Dubai: The Dubai Club for People of Determination (DCPD) and Nagwa helped themselves to the deaf football and wheelchair basketball titles respectively on the penultimate day of the Fifth Nad Al Sheba (NAS) Ramadan Sports Tournament.
The DCPC team kept off a marauding Al Ain to win 6-5 in the deaf football, while Nagwa tamed Public Prosecution 88-49 to walk away with the wheelchair basketball crown.
The highlight of the deaf football final was the fine combination between hat-trick hero Ebrahim Bin Yaqoob and Walid Radhwan, and with Ayman Al Makbali — who also scored a second half brace — backing them from defence, the advantage lay firmly with the team from Dubai.
At the end of the first half, the DCPD team led 3-1 with quick goals from Radhwan and a Bin Yaqoob double. But, Majid Al Baloushi pulled one back for Al Ain just before the break. In the second half, Mohammad Al Maamari scored from a solo effort only to see Dubai keep their two-goal margin with the first of Al Makbali’s goals. Abdullah Bin Mubarak got one for Al Ain, but once again Bin Yaqoob scored and Al Makbali added his second to distance the two teams 6-3 with less than two minutes left.
However, Bin Mubarak and Al Makbali scored in the final minutes to give Al Ain a glimmer of hope. But that was all the visitors could reach as they ran out of time. “I am very happy not just for the win but also because of the exposure we have got through this tournament. We have worked hard to be here and we finally beat a strong team to win the title,” Radhwan told Gulf News.
Meanwhile, Germany’s Florian Mach outscored all with 30 points to lead Nagwa to a one-sided 88-49 win over the Public Prosecution team in the wheelchair basketball final. Playing the perfect supporting role were teammates and the tournament’s top scorer Mohammad Al Zarouni (26) and captain Tariq Alyasi with 12 points.
Nagwa went in with a 13-9 lead at the end of the first ten minutes with Al Zarouni pushing in a basket on the hooter, while Public Prosecution’s main threat Ashraf Abu Zaid from Egypt managed just six points.
It was in the second quarter that Nagwa took complete control outscoring their opponents 25-5 with the free-scoring Al Zarouni having 12 points including a couple of free throws, while Mach and Ebrahim Al Hammadi bagged six points apiece for Nagwa to lead 38-13 at half-time.
The Public Prosecution team tried to come back in the third period and all that they managed was staying level with the scoring at 19-19 as Nagwa still led by 25 points going in to the final quarter. “They [Public Prosecution] had two strong players and we had to take them out of the game. We managed this early and despite some signs of nervousness we managed to go into the break with a good lead,” Mach told Gulf News.
Saeed Hareb, General Secretary, Dubai Sports Council (DSC), was joined by Thani Juma Berregad, Chairman, DCPD, Salah Ameen, Board Member of DSC and Tournament Director Hassan Al Mazroei at the presentation of trophies at the end.
RESULTS
Wheelchair Basketball final: Nagwa bt Public Prosecution 88-49
Deaf Football Final: Dubai Club for People with Determination bt Al Ain 6-5
