It was a remarkable day for three schools as their boys’ Under-12s and Under-15s teams qualified for the semi-finals of the Dubai Schools Football Cup on Saturday.

Lycee Francais International George Pompidou (LFIGP), Al Shafie and Dubai National School (Al Barsha) won their respective last-16 and quarter-final games as the tournament reached the knockout stages after seven weeks of group matches.

Also in the semi-finals are National Charity School (Under-12s) and Sabis Choueifat (Under-15s).

Speaking after the team’s 3-2 win in the quarter-final over Rashid bin Saeed school (Under-12s), Dubai National School (Al Barsha) coach Shabaan Hussein said: “Both matches were tough but my boys played strong games. It is no surprise for us to reach the semi-finals.

“Our boys play to win and they play with their souls and we aim to always reach these stages." 

His Under-15s reached the semifinals with a tense 7-6 penalty shoot-out win over Westminster School after the game finished 1-1 in regulation time. Mohamed Farouk, head coach of Al Shafie (Under-12s and Under- 15s), was delighted that both of his teams reached the semi-finals.

“Both of my teams played very well,” said Farouk after seeing the Under-12s beat Dubai American Arab School 6-1, while the Under-15s won 2-1 against Dubai International School (Garhoud). 

“This is a great achievement for all of us and we are proud of our boys. “We will be training daily at the school and will prepare hard for the semi-finals." 

The final week of the tournament takes place next week, with both semi-finals and finals for the boys’ and girls’ categories taking place.

For more results and news, please visit www.dubaischoolsfc.com.