The Middle East Bank (ME Bank) snatched the early initiative at the opening week of the ABN Amro inter-financial bowling league which got underway at Thunderbowl last week.

ME Bank presently lead the 10-team standings with a maximum of eight points, closely followed by the HSBC Bank, Standard Chartered Bank and National Bank of Fujairah (Reds), all with six points apiece.

This competition, being sponsored by ABN Amro with co-sponsorship from Wild Horse, has attracted 10 teams from all over the UAE.

The tournament will be played every Wednesday over the next 11 weeks.

"Our aim is to improve our visibility on the sporting scene," remarked Nagabhushan Balaji, manager special projects, ABN Amro. "It's a new sponsorship area that we are entering," stated Richard Bradley, CEO of Wild Horse.

During the inaugural week action, ME Bank blanked sponsors ABN Amro 8-0, while NBF Reds, HSBC and Standard Chartered secured identical 6-2 wins against Citibank, Emirates Bank International and National Bank of Dubai respectively.

Standings: 1. ME Bank (8); 2. HSBC (6); 3. Standard Chartered (6); 4. NBF Reds (6); 5. NBF Blues (4); 6. NBF Greens (4); 7. Emirates Bank International (2).