When the Pro League kicks off on Friday evening, Al Dhafra will not have any wild ambitions to be challenging for the championship. Instead, they will be glad to survive in the mainstream for another season. Formed in 2000 they are a budding young club where the nucleus of the players are those who are past their prime or those who cannot find a regular place in the first teams of clubs like Al Ain, Al Jazira and Al Wahda.
But for such a side, Dhafra have done admirably well. They have earned promotion to the top flight three times and earned a spot in the inaugural Pro League after finishing above Emirates and Hatta last season. The intentions are now to remain in the Pro League permanently. They have had a setback however before a ball has been kicked though. The Egyptian coach Ayman al Ramadi, who took them to the Division 1 title in 2006/07, left unexpectedly when the squad was being finalised. But they contracted Mohammed Kwid, the Syrian national team coach, without much ado and delay.
Kwid says it was a coincidence that he is the coach of Dhafra. "I had the fastest job change after resigning from Karama. Barely 24 hours later I get a call from Dhafra with an offer. I accepted without much thinking because of the good relationship I had with the club chairman Sheikh Saif. "It is a risk which I was willing to take. They took me in because I had a good idea of the Gulf football as a player and coach. The entire incident was pure coincidence. But I love this job and I feel we have a decent team to fulfill the objectives of the club.
"I don't have outrageous dreams of winning the league, but I will be very happy if we can finish in the middle. "This is also the goal of my employer. I believe we have a decent squad to give a run for their money to the bigger teams." Kwid led Al Karama to Asian Champions League three times including the 2006 final with South Korean side Jeonbuk Motors. He resigned from the Syrian club after the management changed. He adds: "I was not happy with the new management because they have a lot of restrictions. I felt it won't help my cause.
Kwid will have the services of the Iran internationals Rasoul Khatibi and Mahdi Rajabzadeh, and the Nigerian defender Kenneth Ikwugbado, who flew in from Lebanese club Al Mabarrah. Both Khatibi and Rajabzadeh moved from Emirates Club, who were relegated last season. Rajabzadeh backs his coach's opinion of finishing in mid-table. "This team is blessed with some good players and I feel we can create a few upsets along the way," he said.
"It will be a good achievement to finish in the middle." The new local recruits include the Wahda forward Saleh al Minhali, and the veteran Hussain Suhail and Mohammed al Sayed from Jazira. Ahmed Jathlan al Mazrouei, the team administrator and member of the club's board of directors, felt the sudden change of the technical staff was no cause for panic to the team's supporters. "We are glad it happened before the start of the league," he said. "The players have adapted well. I hope we do well to remain in the Pro League.
"Being loyal does not mean blinding yourself to the facts of the new league, and we are up against very strong teams." Dhafra won promotion in their inaugural season and have been up and down twice before retaining their place in the first division when finishing well above the relegated Emirates and Hatta last season. apassela@thenational.ae
