This was the final day in the London 2012 Games for the UAE football team, and my 25th consecutive day writing about them, for The National, from Austria, Manchester, London and Coventry.

They didn’t quite cover themselves with glory, but they managed a 1-1 draw against Senegal, and they leave the Summer Games with one point, which they deserved for their body of work, and which is a lot better than no points — which is what the UAE got in its only World Cup appearance, in 1990.

Ismail Matar, the old campaigner, at 29, got his second goal here from a no-look, Magic Johnson-style-except-with-his-foot pass from the midfielder Rashid Essa. No. Really.

Essa was in the box, to the left of the goal, and Matar was steaming into the play … and Essa looked at the other end of the field as he tapped a pass, to his left, never turning towards Matar, who got to it just before the keeper did, and tapped it past him. It was quite a play.

The rest of the game?

The UAE was mediocre verging on bad. It absolutely was their least impressive match of the three they played in England. Passes nowhere. Giving away the ball when their only advantage was their passing skills. Sloppy defending in the back.

They may have been intimidated by the Senegalese, who look like a football team — an American football team. They are big, and muscular and the Emiratis are short and slight, and I actually feared for several UAE guys when collisions loomed.

Senegal had about 20 chances, and generally they skied a ball over the bar, or headed it just wide of the goal. But, too, the UAE goalkeeper, Khalid Essa, made three or four really fine saves. The Africans got one goal, early in the second half, by a guy named Moussa Konate, who led all scorers in group play with four goals. But that was all.

I talked to the president of the Football Association just after the match, and he seemed satisfied. The UAE’s target had been the second round, but in their group were Uruguay (ranked No. 3 in the world), Team Great Britain (England is ranked No. 4) and Senegal’s crew of  strong safeties/soccer stars. It was way, way unlikely the UAE could finish ahead of two of them.

As it turned out, they were competitive throughout.

They outplayed Uruguay for the first 40 minutes before 70,000 at Old Trafford, took a 1-0 lead and went down fighting, 2-1. (Looking back, that game was, in fact, winnable, and the UAE coach, Mahdi Ali, tartly noted that his team had received only one free kick in the whole match. Uruguay’s first goal came on a free kick.)

They hung on against Team GB, in Wembley, before 80,000 home fans, and got even at 1-1 in the 60th minute when Rashid Essa scored, scaring the scones out of the British fans, but eventually losing 3-1.

And then this draw with Senegal, in which they were never sharp but never trailed.

I’m glad I saw them. All 25 days of it. A little country, with a sudden surge of competent players, an interesting coach, a couple of useful overage players, and games in two of the world’s great soccer venues.

I wish I had more access to the team; as an American journalist, I found the shutdown of the entire club, staff included, even while back in camp in Austria, to be frustrating and a bit bizarre — and a bit Premier League-y.

But they can play a little. These guys might even do some damage, in Asia, in the near future.

The experience of the Big Show that is the Summer Games, certainly will not hurt them, going forward. These were some of the greatest days of UAE soccer.