Celts and Abu Dhabi Na Fianna A emerge from Group 2. In
the Plate Al Ain and Abu Dhabi had good wins in their semi
final slots with the Al Ain Club going on to win the Plate
Final. In the first Cup semi-final, host Club the Arabian Celts
faced Clann na hOman with the Oman side starting better
against a rejigged Celts. A couple points down at half time
the Celts regrouped and dominated the 2nd half scoring 1-2
in the process drawing the match in the closing minutes but
Clann na hOman didn’t panic and got the insurance point to
reach their 2nd final of the season. In the second semi-final
League leaders Dubai Celts took on Abu Dhabi Na Fianna
and it was end to end stuff throughout but the Na Fianna
Club had enough to get over the line and meet a confident
Clann nah Oman. Again as it proved through the day both
teams were evenly matched and went in level at half time.
The second half was a shootout between both sides but Abu
Dhabi had the better ratio in the end winning by a single
point. The win put Abu Dhabi level with Dubai at the top of
the League with Clann nah Oman only a point behind.
MEN’S JUNIOR FOOTBALL LEAGUE
In the newly launched Junior football League we saw 12
Teams competing in the Mens League and 16
teams competing in the Ladies League. In the
Mens football League Sharjah B, Dubai Celts
1st and 2nd squads all qualified for the Cup
semi finals with a count back on scoring difference knocking out the host Arabian Legends and new kids on the block the Jumeriah
Gaels going through – a vital penalty by Paddy Darcy in the group games being the difference. The Sharjah Gaels were up first and had
a 2 point win of Dubai A in the first semi final
and new boys the Jumeriah Gaels came out
all guns blazing in the second match and got
a great win over the Dubai B side. The Sharjah
Gaels were hot favorites going into the final
but the Jumeriah Gaels had a few old dogs for
the hard road amongst their ranks and this
proved to be the difference in the end. Eugene McCluskey
between the sticks, the energetic John Leahy and Pat Mustard in the sweeper role all had a part to play which saw new
Club Jumeriah Gaels go top of the League after their debut
tournament in the Middle East League. Qatar C won the
Plate final against home side the Arabian Legends who will
be disappointed with the outcome.
LADIES JUNIOR LEAGUE
In the Ladies Junior League there were two competitions
J1 & J2. In the J1 League new club Ruwais GAA got off to
a flying start with a win over the Kuwait Harps. There were
wins also for Naomh Alee, Dubai Celts and Abu Dhabi Na
Fianna and the Junior League was up and running. Both
Naomh Alee and Ruwais GAA topped their Groups with
Abu Dhabi A and Dubai Celts making the other Cup semi
final slots. Abu Dhabi B and Sharjah competed in the Plate
semi final with the Abu Dhabi Club coming out on top. In
two competitive cup semi-finals Naomh Alee had a good
win over Abu Dhabi Na Fianna A and Ruwais GAA did
enough to see off the Dubai Celts. A cracking match in the
final saw the lead swap a few times in the first half but Ru-
Photo: Mid East GAA.
17