The U8's proved to be a very committed and enthusiastic group this year and there are some very keen young boys and girls who have turned up regularly on Thursday evenings. Training sessions never dropped below 30 with 35 plus being the norm throughout the season, and there were always plenty of parents to support both the players and coaches.
These numbers meant that the U8's were able to enter multiple teams in the three tournaments which took place within the UAE, Al Ain, Abu Dhabi and Dubai Exiles. We narrowly missed out on a victory, being runners-up each time. We also entered a friendly tournament organised by Dubai Hurricanes in January, and despite a life threatening journey in the fog to get there, we were joint winners! We also travelled to Bahrain for the last tournament of the season in April, where it rained for much of the day. We played some excellent matches to reach the final, but lost to the home team by one try.
See video of the tournament.
We also played a couple of friendly matches with the Abu Dhabi French toward the end of the season and remained unbeaten.
Head Coach, Phil Chicot, left in January and was replaced by Clive Richards.
This is a strong group of children who made really good progress this year.
In addition to improving their skills, they have learnt to enjoy the game, to work as a team and to be good sports.
- Player of the year: Obadiah Haddock
- Most improved player: Tommy White
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