“Shaheen Rugby” continues its preparations for the Asian Club Championship

The Shaheen Rugby Team, affiliated with the Emirates Rugby Federation, continues its intensive preparations to participate in the first edition of the Asian Club Rugby Championship, scheduled to be held in Sri Lanka on July 4 and 5, as part of a long-term preparation plan to support and prepare the national team players for the upcoming competitions, most notably the Asian Rugby Sevens Championship.

The team is currently training three days a week at The Sevens stadiums, led by the technical staff consisting of Khaldoun Al Maleh, the team’s coach, and Youssef Shaker, the assistant coach, amid a distinguished presence from all Shaheen players, with approximately 30 players participating in the camp, with the best 12 players being chosen to represent the team in the Asian Championship.

The last period witnessed a friendly match against the UUDS team, which includes a number of Fiji national team players, during which the duo Muhammad Ali and Mubarak Al Mansouri stood out after their strong performance, which won the praise of the team’s technical staff.

For his part, Mohammed Sultan Al Zaabi, Secretary-General of the Federation, confirmed that the team had reached a good stage of readiness before the Asian participation, noting that the Federation was keen during the last period to provide the best preparation programs and international contact for the players.

Al Zaabi said: “The Federation has worked during the recent period to have Shaheen’s team participate in a number of strong international tournaments, with the aim of raising the level of technical and physical readiness of the players, the most recent of which was participation in the Monaco International Championship in France, during which the team succeeded in achieving second place and winning the silver medal amid the participation of an elite group of teams and national teams.”

He added: “Shaheen’s team enjoys great support and interest from the federation, headed by Sheikh Mohammed bin Maktoum bin Juma Al Maktoum, as it is the nucleus and an important supporter of the first national team, especially since the team includes a distinguished group of young players on whom the federation is relying greatly during the next stage.”

He continued: “We look forward to an honorable appearance for the team in the first edition of the Asian Club Championship, especially since these participations represent an important milestone within the program to prepare and equip the national team players for the upcoming events, most notably the Asian Rugby Sevens Championship.”