Al Ain win boosts morale for Jebel Ali Dragons

Matt Jones - Editor 04:23 30/11/2015
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  • Champions: Jebel Ali Dragons.

    Jebel Ali Dragons are heading into the Dubai Sevens on a high following a “huge” win at the second round of the Eden Park 7s in Al Ain.

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    Roles were reversed for Dragons, who lost in the Eden Park Cup final to Al Ain Amblers in the first round of the tournament a week earlier at Dubai Sports City.

    Dragons showed real grit and determination to come out on top 31-12, especially considering Amblers were playing at home and had won the round one final by a convincing score of 25-5.

    Dragons’ UAE international back Ian Overton, who scored a hat-trick of tries in the final and was named player of the tournament, believes the win could breath fire into Jebel Ali’s season.

    “It’s huge for us,” said the Welshman. “We’ve had a terrible season in terms of results but that win really brought the lads together. We saw that if you actually play proper sevens and stick to the structures you can beat anyone.

    “Credit to Al Ain, their boys are fantastic individuals, they’re more talented sevens players than us but we defended intelligently and they didn’t have an answer to it.

    “There’s a great atmosphere within the club now and we’ve built some confidence at the perfect time. We’re all buzzing for Dubai Sevens.”

    There was better news for the Garden City club in the Social Cup as Amblers swept to a 37-0 win against the UAE Shaheen side.

    They were also prominent in the Vets 10-a-side friendlies, beating Dubai Sharks in both games. The first was a blowout 41-5 victory, the second a closer 19-7 scoreline.

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