Doha’s rugby players could scarcely have been handed a tougher assignment on their long-awaited return to West Asia Premiership rugby this weekend.
The side from Qatar will be playing in the competition for the first time in six years when they face Bahrain on Friday.
On the field, their opposition will present a formidable enough challenge. Bahrain are the reigning champions of West Asia and have established themselves as the region’s premier force in rugby in the time since Doha have been away.
Even before a ball is kicked, there will be challenges. Doha and Bahrain played home and away friendly matches earlier this year to test the logistics of travel between the two countries.
The long history of Gulf rugby has always provided tests for the away team, given the vagaries of cross border travel. All the more so in the recent past.
Doha were left off the fixture list because of the geo-political climate in the GCC in 2017.
When they were ready to return, rugby was essentially ceased for everyone because of Covid 19.
So long has their absence been, few in Doha will remember what it was like to travel regularly to play the best in West Asia rugby.
Tim Newnham was still playing for the team the last time they were in the competition. Now aged 40, he is the club’s chairman, and has thus been tasked with plotting the side’s return to this point.
Discussions about a return have been taking place for two years, and now it is about to happen.
“We didn’t want to enter the league if we couldn’t complete all our fixtures because that is not fair on everyone,” Newnham said.
When Doha were initially kept out of Gulf competition back in 2017, they offset it by playing fixtures outside the GCC, including in Europe.
Covid was a significantly greater problem though. They received no reduction in rent from the landowner of their home ground.
With no way to cover the costs because restricted movement during the pandemic meant they could not use the facility anyway, they were forced to move.
“As a committee we worked out that, if we could not get rent relief, we would be bankrupt within seven or eight months,” Newnham said.
“We couldn’t open the club so we had no income. Obviously, nobody having been alive during a pandemic previously, we didn’t know what to do. We bit the bullet and left the club.”
They have a new sponsor and investor assisting with a plan to build a new club. The focus of Qatar’s sports administration on football’s World Cup meant the construction has been delayed. They have therefore been renting fields at Doha Sports Park instead.
It has all come with a financial burden. At the point they exited Gulf rugby in 2017, the club had an enviable pool of players, some of whom were employed in rugby development and coaching roles.
The resources are not the same now, but Newnham is hopeful the future is even brighter than what went before.
“We are not the same organisation the last time when we were in the WAP with full-time employees and development officers,” he said.
“But that is obviously where we aim to be. That is our five-year plan. We hope to break ground on our new facility this year, and we hope to get to where we were before, but more so.”
The plot for their new home is twice the size of their previous one, meaning they could expand their membership from 1,800-2,000, as it was previously, to as much as 3,500-4,000.
Their return restores the top-flight to seven teams, with Dubai Hurricanes also returning after a season in the second tier. That means five trips to the UAE for Doha.
Fixture scheduling is always a fraught business, but all the more so now given the UAE clubs have a different weekend to them.
Doha have been requesting to stage their trip to the UAE on Fridays, as was the case last time they featured in this competition.
“Generally, UAE teams want to play their game on a Saturday, which is still a weekend for us,” Newnham said.
“When we are hosting, that is easy for us, we don’t mind doing that. If we can play our games on a Friday, that helps with post-game.
“If on a Saturday we are returning home at 12.30-1am, and players have to work in five hours’ time, it is not ideal.”
White hydrogen: Naturally occurring hydrogen
Chromite: Hard, metallic mineral containing iron oxide and chromium oxide
Ultramafic rocks: Dark-coloured rocks rich in magnesium or iron with very low silica content
Ophiolite: A section of the earth’s crust, which is oceanic in nature that has since been uplifted and exposed on land
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Countdown to Zero exhibition will show how disease can be beaten
Countdown to Zero: Defeating Disease, an international multimedia exhibition created by the American Museum of National History in collaboration with The Carter Center, will open in Abu Dhabi a month before Reaching the Last Mile.
Opening on October 15 and running until November 15, the free exhibition opens at The Galleria mall on Al Maryah Island, and has already been seen at the Jimmy Carter Presidential Library and Museum in Atlanta, the American Museum of Natural History in New York, and the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.
8 traditional Jamaican dishes to try at Kingston 21
- Trench Town Rock: Jamaican-style curry goat served in a pastry basket with a carrot and potato garnish
- Rock Steady Jerk Chicken: chicken marinated for 24 hours and slow-cooked on the grill
- Mento Oxtail: flavoured oxtail stewed for five hours with herbs
- Ackee and salt fish: the national dish of Jamaica makes for a hearty breakfast
- Jamaican porridge: another breakfast favourite, can be made with peanut, cornmeal, banana and plantain
- Jamaican beef patty: a pastry with ground beef filling
- Hellshire Pon di Beach: Fresh fish with pickles
- Out of Many: traditional sweet potato pudding
War
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Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
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- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
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Labour dispute
The insured employee may still file an ILOE claim even if a labour dispute is ongoing post termination, but the insurer may suspend or reject payment, until the courts resolve the dispute, especially if the reason for termination is contested. The outcome of the labour court proceedings can directly affect eligibility.
- Abdullah Ishnaneh, Partner, BSA Law
The specs
Engine: 4.0-litre V8 twin-turbocharged and three electric motors
Power: Combined output 920hp
Torque: 730Nm at 4,000-7,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed dual-clutch automatic
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Sarfira
Director: Sudha Kongara Prasad
Starring: Akshay Kumar, Radhika Madan, Paresh Rawal
Rating: 2/5
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
Started: 2021
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
What is graphene?
Graphene is extracted from graphite and is made up of pure carbon.
It is 200 times more resistant than steel and five times lighter than aluminum.
It conducts electricity better than any other material at room temperature.
It is thought that graphene could boost the useful life of batteries by 10 per cent.
Graphene can also detect cancer cells in the early stages of the disease.
The material was first discovered when Andre Geim and Konstantin Novoselov were 'playing' with graphite at the University of Manchester in 2004.
Milestones on the road to union
1970
October 26: Bahrain withdraws from a proposal to create a federation of nine with the seven Trucial States and Qatar.
December: Ahmed Al Suwaidi visits New York to discuss potential UN membership.
1971
March 1: Alex Douglas Hume, Conservative foreign secretary confirms that Britain will leave the Gulf and “strongly supports” the creation of a Union of Arab Emirates.
July 12: Historic meeting at which Sheikh Zayed and Sheikh Rashid make a binding agreement to create what will become the UAE.
July 18: It is announced that the UAE will be formed from six emirates, with a proposed constitution signed. RAK is not yet part of the agreement.
August 6: The fifth anniversary of Sheikh Zayed becoming Ruler of Abu Dhabi, with official celebrations deferred until later in the year.
August 15: Bahrain becomes independent.
September 3: Qatar becomes independent.
November 23-25: Meeting with Sheikh Zayed and Sheikh Rashid and senior British officials to fix December 2 as date of creation of the UAE.
November 29: At 5.30pm Iranian forces seize the Greater and Lesser Tunbs by force.
November 30: Despite a power sharing agreement, Tehran takes full control of Abu Musa.
November 31: UK officials visit all six participating Emirates to formally end the Trucial States treaties
December 2: 11am, Dubai. New Supreme Council formally elects Sheikh Zayed as President. Treaty of Friendship signed with the UK. 11.30am. Flag raising ceremony at Union House and Al Manhal Palace in Abu Dhabi witnessed by Sheikh Khalifa, then Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi.
December 6: Arab League formally admits the UAE. The first British Ambassador presents his credentials to Sheikh Zayed.
December 9: UAE joins the United Nations.
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Tamkeen's offering
- Option 1: 70% in year 1, 50% in year 2, 30% in year 3
- Option 2: 50% across three years
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What can victims do?
Always use only regulated platforms
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Save all evidence (screenshots, chat logs, transaction IDs)
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Warn others to prevent further harm
Courtesy: Crystal Intelligence
ETFs explained
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ETFs have zero upfront fees and annual charges as low as 0.07 per cent a year, which means you get to keep more of your returns, as actively managed funds can charge as much as 1.5 per cent a year.
There are thousands to choose from, with the five biggest providers BlackRock’s iShares range, Vanguard, State Street Global Advisors SPDR ETFs, Deutsche Bank AWM X-trackers and Invesco PowerShares.
Lexus LX700h specs
Engine: 3.4-litre twin-turbo V6 plus supplementary electric motor
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Results
5pm: Warsan Lake – Maiden (PA) Dh80,000 (Turf) 2,200m; Winner: Dhaw Al Reef, Sam Hitchcott (jockey), Abdallah Al Hammadi (trainer)
5.30pm: Al Quadra Lake – Maiden (PA) Dh80,000 (T) 1,600m; Winner: Mrouwah Al Gharbia, Sando Paiva, Abubakar Daud
6pm: Hatta Lake – Handicap (PA) Dh80,000 (T) 1,600m; Winner: AF Yatroq, George Buckell, Ernst Oertel
6.30pm: Wathba Stallions Cup – Handicap (PA) Dh70,000 (T) 1,600m; Winner: Ashton Tourettes, Adries de Vries, Ibrahim Aseel
7pm: Abu Dhabi Championship – Listed (PA) Dh180,000 (T) 1,600m; Winner: Bahar Muscat, Antonio Fresu, Ibrahim Al Hadhrami
7.30pm: Zakher Lake – Rated Conditions (TB) Dh80,000 (T) 1,400m; Winner: Alfareeq, Dane O’Neill, Musabah Al Muhairi.
Mia Man’s tips for fermentation
- Start with a simple recipe such as yogurt or sauerkraut
- Keep your hands and kitchen tools clean. Sanitize knives, cutting boards, tongs and storage jars with boiling water before you start.
- Mold is bad: the colour pink is a sign of mold. If yogurt turns pink as it ferments, you need to discard it and start again. For kraut, if you remove the top leaves and see any sign of mold, you should discard the batch.
- Always use clean, closed, airtight lids and containers such as mason jars when fermenting yogurt and kraut. Keep the lid closed to prevent insects and contaminants from getting in.
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At a glance
Global events: Much of the UK’s economic woes were blamed on “increased global uncertainty”, which can be interpreted as the economic impact of the Ukraine war and the uncertainty over Donald Trump’s tariffs.
Growth forecasts: Cut for 2025 from 2 per cent to 1 per cent. The OBR watchdog also estimated inflation will average 3.2 per cent this year
Welfare: Universal credit health element cut by 50 per cent and frozen for new claimants, building on cuts to the disability and incapacity bill set out earlier this month
Spending cuts: Overall day-to day-spending across government cut by £6.1bn in 2029-30
Tax evasion: Steps to crack down on tax evasion to raise “£6.5bn per year” for the public purse
Defence: New high-tech weaponry, upgrading HM Naval Base in Portsmouth
Housing: Housebuilding to reach its highest in 40 years, with planning reforms helping generate an extra £3.4bn for public finances
