 Nations Division I status having named 12 new caps in his 24-man squad for this week’s visit of Singapore.
The UAE will begin a new era at 7he Sevens on Wednesday as the South African takes charge of his first Test match.
The equation is simple for the hosts as they prepare for their only competitive 15-a-side game of 2014; win and stay up, lose and slip to a second successive relegation.
“I’m very happy I think we’ve got a very decent squad and we’re pretty ready for Wednesday night,” performance manager Kotze said.
“From where we started this year when I knew nobody, guys have come out and shown they were keen to be involved. I think we’ve got a fairly decent side.
“I think it’s going to be an interesting game, obviously because we don’t know a lot about what Singapore are going to bring to the party but I think it’s going to be an interesting game.
“We’ve been working very hard on aspects of our game and if we can bring that on Wednesday night we should be very competitive and hopefully come away with the win.”
Kotze’s first squad in charge contains five Emiratis, including Adel Al Hendi who picked up the best young Emirati player prize at last week’s UAE Rugby Annual Awards.
And ahead of Wednesday’s Test, Kotze is happy with what has been achieved since he arrived in Dubai in February.
“From a squad point of view I think we’ve laid down a few markers in terms of what is expected for you to play for us. You’ve got to commit to the side, you’ve got to be at training, you’ve got to pull your weight if you want to play for the UAE,” he added.
“We’ve got a young squad and I think it’s a good start for us with new young guys coming through who want to be involved in the UAE national side, without expectation.”
