Abu Dhabi: The Etihad Airways Abu Dhabi Harlequins Junior Rugby Tournament proved a huge hit last weekend, with over 3,000 players from 236 teams coming together from across the GCC at Zayed Sports City.
England and British and Irish Lions star Ugo Monye, who is also an HSBC Rugby Ambassador, was a special guest at the event and was left speechless by the quality of rugby on display and the passion from parents involved.
“I have thoroughly enjoyed my time in Abu Dhabi this weekend and the scale and quality of this event was beyond anything I could have imagined,” he said. “To see thousands of boys and girls charging around and giving 100 per cent in 30 degree heat was just fantastic to witness and shows how healthy the game is in this part of the world.
“I had the pleasure of meeting an all-Emirati team called the Al Ain Wolves and it was amazing to see lads who did not know what rugby was a few years ago now enjoying the game so much with their mates. I’ll definitely be keeping an eye on the game in the UAE over the coming years and have only fond memories of playing here myself.”
HSBC is a long term sponsor of rugby at all levels including Principal Partner of the Player Pathway Programme, a UAE Rugby Federation (UAERF) youth development programme. HSBC supports the work of the UAERF through funding, the supply of playing/training kit, expert coaching from its global rugby ambassadors and the creation of the first ever Arabic language coaching manual in 2012. To date, over 20 schools and 2,900 UAE nationals are regularly playing the sport across the Emirates.
