Dubai: An Emirati and an expatriate team will represent the UAE at this weekend's Goa Sevens, ahead the UAE squad's selection for the Dubai Sevens.
Goa is the third and final tournament in the inaugural 2011 Asian Rugby Sevens Series, behind Shanghai and Borneo, where the UAE finished tenth and seventh respectively. While improving on the results which have left them ninth in the series overall is of concern, the top priority is to blood new talent and build the best possible UAE side in time for December's Dubai Sevens.
The expatriate side will be up against Hong Kong, Singapore and Iran in Group A, while the all-Emirati side faces China, Kazakhstan and India in Group B.
Newly-appointed UAE RA rugby manager Wayne Marsters told Gulf News: "It's a benchmark for the Emirati players to see where they are against a very high level of competition. For the majority this will be a first exposure to such a calibre of play."
squad
Timothy Fletcher (captain), Chris Gregory, Murray Strang, Sean Hurley, Brad Barker, Steven Smith, Stephane Imbert, Jon Venter, Quihen Maraisi, Mad Reyal, Shane Rutherford, David Matasio, Mohammad Ahmad Mohammad Shaker, Mohanad Ahmad Mohammad Ahmad Shakir, Yousuf Ahmad Mohammad Ahmad Shakir, Cyrus Parviz Ali Asghar Pourhomayoun, Mohammad Adel Mohammad Abdul Aziz Al Sulaiman, Ali Mohammad Gulam, Mohammad Abdullah Mohammad Hassan, Mohammad Hassan Rahma Ali Hassan, Abdullah Ahmad M. Bin Hammad Al Nuaimi, Mohammad Ali Saem Ali Al Alawi, Tarek Al Haddad, Walid Salem Mohammad, Rory Binder (pending injury recovery).
