Bahrain’s rugby team made their very first appearance in an international tournament a memorable one for the ages as they won the five-team Jordan Sevens tournament by defeating the hosts, 34-5, in a one-sided final in Amman.
The kingdom’s team led 14-5 at half-time and piled on the pressure in the second half as Jordan wilted in the face of the sustained assault, meaning that Bahrain finished the one-day tournament unbeaten in all the four games they played.
Kurdistan, English club Saracens and Jordan Reserve were the other three teams in the tournament with Bahrain hammering the Reserve, 37-0, and defeating Kurdistan, 47-7, on their way to the final.
“I am delighted for the lads who put up a spirited and robust performance against Jordan, Jordan Reserve and Kurdistan,” Bahrain Rugby Federation (BRF) president Nader Shaheen told the GDN.
“This victory underlines the quality and strength of the rugby played in Bahrain and places us firmly as a team to watch going forward.
“The team’s commitment to training and fitness held them dominant in the matches and I look forward to the next tournament in early November in Doha. We are hugely proud of this achievement and delighted for the players and their devotion to Rugby Bahrain.”
Rory Drummond, the BRF’s director of rugby, told the GDN that he couldn’t have been happier with the performance of the team.
“We came up against tough opposition specifically in Kurdistan and Jordan, but everyone performed to the best of their ability and that resulted in a historic win for the kingdom of Bahrain,” he added.
“This tournament is a springboard to the future for us as a national team with the next competition coming in three weeks’ time at the Asia Rugby Sevens trophy in Qatar.
“There were many standout performers over the tournament but Gregory Heath’s try tally of eight over four games was the highlight.
“Part of my job is to bring awareness about the game of rugby in the country and I believe a strong national team performing at the very top level is one of the most effective ways of doing so.
“The team and I are immensely proud to represent Bahrain and we hope this will inspire others to try rugby in the kingdom.”
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