There was no shortage of numbers as more than 1,000 people competed in the first round of the Middle East GAA League at Dubai Sports City on Friday.
The nine-a-side competition format saw Irish, international and local players involved with teams from Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman and of course the UAE.
In its eighth year of competition, the standard of play on show just seems to get better and better with the Gulf’s top GAA teams putting huge emphasis on the season opener.
One of the blue ribbon events of the weekend saw Abu Dhabi na Fianna A comfortably beat Dubai Celts A 3-9 to 1-2 to win the Senior Men’s final.
Celts needed a whirlwind start to gain a foothold in the contest, but instead it was the defending champions from the capital who were sharpest from the throw-in, with quick scores from Scott Oates (3) and Collie Coyle helping them race into an early four-point lead.
They duly upped the tempo before the break with the industrious Coyle slipping a neat pass across the square for Danny Curran to convert from close range.
Abu Dhabi led 1-4 to 0-2 at the break, and looked dominant around the middle with Ciaran McGinley and the industrious Oisin McGinty pulling the strings.
Indeed, the winners continued their stellar form in the second-half with Cian Tobin firing two goals and a point within three minutes to stretch the lead.
Stephen Heaphy’s side looked in firm control and upped the intensity in the closing minutes with Rob Brown, Brendan Caloran, Oates and Curran clipping points to seal a commanding win.
Abu Dhabi na Fianna manager Heaphy said: “It was tight in the first-half. We got a lucky goal, but we knew that Dubai would come at us hard in the second period. I just felt the second goal killed their game a bit.
“We’re fit and we have pace. Workrate is always key. After that, its individual talent and we know we have it.”
He continued: “It’s a long year and the other teams will up their game for the rest of the tournaments.”
In the senior ladies’ decider, former Galway captain Edel Concannon scored a stunning 3-2 but finished on the losing team as Abu Dhabi na Fianna B suffered a one point defeat to Abu Dhabi na Fianna A in what proved to be the game of the weekend.
Abu Dhabi na Fianna A – who have only lost a handful of games over the past five seasons – burst into an early lead with two goals from the elusive Niamh Carroll.
The Bs’ refused to buckle though and Concannon tucked away two superb goals to cut the deficit to a point at the break (2-0 to 2-1).
After the turnaround, Nicola Fahy kept the A team in control with two well-struck frees before Emer Daly found space to crash home a goal.
Concannon did add a goal late on to set-up a frenetic finish, but Abu Dhabi na Fianna A held on for another superb win (3-5 to 4-1).
Meanwhile, Abu Dhabi na Fianna C claimed a thrilling 1-5 to 0-5 victory over Abu Dhabi na Fianna D in the intermediate final.
Former Wicklow star Paul Earls was in inspired form as he kicked a number of crucial points to guide the third team to success on a hot day at DSC.
Elsewhere, Dubai Celts D triumphed in the junior league decider with a narrow 2-6 to 2-5 win over Dubai Celts E.
In the ladies intermediate final, Abu Dhabi na Fianna C beat Jumeirah Gaels A 1-4 to 0-2.
The second tournament on the Middle East GAA calendar will take place at the end of November in Bahrain.
