We’ve now reached the end of the regular Gulf Rugby season for the UAE Division 1 rugby competition.

All bar one of the league fixtures have been played and the top four teams who have qualified for the knockout stages of the competition are now set in stone.

Final Top Four Qualifying Teams

Congratulations must go to the league toppers and undefeated Saracens 1st XV with a full house, having collected maximum bonus points in each of their fixtures and scooping a total of forty five league points. It was this time last year that the Capital City side just missed out on qualification for the finals, due to the old (Conference) format of the split leagues, which saw them neck and neck with the Amblers, only to fall short on points difference.

With a gap of ten points, follows the Dubai Hurricanes 2nd XV with thirty five league points having won seven of their nine league fixtures and only losing two games to Dragons and the aforementioned Saracens. In third place and trailing the Canes by five points are the Al Ain Amblers with thirty league points having won six of their nine fixtures and just securing their spot in this years’ finals playoff are the Sharjah Wanderers with twenty six league points making it a certainty for qualification. Even if fifth place Dubai Exiles were to beat ninth place Harlequins with a bonus point victory, they’d still fall short by one point to qualify. That fixture is still under discussion as to whether it will go ahead, having previously been postponed early in the season.

UAE Division 1 Semi Final Fixtures 2019/20

So we’re now just two Division 1 fixtures away from knowing who will face off on Finals Day over at the Sevens Stadium on the 20th March. First place finishers (Sarries) will host fourth place (Wanderers) and second place (Hurricanes) will host third place (Amblers).

You can preview these fixtures in our new ‘Head To Head’ feature by clicking on either of the fixtures below;

Abu Dhabi Saracens vs Sharjah Wanderers – Kick off 15:00 on 06.03.2020 at Al Ghazal, Abu Dhabi
Dubai Hurricanes vs Al Ain Amblers – Kick off 16:00 on 06.03.2020 at The Sevens Stadium, Dubai

The Division 1 Journey

Below you can view our data visualization of each Gulf Rugby Club featured in this year’s Division 1 League table, showing their routes to final placement*.

The video does not include the unplayed match between the Dubai Exiles and the Abu Dhabi Harlequins.