Dubai: The members of the 22-man squad that will represent UAE Rugby in the opening round of the HSBC Asian 5 Nations (HSBC A5N) rugby tournament has been named.
The UAE squad will go up against 42nd IRB ranked Sri Lanka at Colombo's Ceylonese Rugby and Football Club on Saturday.
Consisting of five past A5N players, the squad carries with them, and onto the pitch, the new flag of UAE Rugby. None are more aware of the importance this match holds for the future of the team than coach Bruce Birtwistle. "Our training preparations have been going very well and I'm confident with the fitness and the aptitude of the team selected. A number of the squad-members recently had great exposure by playing in an international away game [against Morocco] which gave us a very solid foundation to assess and refine our tactics and strategies," he said.
Squad
Mike Cox-Hill (Captain), Andrew Millar (Dragons), Carl Von Rosenveldt (Exiles), Chris Jones Griffiths (Harlequins), Dan Boatwright (Hurricanes), Dan Heal (Dragons), David Clouston (Hurricanes), David Vittes (Exiles) Duncan Murray (Hurricanes), John Beeton (Exiles), Jonathan Grady (Dragons), Lloyd Budd (Exiles), Mike Cox-Hill (Exiles), Ali Mohammad (Wasps), Mohammad Shaker (Wasps), Renier Els (Harlequins), Scott Kerr (Dragons), Sean Hurley (Dragons), Simon Osbourne (Hurricanes), Stephan Imbert (Frogs), Steve Smith (Hurricanes), Stuart Quinn (Exiles), Tim Fletcher (Dragons)
