Abu Dhabi Harlequins have had a boost following a troubled summer with the return to the playing field of Chris Marshall.
The 27-year-old wing has returned to the fold after two years out with a dislocated shoulder. After several aborted attempts to come back, he underwent surgery 12 months ago, and is now finally ready to vie for a place in the Harlequins starting line up.
Marshall says that being on the outside looking in as his teammates wrapped up five trophies last season was bittersweet.
“It was brilliant to see the club do so well last year, but not being able to be involved with the club and your mates, having to watch from the sidelines for such a prolonged period, was really tough to take,” Marshall said.
“I came down to training as often as I could, but when you can’t be as involved as you want to be, it is hard. We had some great players playing last season, and I don’t know if I’d have made the side anyway.”
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Now he is back to help West Asia’s leading side’s defence of the titles they won last season, and even has his eye on a first UAE cap.
Before his injury, Marshall was a key part of the UAE sevens side, and he is targeting a place in the XVs set up, too.
“I was trying to get as involved with the UAE circuit as possible, and was hoping to get into the first XV of the UAE,” he said.
“The timing of the dislocation kept me out of that completely, which was enormously frustrating as it looked like a great set up under Apollo Perelini, with some really good players involved.
“It is certainly something I’d like to target this year. Missing out on opportunities like that has been one of the many frustrations.”
After the unparalleled success of last season, when they won every major trophy on offer, this summer has been a challenging one for Harlequins.
The loss of substantial sponsorship funding has left them searching for ways to cut costs, including looking for a new home away from the immaculate fields of Zayed Sports City.
They have advertised on their social media streams for a new club captain, medical officer, and membership secretary, while a raft of players from the first XV have also left.
Pillars of the five-trophy winning season such as Willie Umu, Brian Geraghty and Pat Jenkinson will not be involved this time around.
As such, Mike McFarlane, the Harlequins coach, is delighted to have a player of Marshall’s class to call on.
“It is fantastic having a player of his calibre coming back in,” McFarlane said.
“He has such a good rugby brain, great core skills, and put with his frame, he is a fantastic rugby player. It is now just a matter of him building confidence.
“For anyone coming back from a big injury, you can do all your rehab and physical work, but it is all about the first contact sessions back. He has had that, and has been great.”
Marshall himself is wary of the level set by Harlequins last year, but is keen to make a contribution to the effort to make those standards.
“I’m conscious a few of the influential players from last season have gone, and I would never compare myself to them as they were top, top players,” Marshall said.
“But I’m hoping I can do everything I can to help try and plug those gaps, and get us back to close to the level we were at last year. It will be a big ask, but I am confident we still have a very good side.”
Sole survivors
- Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
- George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
- Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
- Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
WIDE%20VIEW
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Specs
Engine: Duel electric motors
Power: 659hp
Torque: 1075Nm
On sale: Available for pre-order now
Price: On request
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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The biog
Name: Fareed Lafta
Age: 40
From: Baghdad, Iraq
Mission: Promote world peace
Favourite poet: Al Mutanabbi
Role models: His parents
Scoreline
Saudi Arabia 1-0 Japan
Saudi Arabia Al Muwallad 63’
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: HyperSpace
Started: 2020
Founders: Alexander Heller, Rama Allen and Desi Gonzalez
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: Entertainment
Number of staff: 210
Investment raised: $75 million from investors including Galaxy Interactive, Riyadh Season, Sega Ventures and Apis Venture Partners
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
TEAMS
EUROPE:
Justin Rose, Francesco Molinari, Tyrrell Hatton, Tommy Fleetwood, Jon Rahm, Rory McIlroy, Alex Noren, Thorbjorn Olesen, Paul Casey, Sergio Garcia, Ian Poulter, Henrik Stenson
USA:
Brooks Koepka, Justin Thomas, Dustin Johnson, Patrick Reed, Bubba Watson, Jordan Spieth, Rickie Fowler, Webb Simpson, Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson, Bryson DeChambeau ( 1 TBC)
Key figures in the life of the fort
Sheikh Dhiyab bin Isa (ruled 1761-1793) Built Qasr Al Hosn as a watchtower to guard over the only freshwater well on Abu Dhabi island.
Sheikh Shakhbut bin Dhiyab (ruled 1793-1816) Expanded the tower into a small fort and transferred his ruling place of residence from Liwa Oasis to the fort on the island.
Sheikh Tahnoon bin Shakhbut (ruled 1818-1833) Expanded Qasr Al Hosn further as Abu Dhabi grew from a small village of palm huts to a town of more than 5,000 inhabitants.
Sheikh Khalifa bin Shakhbut (ruled 1833-1845) Repaired and fortified the fort.
Sheikh Saeed bin Tahnoon (ruled 1845-1855) Turned Qasr Al Hosn into a strong two-storied structure.
Sheikh Zayed bin Khalifa (ruled 1855-1909) Expanded Qasr Al Hosn further to reflect the emirate's increasing prominence.
Sheikh Shakhbut bin Sultan (ruled 1928-1966) Renovated and enlarged Qasr Al Hosn, adding a decorative arch and two new villas.
Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan (ruled 1966-2004) Moved the royal residence to Al Manhal palace and kept his diwan at Qasr Al Hosn.
Sources: Jayanti Maitra, www.adach.ae
Ordinary Virtues: Moral Order in a Divided World by Michael Ignatieff
Harvard University Press
More on Yemen's civil war
'The worst thing you can eat'
Trans fat is typically found in fried and baked goods, but you may be consuming more than you think.
Powdered coffee creamer, microwave popcorn and virtually anything processed with a crust is likely to contain it, as this guide from Mayo Clinic outlines:
Baked goods - Most cakes, cookies, pie crusts and crackers contain shortening, which is usually made from partially hydrogenated vegetable oil. Ready-made frosting is another source of trans fat.
Snacks - Potato, corn and tortilla chips often contain trans fat. And while popcorn can be a healthy snack, many types of packaged or microwave popcorn use trans fat to help cook or flavour the popcorn.
Fried food - Foods that require deep frying — french fries, doughnuts and fried chicken — can contain trans fat from the oil used in the cooking process.
Refrigerator dough - Products such as canned biscuits and cinnamon rolls often contain trans fat, as do frozen pizza crusts.
Creamer and margarine - Nondairy coffee creamer and stick margarines also may contain partially hydrogenated vegetable oils.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The Pope's itinerary
Sunday, February 3, 2019 - Rome to Abu Dhabi
1pm: departure by plane from Rome / Fiumicino to Abu Dhabi
10pm: arrival at Abu Dhabi Presidential Airport
Monday, February 4
12pm: welcome ceremony at the main entrance of the Presidential Palace
12.20pm: visit Abu Dhabi Crown Prince at Presidential Palace
5pm: private meeting with Muslim Council of Elders at Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque
6.10pm: Inter-religious in the Founder's Memorial
Tuesday, February 5 - Abu Dhabi to Rome
9.15am: private visit to undisclosed cathedral
10.30am: public mass at Zayed Sports City – with a homily by Pope Francis
12.40pm: farewell at Abu Dhabi Presidential Airport
1pm: departure by plane to Rome
5pm: arrival at the Rome / Ciampino International Airport
The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo
Power: 261hp at 5,500rpm
Torque: 405Nm at 1,750-3,500rpm
Transmission: 9-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 6.9L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh117,059
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UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
