A Summary Of All Club Happenings
Our mild, mannered reporter PJ Kirwan will endeavor to keep the faithful of the Abu Dhabi Fianna in touch with all match reports through out the coming year.
This is a tough job and we thank PJ for carrying out these duties.
The Abu
Dhabi Fianna 2005-2006 football/social season is well and truly under way at
this stage.
As is the norm in this part of the world, it is very difficult to predict in advance what surprises the new season will hold. Rumours of the number of new ladies coming to Abu Dhabi for the first time meant that we were pretty confident of having sufficient lady players to continue the tradition of those who have come and gone over the past number of years. However, having lost so many of our longest serving and most talented male players at the end of last season (Gearoid Leen, Barry Maguire, Aengus Mannion, Malachy Mc Nulty and John Egan), the future of the men’s team in particular wasn’t clear. Therefore, it’s great to report that at the start of the season the men’s ranks have been replenished with new players committed to giving their best for the sake of the club. Previous players who had donned the Fianna shirt (both men and women) were listed and acknowledged by Tadhg Flahive in his Chairman’s speech at the Club’s “Welcome Back Party” in the Majlis Room of the Crowne Plaza. It demonstrated the contribution that the Abu Dhabi Fianna Club has made to the social lives of so many expats of several nationalities who have passed through Abu Dhabi in recent years, and long may the tradition continue. We currently have two playing members who can both speak fluent Swedish. Do you know who they are?
Mark Keenan has taken over the serious responsibility of training the men’s team while Declan Madden is doing likewise for the ladies’. Kieran Leahy is the new men’s captain and Geraldine Duncan is the women’s. Training is taking place twice weekly on Saturday and Wednesday at the Al Gazal Golf Club and at the Petroleum Institute pitches respectively. The club is indebted to Pat Fleming for liaising with PI for the use of their facility. Numbers at training have been very encouraging despite the long haul relative to previous years. The Crowne Plaza has been providing a bus whenever possible and UTS Kent is, as always, sponsoring the playing pitches. Our thanks to Denis Crotty for his firm’s continued support for the club. The Crowne Plaza has once again come on board with substantial sponsorship and we acknowledge the support provided by Richard Gosling and Walter Hall. Group 4 Securities are fast becoming a major sponsor due to the efforts of Rory Mallon. Jack Doyle and Al Mariah Transport continue their invaluable contribution by providing buses when we have away games. Our grateful appreciation is once again extended to all our sponsors. Johnny Rea and Tadhg Flahive are continuing to seek out potential sponsors as this is vital to the continuing survival of the club.
The year started out with our usual “Welcome Back Party” in the Majlis Room of the Crowne Plaza. This was combined with a fundraising “Grease” night in Heroes after the speeches and food- the brainchild of Dan Anthony who is already in contention for the award of “Clubman of the Year”. Everyone got into the mood of the night and the event proved so popular (and successful from a fundraising point of view) that a further “Abba” night was held at the end of November. Our new website was officially launched by James Ryan on the night and continues to be a work in progress. It can be accessed at www.abudhabinafianna.com and we would encourage all members to contribute to the site, to access it regularly in order to keep informed of the club’s happenings and to spread the word!!
The All Ireland Finals once again proved to be very successful social occasions with the Crowne Plaza pulling out all the stops decorating the room and providing several plasma screens to create an atmosphere that Croke Park would have been proud of. The “Score Prediction” in the hurling final proved to be a disaster in terms of fundraising due to the fact that the person in charge gave all the money back in prizes!! I won’t mention who he was, but if you’ve ever heard the song “Me One Half Crown”, you might be able to guess. Felim Bolster, as treasurer, is still suffering from palpitations.
Several other events have taken place on the social front. We had a “Bowling Night” in October with 27 participants. The winner on the night was Eoin Fitzpatrick. Several other side competitions took place with Felim Bolster beating Decy Brady with his last ball. Being the modest guy that he is, Felim didn’t even celebrate!!!! A mixed doubles tennis competition was also held in October with Sue Hatch and Derek O’ Sullivan emerging as the eventual winners. A very successful golf outing was organized by Declan Brady on the sand course at the Al Gazal Golf Club. It proved to be very controversial as some of the teams didn’t complete the 18 holes due to fading light. However, Decy wasn’t impressed and stuck to his guns regarding the final calculations of scores. The winning team consisted of Joe Somers, Mike Clifford, Mark Keenan and Declan Brady. Rumour has it that Johnny Cowie has written Decy out of his will as a result of the controversy!! Johnny Rea has held a number of “Shooting Nights” in the Armed Forces Officers’ Club to give club members access to this unusual social event. Because of Johnny’s military expertise and safety awareness, we were all surprised when the eventual winner on the first night was Chairman Tadhg who has actually framed the shooting target as evidence. Johnny has identified Kieran Leahy and Shawnah Staples as potential assassins so be careful what you say next time you are having a drink with them. A poker night was held in P.J. Kirwan’s residence with the night degenerating into a coin tossing competition won by Eoin Ryan. His Limerick background might have something to do with his expertise in this field as he had obviously done this before. There is currently a snooker competition in progress with 18 participants. Declan Madden and Eamonn Mc Corrick are the pre-tournament favourites. Place your bets with Paddy Power while the odds are still favourable!!
One of the most notable advances in the club in the last year has been the success of the Juvenile Club. Under the stewardship of Johnny Rea and Rory Mallon, numbers at training have swelled and continue to do so. Training is held at 4pm every Friday at the Municipality Pitch on 13th Street and Airport Road. Training was recently attended by 94- year- old Mike Daly who originally hails from Cork and is a Middle East veteran of almost 50 years. The youngsters were in awe at the sight of Mike trying his hand at hurling, the game he once excelled at. Mike was so impressed by what he saw that he has agreed to sponsor the club for forthcoming seasons.
Well done to Johnny and Rory for their efforts. The Abu Dhabi juveniles recently beat Dubai in their first game of the season. It’s very encouraging to see the youngsters of various nationalities taking part in our national sports. If you are free on Friday afternoons, why not drop down and give a hand with the training of the future generation of Abu Dhabi Fianna players?
The first competitive matches of the year were the “Railway Cup” games held at the Al Gazal Golf Club in Abu Dhabi. Oman were to send some representatives, but last minute hitches meant that they couldn’t travel. However, Dubai Celts (just returned from Shanghai where their men’s team won the Asian Gaelic Games Men’s Tournament and their ladies were beaten finalists) more than made up for this by sending a bus load of players. Because Dubai had difficulty finding the pitch, the games started late and the format had to be adjusted accordingly. There were no winners or losers on the day and all games were played in the spirit intended. After the games, everyone returned to the apartment of Tadhg and Edith Flahive (gracious hosts as ever) for refreshments before going to the Crowne Plaza for a buffet. It proved to be a great night with the Dubai and Abu Dhabi players mingling freely and competing with each other in the sing song stakes. The fact that the Dubai bus didn’t leave till after 2 am having originally planned to leave at midnight bears testament to the convivial spirit of the night, a trend we hope will continue for the rest of the season.
The Irish Armed Forces stopped off in Dubai on their way to Australia where they were taking part in an annual “Round Robin Tournament” against the Allied Irish Banks and the Bank of Ireland teams. It was meant to tie in with the “Compromise Rules” series being held in Australia at the same time. The trip was eighteen months in the planning and was initially instigated by Johnny Rea in conjunction with Kevin Mc Stay of Mayo and R.T.E. fame on the Armed Forces side.
Since it was proving impossible logistically to arrange a game in Abu Dhabi, Dubai Celts, through Malacky Mulhall in particular, took over the running of the event with input from Na Fianna whenever possible. On the day of the match we sent up four players (Mark Keenan, Declan Madden, Ross Miotti and Kieran Leahy) to represent us on an “Emirates Selection” team, and Tadhg Flahive acted as a selector on the day. The Emirates team was completely outclassed on a score of 5-24 to 1-5 by their very talented opponents. The game brought us back down to earth regarding the standard we play at out here despite the undoubted improvement in recent years. The downside of the day was that Kieran Leahy stubbed his foot while taking a kick-out. What initially looked like an innocuous injury subsequently required surgery from which Kieran is still recuperating. The Club wishes him a speedy recovery.
Abu Dhabi Fianna had a table at the post match dinner and Pat English was seen mingling with his Mayo counterparts, even getting a mention in one of the Irish local newspapers as a result! Longford had four representatives on the night which must be a record in itself!! Rory Mallon was doing his best for North-South relations before heading off on a trip to Djibouti of all places.
Na Fianna traveled in numbers to Dubai on October 27th to take part in the first round of the now annual Emirates Championship. Jack Doyle provided a 50 seat bus which we managed to fill, and a number of other players and supporters traveled by car making it one of the best attended starts to a season in recent years.
The ladies’ team had a panel of almost 20 players. It was the first competitive game for a lot of these girls and they surprised everyone with their commitment, team work and standard of play on the day. Although the Dubai ladies had recently reached the final of the Asian games, they were stretched to the limit by a very determined Abu Dhabi team who eventually lost by four points. However, the margin belies how close the game really was and augurs well for the remaining matches in the season. All the players on the day caught the eye, but most noticeable were: Gail Waddington, Katie Lynch, Kirsten Smyllie, Lorraine Monaghan and Geraldine Duncan.
Liza Bergstein, Brid Tierney, Lorraine Monaghan, Sue Hatch, Geraldine Duncan, Jane Waterhouse, Gail Waddington, Katie Lynch, Kirsten Smyllie, Neiti Morgan, Shawnah Staples, Orla Roche, Ciara O’ Reilley, Ellen Marie Quinn, Gerda O’ Malley, Marie Murphy, Holly Heiben
Despite initial concerns, the men’s team had over 20 players available on the day with the addition of three players from Ruwais whose contributions proved invaluable. The game was played over four quarters of 12 minutes. Abu Dhabi started strongly with Terry Fulton opening the score with a well taken point from play. Dubai replied immediately and extended their lead by two points before Declan Madden brought Abu Dhabi back into contention with two points (one from play). The sides were level at three points each at the end of the first quarter.
Na Fianna seemed to fall asleep in the second quarter as they failed to score while Dubai extended their tally to 1-7. The only notable opportunity for us was when Denis Crotty had a shot blocked down by the Dubai defence when a goal looked on the cards. However, the third quarter was much more productive. Paul Smyllie was outstanding and managed to score on opportunistic goal quickly followed by a point. Dan Anthony also came close when his attempt hit the side netting. Pat English (playing in goal due to Kieran Leahy’s injury) was unlucky when a sideline kick floated over his head. However, he made an outstanding save in the fourth quarter which more than made up for it. The third quarter finished on a score of 1-5 to 3-8 in favour of Dubai.
The footballing skills of the new players from Ruwais came to the fore in the final quarter with points from Trevor Buckley and Andrew Comerford. We eventually lost out on a score of 1-7 to 3-11, but a lot of positives can be taken from the game and the team is sure to improve.
Patrick English, Denis Crotty, Terry Fulton, Niall Dooley, James Ryan, Declan Madden, Michael Boyce, Derek O’ Sullivan, Dan Anthony, Ross Miotti, Eoin Ryan, Paul Smyllie, David Scott Bywater, Trevor Buckley, Andrew Comerford, Sean O’ Connor, Eoin Fitzpatrick, Mark Keenan, Declan Brady, Mark Hallett , George Zacheru, Johann
Round Two of the Emirates Championship took place on Thursday, November 17th, on the training pitch adjacent to the Al Jazirah Sports Club.
The ladies played first. This particular bunch of girls seems to be gelling really well and attendance at training has been impressive since the beginning of the season. The girls didn’t disappoint and were emphatic winners on the night on a score of 6-10 to 1-5. The score is a fair reflection of the superiority of Na Fianna and augurs well for the forthcoming Bahrain tournament. Although a number of the Dubai players were missing due to commitments at a rugby tournament in Doha, they still had most of their better players available on the night.
This was undoubtedly one of the best displays by an Abu Dhabi ladies team since the formation of the club. To beat the Asian finalists in such fashion speaks volumes about the current squad and should give the players every confidence for the remainder of the season. Unlike previous years, Na Fianna seems to be blessed this year with a very balanced team of talented, committed and enthusiastic players. Every effort should be made by the club to send a full squad to the forthcoming Bahrain games as this team should be serious contenders for the title. However, complacency is something that should be avoided at all costs.
It would be impossible to pick out individual players as there were so many strong performances on the night. However, those who were outstanding and deserve special mention are Gayle Waddington , Kirsten Smyllie , Kate Lynch, Neiti Morgan and a vocal but very inspiring Liza Bergstein in goals.
Liza Bergstein, Brid Tierney, Sue Hatch, Geraldine Duncan, Jane Waterhouse, Gail Waddington, Katie Lynch, Kirsten Smyllie, Neiti Morgan, Shawnah Staples, Orla Roche, Ciara O’ Reilley, Ellen Marie Quinn, Gerda O’ Malley, Marie Murphy, Holly Heiben and Ciara’s sister from Ireland !!
Na Fianna men completed a memorable double for the club and threw the Championship race wide open again when they had a hard fought two point victory over the Dubai “Blue” team.
Due to the number of players at their disposal and in order to ensure that all get competitive matches throughout the year, the Celts have divided their panel into two teams with some of the more able players available for both squads. Attendance at training by Na Fianna men has been causing a bit of concern in recent weeks as the commitment seemed to be lacking. Despite the absence of some players due to injury or work commitments (Terry Fulton, Alan Hose, Declan Brady, Kieran Leahy, Johann, Derek O Sullivan ), on the night we were again lucky to have the services of the players from Ruwais at our disposal- Andrew Comerford and Trevor Buckley. Once again they proved invaluable in adding much needed balance and talent to the team.
The first quarter was a very tight affair with the only score coming from the boot of Paul Smyllie who is improving with every game. Denis Crotty had a chance to nab a goal, but his attempt was well blocked down by the Dubai defence. Denis’ sharpness of last year still has to come back, but as he becomes fitter this should improve. Dubai failed to score in the first quarter in no small measure due to the tight marking of the Abu Dhabi defence.
Na Fianna continued to play well in the second quarter with points from Andrew Comerford, Ross Miotti and Declan Madden. Dubai managed to score three points in this period leaving the half time score 0-5 to 0- 3 in favour of Na Fianna.
The third quarter once again proved disastrous for us when we conceded 1-2 and were lucky that it wasn’t more. James Ryan (playing as goalkeeper due to a knee injury) kept us in touch with a couple of fine saves. Our only score in this period came from the boot of Mark Keenan. The score at the end of this quarter was 0-6 to 1-5 in favour of the Celts.
The fourth quarter proved to be very exciting and controversial. Referee Tadhg Flahive rightly dismissed one of the Dubai players for an overly robust tackle. Abu Dhabi made excellent use of the extra player and Paul Smyllie in particular was outstanding as he notched up three consecutive points from play. The turning point came when Andrew Comerford capitalized on a mistake by a Dubai defender to neatly slot the ball into the net soccer style in a fashion that Robbie Keane would have been proud of. Further points by Johnny (Socks) Cowie and Trevor Buckley brought our final tally to 1-11. In the meantime, the Celts had managed to add 3 points to their tally leaving their final score at 1-9.
The Championship is now all square after two rounds. A greater commitment to training was asked of the players at the end of the match and it is hoped that they will respond accordingly. The night proved that there is a decent squad of players at our disposal when they are all together.
Patrick English, Denis Crotty, Niall Dooley, James Ryan, Declan Madden, Michael Boyce, Dan Anthony, Ross Miotti, Eoin Ryan, Paul Smyllie, David Scott Bywater, Trevor Buckley, Andrew Comerford, Sean O’ Connor, Eoin Fitzpatrick, Mark Keenan, George Zacheru
Scorers: Andrew Comerford 1-1, Declan Madden 0-1, Paul Smiley 0-4, Ross Miotti 0-1, Johnny (Socks) Cowie 0-1, Trevor Buckley 0-3
The thirteenth annual Bahrain GAA Games took place at the Rugby Club in Sar on Thursday, December 8th 2005.
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Despite concerns in recent years about its future, this tournament continues to attract teams from all over the Middle East. This year proved to be no exception where there were eight men’s teams and three ladies’. Dubai Celts, yet again, won both the ladies’ and men’s tournaments to underline their superiority, but they didn’t have it all their own way. The Qatar men’s team was the revelation of the tournament. They disappointed against Dubai in the final when their fitness levels let them down, but they were very strong in the preliminaries and could be the new force in the region if they continue to improve as they have done in the last year. The Abu Dhabi ladies’ team ran the Dubai ladies’ very close in the final of their competition, but some defensive errors proved very costly on the day.
For various reasons, Abu Dhabi’s attendance at this tournament has been erratic in recent years (a point noted by many of the other clubs). Therefore, Chairman Tadhg Flahive made it one of his priorities for the season to send a decent representation from Na Fianna this year and he didn’t disappoint. The Executive Committee of the club voted to use club funds to financially assist those who expressed a desire to attend the tournament. In the end, over 40 people traveled which is a record for the club. Flights, accommodation and the itinerary were pre-arranged by Tadhg, so basically all we had to do was to show up at the airport. With each traveling member sporting the new club social shirt, we certainly stood out from the crowd on the plane. It also facilitated easy passage through Customs and Emigration when we arrived in Bahrain.
We were staying in the “Oriental Palace Hotel” and they had transport waiting to transfer us to the hotel from the airport. As the name might suggest, it’s not a hotel that Nicole Kidman will be frequenting on her next visit to Bahrain, but it did the job!! Some of the newer members of the club were gasping in disbelief as we were winding our way through Bahrain’s run down back streets before we eventually arrived at our destination. Rooms were allocated in double quick time. The quality in some cases left a lot to be desired, but it added to the atmosphere of the occasion. Neiti Morgan noticed that she and Simon were obviously not the first occupants of their room and there were tell tale signs on the bed. Simon Wadee, being the doting husband that he is and wanting to pander to Neiti’s every need, insisted on an upgrade!!!!!! Good man, Simon. Nice to see that the Age of Chivalry is still alive and well!!
Later, everyone assembled in the lobby to be transported to the “Fiddler’s Green Pub” in the Diplomat Hotel, the venue for the pre –tournament gathering. Music was provided by the band “Taxi” flown specially out from Ireland. Johnny Rea, Rory Mallon and Dan Anthony showed their age when they had to leave after just an hour due to the noise!! Rumour has it that they were later spotted in an alternative venue and nearly caused a riot. Meanwhile, back at Fiddler’s, the rest of the entourage were eyeing up the “talent” with a view to what would be happening both on and off the pitch at the tournament itself. It was expected that all would be in bed by one o’ clock and Kieran Leahy and Geraldine Duncan as respective captains took on this responsibility. However, rumour has it that a few slipped through the net!! Where were you James Ryan, Mike Boyce and Dave Bywater? The Kerry contingent meanwhile gave us all a great rendition of the songs associated with their native county before we were eventually evicted from the premises.
Unfortunately for our girls, one of the teams scheduled to play in the tournament didn’t materialize which meant that there were only three teams there on the day. Rather than playing the same team twice, it was decided to have a straight final once both Abu Dhabi and Dubai had defeated the Dhahran girls. This had the unfortunate result of our ladies having to hang about for most of the day without any competitive matches. On the positive side, it meant that they could devote all their attention to defeating Dubai in the final.
Abu Dhabi 1-7 Dhahran 1-0
We had high hopes of a good performance from our ladies. All players were available on the day with the exception of Lorraine Monaghan who unfortunately couldn’t travel. We were scheduled to play Dhahran in the first match. Dhahran have been quite strong in the past, so it was difficult to predict how this one would go.
Our ladies started well with a well taken point by Gayle Waddington after good play by Geraldine Duncan. However, despite our superiority throughout the pitch and extensive periods of ball possession in the opening stages, we missed a couple of good scoring opportunities in front of goal. Neiti Morgan extended our lead and settled the team with a well taken point from play. This was later followed by a point from the very impressive Eileen Rahill. Our fourth point was probably the best one of the game. After good team work by Katie Lynch and Kerstin Smyllie, the ball was eventually pointed from distance by Eileen Rahill. Katie Lynch added a further point to leave our half time score at 0-5 while Dhahran failed to register a score.
Na Fianna continued to dominate in the second half. A goal by Gayle and points from Eileen and Kerstin left us with a final tally of 1-7. Dhahran scored with the last play of the game leaving them with a final tally of 1-0. Declan Madden used the second half as an opportunity to give the entire panel a run out. Jane Waterhouse, Sue Hatch and Shawnah Staples showed that Canada could soon be entering a team into the All Ireland competition as they were very effective in curbing whatever the Dhahran attack threw at our defence. Brid Tierney had a very solid game in defence and Liza Bergstein was very effective in goals. Others who contributed to the victory were Orla Roche, Ellen Marie Quinn, Gerda O’ Malley, Marie Murphy, Holly Heiben and Sinead Lynam from Ruwais.
Abu Dhabi 3-0 Dubai 4-1
Na Fianna traveled to this tournament with high hopes that the current ladies team would be the first in the history of the club to win this competition. Alas, it was not to be! In a very entertaining and high quality match, we were on the wrong end of a 4-1 to 3-0 scoreline. However, the ladies can be very proud of their efforts on the day. I actually heard a neutral supporter comment that the first half was as good as any game he had witnessed at home in Ireland. The first half finished on a score of three goals each with Abu Dhabi twice coming from behind to level the scores. Our scorers were Shawnah Staples, Neiti Wadee and Eileen Rahill. But for a few lapses of concentration in the defence, it could have been a different story.
Our ladies were really psyched up for the match and it looked in the early stages that an upset could be on the cards. However, Dubai finished stronger in the second half when they managed to notch up a goal and a point whereas our scoring dried up. Although the girls were obviously disappointed with the final outcome, each player gave her best on the day and that is all that can be asked for. Maybe their turn will come in the Dubai tournament in March. Let’s keep our fingers crossed.
Liza Bergstein, Brid Tierney, Sue Hatch, Geraldine Duncan, Jane Waterhouse, Gail Waddington, Eileen Rahill, Katie Lynch, Kirsten Smyllie, Neiti Morgan, Shawnah Staples, Orla Roche, Ciara O’ Reilley, Ellen Marie Quinn, Gerda O’ Malley, Marie Murphy, Holly Heiben, Sinead Lynam
Our men’s team consisted of a panel of 15 players. Alan Hose was making a welcome return to the squad. We felt that we had a reasonable chance of progressing in the tournament despite the fact that a lot of our players were unable to travel. However, the addition of Trevor Buckley (our best player throughout the tournament) and Andrew Comerford (an inter-county player in Ireland) meant that we were confident of causing a few surprises.
We were put into a group of four with Dhahran, Kuwait and the Mongrels (Dubai B plus others). Disaster struck in the warm up to the opening game against Dhahran when Andrew Comerford broke his finger in a freak accident while catching a ball. However, being the true sportsman that he is, he played the full game before he was advised for medical reasons to withdraw from the rest of the tournament. This was a body blow to our chances, but it was also a rallying cry to the remainder of the panel and they responded accordingly.
In the first game, we beat Dhahran on a scoreline of 0-7 to 1-0. Paul Smyllie made the game his own from a scoring point of view where he notched up an impressive personal tally of 0-5 (2 from play, 2 from frees and 1 from a penalty). Our other scorers were Trevor Buckley and Denis Crotty with a point each. Alan Hose and David Bywater caught the eye in defence with their gutsy tackling. Dave is someone who is showing a lot of potential. Derek O’Sullivan also had a sound game.
In the second match we played a Kuwait team captained by Tom English (brother of our own former Chairman, Pat English). To add insult to injury, they were decked out in shirts sponsored by the Longford County Board. The inquiry is currently ongoing!!
It was a match played in great spirit and we again emerged victorious on a scoreline of 3-5 to 0-1. Declan Madden had a great game and notched up an impressive tally of 1-3. Trevor Buckley impressed again and also got on the scoreboard. Tadhg Flahive, playing like a youngster, also found the net in the second half. James Ryan scored 1-1 although his point should have been a goal except for a superb save from Tom English.
In our third game in the preliminary round, we took on the Mongrels which consisted of players from the Dubai Celts for the most part. Again we were victorious on a scoreline of 2-3 to 0-1. Ross Miotti had his best game of the tournament and scored 1-1. Trevor Buckley was once again outstanding and managed a similar score. Paul Smyllie got our other point whereas the Mongrels managed just one point late in the second half. Denis Crotty came close on a couple of occasions and Declan Madden hit the upright twice in quick succession. The result left us unbeaten in the preliminary rounds and topping table B.
In the semi –final, we knew we had our work cut out when we were drawn again Qatar who had been very impressive in the preliminaries. At things transpired, we were very unlucky to lose as the players dug deep and showed great pride. Alan Hose, Derek O’Sullivan, Ross Miotti, Owen Ryan and David Bywater fought like terriers when their backs were up against the wall. We went in at half time only two points adrift although we hadn’t managed to score in the first half.
The second half started well for us when we reduced the arrears to just one point following a point by Derek O’ Sullivan after great work by Denis Crotty. Qatar then stretched their lead again before Declan Madden bought us back into the game with a point. An unfortunate penalty at this crucial stage put the game beyond our reach. Qatar finished with another point leaving the final score at 1-5 to 0-2 in their favour. A gutsy performance by our players and they came off the pitch with their heads held high.
Men’s results
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Abu Dhabi 0-7 Dhahran 1-0 |
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Abu Dhabi 3-5 Kuwait 0-1 |
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Abu Dhabi 2-3 Mongrels 0-1 |
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(Semi Final) Abu Dhabi 0-2 Qatar 1-5 |
Alan Hose, Denis Crotty, James Ryan, Declan Madden, Michael Boyce, Derek O’ Sullivan, Dan Anthony, Ross Miotti, Eoin Ryan, Paul Smyllie, David Scott Bywater, Trevor Buckley, Andrew Comerford, Tadhg Flahive
Thursday night’s festivities were again concentrated in the Diplomat Hotel for the most part. Entertainment was provided by “Taxi” and there was a group of Irish dancers over from Dhahran in Saudi Arabia to give an added Gaelic flavour to the night. Celebrations went on to the early hours of Friday morning. When the bars officially closed, Dubai Celts invited a number of our contingent to their post tournament celebrations in Mansouri Mansions and quite a few took up the invitation.
It’s hard to report accurately on what happened later in the night, but rumours abound. Derek O’ Sullivan apparently discovered that his true vocation lies in teaching Mechanical Drawing as he somehow ended up with a T-Square at the end of the night. Gerda O’ Malley decided that she would be the pizza delivery lady and had all the looks of one at four AM. !! Toilet rolls became the theme for the night and this continued to the following morning. A few were seen in flight from one of the hotel bedroom windows (much to the disgust of the hotel management). Dan Anthony is currently carrying out an investigation. Ross Miotti was reported to have been with two different women in two different locations at the same time!! Good man, Ross. Johnny Rea’s room became the venue for an all night party. Johnny ended up sleeping on the floor for most of the night between the two beds as he didn’t want to be labeled a “Party Pooper”. Andrew Comerford impressed all those present with his angelic voice, but Trevor Buckley has been advised to stick to the football!! Poor Rory Mallon ,who had decided to get an early night on account of having to catch an early flight, thought that World War Three had broken out next door. Other impromptu parties were held on the corridor and some people didn’t even make it as far as their bedrooms. Nice to report that we are still strongest in the social stakes.
On Friday morning, everyone was bussed to Irishman Jim Loftus’ new and impressively designed “Camelot Restaurant” in Bahrain for a specially laid on Irish breakfast. The casualties from the previous night were in evidence everywhere. Toilet rolls were freely available as much for the verbal excrement as anything else. Because it was Friday and many people were missing their weekly religious ritual, the “Five Sorrowful Decades of the Rosary” were led by Sr. Neiti and Fr. Tadhg –in Gaelic!! We later adjourned to “Fiddler’s” to join up with the rest of the competing teams and to have one last fling. One of our male players was later reported to have been trying to be very “friendly” with a lady from one of the other clubs. She was described as having “Come to bed” eyes whereas the guy in question was described as having “Should have gone to bed” eyes. His name shall remain a secret, but my bank account number is available for a deposit from the said individual!!
A rumour that our flight home was delayed was initially treated as a joke, but soon materialized as a fact. This was greeted with varying degrees of enthusiasm depending on whether you had a family, partner or “whatever you are into yourself” waiting back in Abu Dhabi. Although our flight was initially scheduled to depart at 9.30 PM Bahrain time, it didn’t eventually take off till almost 2 .00 AM. The result was that the festivities continued all the way to the airport and into the nearest lounge. Orla felt the need to catch up with some sleep and retired to one of the seats almost resulting in her spending another night in Bahrain!! Denis Crotty, having met up with a lot of his work mates from around the Gulf, is reportedly looking into new hangover remedies. Alan Hose and Breeda stayed on the dry all day. There wasn’t a word out of Breeda on the return journey!!!!!!
We eventually arrived in Abu Dhabi at 3.30 AM exhausted after a very enjoyable weekend. Well done to all who traveled and represented the club both on and off the pitch.
EMIRATES CHAMPIONSHIP ROUND THREE
Report submitted by Kieran Leahy
Abu Dhabi Fianna 2-4
Dubai Celts 4-8
A very strong Dubai Celts side traveled to Abu Dhabi for Round 3 of the UAE Championship with the series delicately poised at 1-1. The game also coincided with Pat Spillane’s visit to Abu Dhabi and a large crowd was present for the game played in sweltering conditions at the Abu Dhabi Rugby Club. Abu Dhabi started the game at a blistering pace and quickly raced into a three point lead thanks to some very impressive long ranges scores. However after the opening quarter Dubai piled on the pressure and the concession of two very soft goals just before the break effectively ended the game as a contest. In the second half Abu Dhabi fought back bravely but Dubai were not to be denied their second win in the UAE Championship.
Abu Dhabi Fianna: James Ryan, Alan Hose, Derek O' Sullivan, Mark Keenan, Niall Dooley, Andrew Comerford, Ross Miotti, Trevor Buckley, Paul Smylie, Declan Madden, Sean Casey, Dave Bywater, Mark Hallet, Eoin Ryan, Dan Anthony, Denis Crotty, Declan Brady, Eoin FitzPatrick, Pat English.
Report submitted by Kieran Leahy
The Gulf GAA tournament was played on Thursday 23rd March 2006 at Exiles rugby grounds and a well drilled Abu Dhabi Fianna team was hoping to mount a serious challenge for the title that has eluded them for the past three years.
A very spirited Oman team provided the first challenge for the Fianna but with strong performances from Paul Smylie and Declan Madden up front Abu Dhabi were quickly out of sight and ran out comfortable winners over their inexperienced opponents.
Defending champions Dubai A were next and Abu Dhabi fought fiercely against the favourites and surprised everybody by matching their opponents stride for stride. In defence Niall Dooley, Derek O' Sullivan and Ross Miotti excelled while Andrew Comerford was very impressive at full forward. Strong performances also came from Mark Keenan, Sean Casey, and Trevor Buckley. At the end Dubai’s greater experience shone through and they managed to run out the clock in the closing stages to hang on for a two point victory, even after some terrific saves by the Kieran Leahy in his first game back from injury.
Abu Dhabi Fianna’s final group match was against a very fit “Socials” team. This was a must win game and Abu Dhabi pulled away from their opponents in the second have after some frantic first half defending. Deccie Brady stood in for the injured Derek Sullivan at fullback and was the best of the backs for the Fianna. In the forwards Denis Crotty proved to be an effective target man while Trevor Buckley impressed at midfield. James Ryan also contributed for the Fianna scoring with a speculative lob that dropped over the keeper’s head. With this victory Abu Dhabi progressed to the semi finals, to face Dubai B, but injuries robbed them of some key players: Declan Maddan (groin) Derek O' Sullivan (back), and James Ryan (Knee).
Abu Dhabi Fianna’s semi final proved to be a frustrating experience as their depleted team struggled against a very skilled and fit Dubai B team. In defence Dave Bywater and Niall Dooley fought to stem a constant flow of Dubai attacks while Mark Keenan, Sean Casey, and Andrew Comerford tried hardest in attack. Ultimately Dubai progressed to the final with a one point victory.
Abu Dhabi Fianna: Kieran Leahy, James Ryan, Alan Hose, Derek O' Sullivan, Mark Keenan, Niall Dooley, Andrew Comerford, Ross Miotti, Trevor Buckley, Paul Smylie, Declan Madden, Sean Casey, Dave Bywater, Mark Hallet, Eoin Ryan, Dan Anthony, Denis Crotty, Declan Brady, Eoin FitzPatrick, Pat English.
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