Incheon, South Korea: The UAE bowed out of the handball competition at the 2014 Incheon Asian Games after they lost to neighbours Oman 28-18 in their third and final Group C match at the Seonhak Handball Gymnasium on Monday.
Trailing Oman 9-12 at half-time, the UAE never recovered from early errors in attack. Then in the second half Marzouq Al Beloushi and Ahmad Al Dhanhani received mandatory two-minute expulsions for arguing and Oman cashed in to increase the lead to 16-10 and then 17-12.
Though Shehab Al Beloushi once again topscored for the UAE with five goals, the others were found wanting in finding the opponent’s goal. However, what hurt the UAE most was the attacking display from the lanky Asad Al Hasani as he scored eight goals from the 12 attacks he made.
UAE coach Hassan Mounir had very little explanation on the team’s performance in this continental competition. “We are preparing this team for the World Championships in Qatar. This is a side that is evolving and hopefully they will peak with all the experience they gain from playing such strong teams,” Mounir explained.
The UAE had started their campaign with a 22-25 loss to China on Saturday followed by a 27-15 thrashing at the hands of Asian champions Qatar on Sunday. A win against Oman could have given the UAE an outside chance of advancing to the knockout stages.
“It is too early to talk about the reasons. What we need to do is go back and see what we can do to change things and establish a system of play so that we keep on improving in the next few months. Of course one of the main things we will need is more friendly matches against top handball teams so that we peak for the World Championships in Qatar,” Mounir added.
Out of the fray for a medal, the UAE will now play for placings in the competition.
