Netball: Rams suffer defeat to UAE

Island side lose out in close-fought battle

The Manx Rams suffered a second defeat at this year's Europe Netball Open at the NSC with a 49-58 loss to United Arab Emirates (UAE) last night (16 May).

Following a tough opening test and loss in their opening contest against Northern Ireland on Thursday morning, the Rams trailed UAE 10-16 following the opening quarter.

By the halfway stage the Island side had marginally closed the gap as UAE still held out in front at 25-30.

In a nip-and-tuck third quarter the Isle of Man squad's opponents extended their advantage once more to 35-43, a deficit the Rams were unable to break down in the remaining 15 minutes.

Elsewhere in yesterday's opening day, Northern Ireland took control of the 1st Division as they followed up their win over the Isle of Man with a 62-35 victory over Republic of Ireland.

Despite losing out in their last match of the day, Republic of Ireland did have points on the board overcoming the UAE 48-44 in a tight contest on Thursday afternoon.

Meanwhile in the 2nd Division, France triumphed over Gibraltar 36-26 - Malta were the other winners during the day edging out Swizterland 46-31.

The group games across the two groups continue today (17 May) - you can see the schedule below:

2024 Europe Netball Open schedule (Friday, 17 May)

9am - Gibraltar vs Malta

11am - Switzerland vs France

1pm - Northern Ireland vs UAE

3pm - Republic of Ireland vs Isle of Man

5pm - Switzerland vs Gibraltar

7pm - France vs Malta