Sharjah: The annual Sharjah Rugby 10s competition kicked off last weekend with 25 teams from across the Gulf competing in men's, women's and vets competitions.
The men's competition played host to one of the toughest lineups of teams seen at the competition for a number years.
The men's competition got off to a slow start with a few of the teams arriving late or finding themselves short of numbers. However, once under way, things only got better with some amazing rugby on display.
Al Ain vs Toa proved one of the most exciting games in the group stages as both sides fielded a number of Pacific Islanders and was clinched in the final seconds by Toa after a nifty chip and chase from one of their youngsters.
It was obvious that Toa Dubai were drawing the biggest crowds as players and spectators were eager to see All Black legend Christian Cullen and Ex-Samoan international Trevor Leota.
Strong sides
Toa Dubai, Dragons and Sharjah proved too strong for their opponents in the group stages.
Sharjah came up against Dragons in the first semifinal.
The game was fiercely contested, moving into extra time and it was Dragons who managed to take advantage to move to the final where they came up against Toa who had once again overcome a powerful Al Ain team.
The pace in the final was set early on with both sides putting in some bone crunch tackles.
The Dragons took advantage to Toa's lack of numbers to make the score 14-12. With only seconds to spare, Toa looked to have scrapped the victory. However a shoulder charge by Big Trev landed him a yellow card reducing Toa to 8 men.
Dragons wasted no time in attacking. With no one in front, Dragons had only to catch and place the ball down for the victory. But they dropped it and Toa won.
Elsewhere, the Flying Muppets beat Stephan's BSAK BHF (British Heart Foundation) in the Plate final and the Frogs overcame the Hurricanes in the Bowl final. The Arabian Potbellies claimed the wooden spoon after losing all their games.
