Uptown School dominated the latest round of the Dubai Affiliated School Sport Association (DASSA) swim gala by clinching first place in the under-12, under-14 and under-16 age groups.

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The performance ensured the school went one better after finishing runners-up in the second gala at Kings’ Dubai.

The 39-member team swam in the freestyle, individual medley, backstroke, butterfly and relays, and swim coach Kevin Drew hailed the winning effort.

He said: “The students really stepped up to the challenge for the team by competing in races that were not their regular distance or stroke. It’s always a pleasure to see Uptown School do well.”

And he emphasised the importance of competing. He said: “We don’t enter competitions with the single purpose of winning but it’s nice when their work gets them a first place.”

Emma Dawson, who was also part of the coaching team, said the efforts put in had paid off.

She said: “It was all down to hard work and dedication during training. The students put in a lot of effort and it was great to see that dedication and hard work produced results.”

Uptown School also enjoyed similar success on the football pitch. Its under-14 side came out 3-1 winners against Emirates International School (EIS). Qais Wahdan was the hero, netting a hat-trick against the league contenders, and shared his man-of-the-match award with Omar Farea.

Wahdan broke the deadlock thanks to a delightful pass by Farea. EIS levelled early in the second half but that was as good as it got with goalkeeper Youssef Zaki in superb form. 

The game was soon out of reach when Wahdan netted twice to complete his hat-trick. And the girls under-12s team registered a comfortable 12-1 win over Wellington Academy (Silicon Oasis).

Hannah Roberts was the star performer, finding the net six times. There was also a hat-trick for Athija Al Mehairi while Amal Al Khaja (two) and Lauren England found themselves on the score sheet.

Dubai College overpower DESC to life Gulf U-18 title

Dubai College retained their Gulf Under-18 boys title with a comprehensive 36-7 win over Dubai English Speaking College at the Dubai Rugby Sevens.

In the three-day tournament at 7he Sevens Stadium, the Dubai outfit didn’t even concede a point in their first three games, comfortably beating Bahrain College (41-0), APB Sharks (29-0) and English College (43-0) to advance from Group A.

Jumeirah College ‘A’ team were the opponents for Dubai College in the quarter-finals but although they scored seven points, the latter carried on from their last match to register a 29-7 win.

And, having overcame Jumeirah English Speaking School 19-10 in the semi-final, Dubai College proved far too good, beating Dubai English Speaking College to lift the title again.

It was an achievement which pleased Andy Jones, director of sport at Dubai College.

“It feels really good for the boys to win this because we play a lot of matches during the season but to play in front of a big crowd at 7he Sevens Stadium and put on a dominant display in the final is just magical,” said Jones.

“They put in a lot of hard work and I was just delighted to see them come through for what I’m sure will be a very proud moment for them.

“There was pressure obviously but they had trained very hard and were eager to retain the title."