Exiles huff and puff to win over Hurricanes

Exiles Hooker and Nord Anglia PE Teacher, Dave Gairn, scores his first of two tries

It was another round of West Asia and UAE Premiership rugby at The Sevens Stadium on Friday night with the Exiles‘ shortest away trip of the season, about a hundred metres or so from Pitch 7 to Pitch 6 to the Dubai Hurricanes.

Referee Braydon Hudson gets the game underway

Teenage referee, Brydon Hudson, blew his whistle to get only the second encounter between the two resident clubs at The Sevens Stadium since February 2022 underway. On that occasion the Exiles overpowered their hosts and headed off the 40 degree plus pitch for well earned cold showers with a 22 – 46 win (https://dubaiexiles.com/only-mad-dogs-and-dubai-hurricanes/).

Exiles‘ Number 10, Tayne Stannard, opened the Exiles‘ account in the first minute of the match with a well struck penalty. Tayne, still only 19 years of age, has been a regular starter at outside-half throughout the 2023-24 season and delivered a number of assured performances. With just a couple of minutes on the clock, Exiles‘ scrum-half, Namibian Carel Thomas, pounced on an over-throw from the Hurricanes Hooker and looked like he might make the line. It was only an unfortunate slip brought the UAE International to ground and the chance was lost.

Jaen Botes introduces himself to his opposite number

Exiles‘ prop, Tarek ‘Taz’ Mursal, has an early carry

The game’s first try came from another Hurricanes‘ line out error. Exiles‘ flanker, Matt Mills, got one of his considerable paws in the way of the Hurricanes‘ intended receiver, Dave Gairn mopped up, and Carel Thomas quickly put everybody wearing black on to the front foot. A hard carry from second row, Shane Weweje, another quick feed from Carel found Tayne Stannard who delivered the ball to James Crossley for the big English centre to carry hard and stop the drifting Hurricanes‘ defence in its tracks.

Teenager Tayne Stannard delivers the scoring pass

Carel Thomas was promptly at the breakdown, another quick delivery allowed the teenage outside-half to throw an audacious dummy which sent the Hurricanes‘ Number 7 off on a short city break excursion. Tayne had created a hole so large that the only thing likely to stop him going through was its own event horizon. By the time the Hurricanes‘ defence had scrambled back, it was too late. Hard carries from Shane Weweje and Exiles‘ captain, John Donnan, had dissolved the remaining defenders and Matt Mills crossed to score. Converted by Tayne Stannard. 0 – 10 Exiles.

UAE Captain, and DESC PE Teacher, Matt Mills, scores the opening Exiles‘ try

As is so often the case in this game we call rugby, no sooner had the Exiles put a try on the board a soft penalty from the restart gave the Hurricanes the chance of three points which scrum-half, Andre Gerber, gratefully accepted. 3 – 10 Exiles.

After an exciting start, at least for Exiles‘ supporters, the game stumbled into a procession of handling errors. The team in yellow would carry for a few phases and knock on or get turned over, then the team in black would carry for a few phases and knock on or get turned over. Eventually, out of the quagmire, Andre Gerber was given another penalty opportunity. 6 – 10 Exiles.

Schalk Du Preez creates his own space

Scrums – there were a few of those

For a brief moment, the exhibition of handling errors subsided, the Exiles found themselves with a line out just inside the Hurricanes‘ half. Dave Gairn sent the ball on its way to John Donnan. the big Irishman, and former Ballynahinch captain, plucked the ball out of the air with one hand before giving it to Carel Thomas. Carel picked out Exiles‘ Number 8 Jaen Botes and the ball was swiftly moved along the back line.

Exiles‘ wing, Willem Jansen, did all sorts of damage to the yellow defenders, a ruck, another quick feed from Carel and it was the turn of Jaen Botes to put a sizeable dent in the Hurricanes’ defence. Lukas Waddington was the next to carry, when he was hauled to ground Carel Thomas looked like he was going to score before being scragged. Moeneeb Galant crossed for what looked like the second Exiles try of the match – but referee, Braydon Hudson, pulled it back for an infringement at the breakdown.

Jaen Botes carries hard

Carel Thomas almost gets to the line

When the Exiles put their minds to playing rugby they were finding all sorts of space out in the wider channels. Schalk Du Preez had joined the back line, on his opposite side, for James Crossley to put him into acres of space. Schalk was tackled after beating four defenders and making it to the Hurricanes‘ 10 metre line. There were a few more carries before the inevitable snuffing out of momentum, the Exiles getting penalised for holding onto the ball in the tackle.

A forward pass from the Hurricanes and it was Exiles‘ ball. A knock-on from the Exiles and it was Hurricanes‘ ball. With neither team able to establish or maintain any momentum the the game had turned into the 2008 Wimbledon Final. Eventually, at advantage Exiles, Tayne Stannard was called upon to take a penalty which the teenager calmly slotted between the uprights. 6 – 13 Exiles. Half Time.

Tayne Stannard kicks a penalty

It was a good start to the second half for the Exiles. With just over five minutes played, Dave Gairn rumbled his way across the try line with the help of a driving maul from a line out. Tayne Stannard kicked the conversion and it was 6 – 20 to the Exiles. The Exiles were fourteen points to the good without the Hurricanes even firing a warning shot.

Schalk Du Preez heads off to the races

Moeneeb Galant loves a scrum

Dave Gairn takes a line out

With spectators falling asleep, the Exiles were guilty of joining the slumber. A ruck on Hurricanes ball in the Exiles‘ 22, three Exiles‘ defenders looking at each other and the Hurricanes‘ prop picked the ball up and went over the Exiles‘ try line under the posts unopposed. Converted. 13 – 20 Exiles.

Less than three minutes after that, whatever momentum had been missing from the game, suddenly arrived in abundance for the home side. A penalty and it was 16 – 20 Exiles. The home team supporters were awake and ordering espresso.

Momentum made its presence fully felt when on an Exiles line out in the Exiles‘ 22. A slapped down ball was gathered by Hurricanes‘ Number 8 and former Blue Bull, Ruan Steenkamp who crashed over to the delight of the Pitch 6 regulars. 21 – 20 Hurricanes.

Dave Gairn gets his second try of the game

All smiles

In the words of that famous Elizabethan rugby advocate, Sir Edmund Blackadder, the Exiles had found themselves “in the stickiest situation since Sticky the Stick Insect got stuck on a sticky bun.”

Whatever alarm clock was needed to wake the men-in-black, something certainly rattled them into lucidity. Out of necessity, the speed of thought and deed that had been missing since the opening ten minutes of the game reappeared and it was all out attack.

With time ticking down, the Hurricanes generously gave a soft penalty for Tayne Stannard to deliver a perfect touch finder, five metres out from the Hurricanes‘ line. In a carbon copy of Dave Gairn‘s earlier score, the Nord Anglia PE Teacher delivered the throw and latched on to the maul that already had momentum. Jaen Botes and Tarek Mursal leant their weight to proceedings and Dave was driven over for the match winning score. 21 – 25 Exiles. Final Score.

DUBAI HURRICANES VS DUBAI EXILES RFC

West Asia / UAE Premiership (1st March 2024) – The Sevens Stadium