If you’ve ever seen a Dubai Exiles game, you might have wondered about the guy slapping the barriers when a try is scored.
An avid supporter, perhaps? No, he has much more invested than the average fan. Mike Wolff is the chairman of the Exiles, a club that has around 750 playing members across men’s and boy’s teams as well as girls’ rugby and netball teams.
“I have got so much out of rugby and the Dubai Exiles,” the Englishman tells Sport360°. “I love the game and what it represents, and the people I have met at the Exiles have been of the highest quality. I am proud of the club and I know we can be where we used to be.”
Last year saw something of a renaissance for the Exiles. While no senior success was gained, there was a clear atmosphere in the club, a sense that through teamwork and comradeship, the club could become greater than the sum of their parts.
But after four games this season, they have won just once after a slew of players left the country in the close season. “We’ve been in a massive rebuilding mode,” adds Wolff. “There is only one player who was a member of our backline last year starting in our first XV this season.
“We have a lot of new guys and we are trying to build a culture and create an ethos. We’re getting there slowly, but it’s a really a hard process.
“I think there are a number of players that embody the spirit of the club, but there are only five or six players here that have been here for several years or more. But we definitely have talent in the ranks and they are carrying on that attitude that we started to engender last year.
“This year we have also managed to field a second XV squad, so we are definitely heading in the right direction. Last year we beat Jebel Ali Dragons, we beat Doha, so I know we can do it.”
In such a transient environment such as the UAE, keeping hold of players can be as difficult as recruiting them. But like any well run club, the Exiles have ensured that their youth development programmes are some of the best in the country, providing a steady stream of players to the first team.
“Our youth dominate across the region. Last year, across the UAERF mini and youth leagues I think we won the Under-9s, 10s, 11s, 12s, 13s and 16s, so we are really pleased with that,” said Wolff.
Players will come and go, and there maybe a few downs to go with the ups, but the Exiles will continue to strive for progress.
And, win or lose, their chairman will still be giving the barriers some grief on a matchday.
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