DUBAI // The country's recently formed rugby league club will be given an idea as to exactly how broad the base of talent is for the game here when they play a friendly against the English amateur side Saddleworth Rangers tonight.
The UAE Falcons claimed their maiden win when they played against the emerging Lebanon side last month, but they are without a variety of their leading players this weekend.
Luke Sinclair and Joshua Sherrin both played in the Arabian Gulf's HSBC Asian Five Nations Division One success at the end of the union season. They then switched to league, and excelled in the two matches against Lebanese opposition.
However, Sherrin is playing in the UK this weekend, while Sinclair, who is nursing a knee injury, will also miss the encounter with the Oldham-based club.
"The target for the game is to get cohesion," said Dougall Harvison, the former Australian National Rugby League player who is now the head coach of the Falcons.
"Like with any club, you always have players missing, and getting other players up to speed and having an understanding of all our plays and having an opportunity to show their worth.
"It will be tough, but we are going about it as a self-serving match to develop our skills and to give us an idea of what other developments we need.
"We are in a developmental stage. Ultimately, for the game to survive, there has to be a strong grass-roots level at some stage.
"We can't just survive on fringe players or guys that don't enjoy playing rugby union."
The game, which kicks-off at 8pm at The Sevens, Dubai, will be preceded by a cross-code game of touch between the Dubai Exiles Vets and the touring club.
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Starring: Nicole Kidman, Liev Schreiber, Jack Reynor
Creator: Jenna Lamia
Rating: 3/5
Another way to earn air miles
In addition to the Emirates and Etihad programmes, there is the Air Miles Middle East card, which offers members the ability to choose any airline, has no black-out dates and no restrictions on seat availability. Air Miles is linked up to HSBC credit cards and can also be earned through retail partners such as Spinneys, Sharaf DG and The Toy Store.
An Emirates Dubai-London round-trip ticket costs 180,000 miles on the Air Miles website. But customers earn these ‘miles’ at a much faster rate than airline miles. Adidas offers two air miles per Dh1 spent. Air Miles has partnerships with websites as well, so booking.com and agoda.com offer three miles per Dh1 spent.
“If you use your HSBC credit card when shopping at our partners, you are able to earn Air Miles twice which will mean you can get that flight reward faster and for less spend,” says Paul Lacey, the managing director for Europe, Middle East and India for Aimia, which owns and operates Air Miles Middle East.
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BEETLEJUICE BEETLEJUICE
Starring: Winona Ryder, Michael Keaton, Jenny Ortega
Director: Tim Burton
Rating: 3/5
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The specs
Engine: 1.5-litre turbo
Power: 181hp
Torque: 230Nm
Transmission: 6-speed automatic
Starting price: Dh79,000
On sale: Now
Hidden killer
Sepsis arises when the body tries to fight an infection but damages its own tissue and organs in the process.
The World Health Organisation estimates it affects about 30 million people each year and that about six million die.
Of those about three million are newborns and 1.2 are young children.
Patients with septic shock must often have limbs amputated if clots in their limbs prevent blood flow, causing the limbs to die.
Campaigners say the condition is often diagnosed far too late by medical professionals and that many patients wait too long to seek treatment, confusing the symptoms with flu.
How to protect yourself when air quality drops
Install an air filter in your home.
Close your windows and turn on the AC.
Shower or bath after being outside.
Wear a face mask.
Stay indoors when conditions are particularly poor.
If driving, turn your engine off when stationary.
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The Penguin
Starring: Colin Farrell, Cristin Milioti, Rhenzy Feliz
Creator: Lauren LeFranc
Rating: 4/5
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
