Dubai Exiles 19  24  Dubai Dragons

The old sports  truism about rugby being "a game of two halves" was never more evident than on Thursday evening when the Dubai Dragons took on a near full strength Dubai Exiles in what many Gulf rugby aficionados where expecting to be a very close fought clash. In an opening forty minutes which at times looked near farcical a Gulf representative laden team of Exiles imploded in front of a surprised Dragons outfit which although struggling massively in the scrum department were eager to latch on to a mountain of free possession from a  bumbling Exiles who gifted their local rivals 24 unanswered points in a near repeat of the 25 point deficit they gave to a ruthless Abu Dhabi in their opening stanza two weeks prior.

 
Dragon's super boot Henry Connell was given ample opportunities to slot penalties and conversions while his team mates; Kiwi import wing Shane Thornton and South African Andy Russell at flyhalf pounced on Exiles mistakes for tries. In the loose Dragons openside flanker Ed Williams despite his much beefier team mates being tested in front of him was all business with a tremendous work rate and an intuitive presence in always being close to the action.
 
As the sides turned at the break, the enthusiastic Exiles dominated crowd got behind their team hoping to see an improved second half performance. Focusing on getting back to basics and the infusion of the substitutions bench saw a more committed, smarter Exiles who fought back well  and finally got themselves back into the match with tries to outstanding forward replacement Rob Barrie with the former Scotland Heriots back rower showing some class touches. Replacement winger Jon Beeton who has scored twice off the bench in as many outings and will push hard for a starting spot next week also finished off a sustained period of possession with a score. Stephen Cooper completed the scoring and with Luke Sinclair kicking goals the hosts may have seen a glimmer of hope to snatch a late win but the final whistle and a wayward start was always going to be a huge hurdle to overcome against a smart, talented Dragons.

Final score: Dubai Dragons 24 - 19 Dubai Exiles

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