Asian Rugby union chief Gregory believes UAE rugby is growing

[email protected] 07:28 03/11/2014
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  • Raising standards: Trevor Gregory was present as Abu Dhabi Harlequins beat Dubai Hurricanes to win the UAE Premiership final on Friday.

    Trevor Gregory, president of the Asian Rugby Football Union, claims rugby in the UAE is “in good hands”.

    Gregory was in the Middle East at the weekend, taking in the Sport360° UAE Premiership final between Abu Dhabi Harlequins and Dubai Hurricanes, as well as the Al Ain 7s tournament.

    He described UAE rugby as “a growing force” and said he is impressed with how fast the sport is growing in the region.

    “When the Arabian Gulf RFU broke up four years ago, disaster was predicted but the bottom line is that UAE rugby is in very good hands,” said Gregory.

    “The UAE Rugby Federation has taken on the administration duties for the Premiership and the Conference this year, without issue, and the ministry is supporting it.”

    He said the country should be proud of the great strides made in sevens rugby, but that it still has work to do in the “big game” of 15-aside rugby.

    While expats have historically dominated the UAE national ranks, more and more Emiratis are being blooded into rugby, and there is real excitement for the future, led by Abu Dhabi Harlequins poster boy Adel Al Hendi.

    Gregory said: “15-a-side rugby is still the big game, the competitive nature of the Premiership final shows that. Players need to be playing at club teams because at the moment making a World Cup is a long way off, for any Asian team outside Japan.

    “It is improving and everyone should be striving to play for the national team. They’ve dropped down a group in recent years and they need to start re-building from the bottom.”

    The UAE sevens team finished third at Al Ain at the weekend, but put in a much better overall performance compared to the China 7s last month.

    “They’ve only been playing sevens for two years and the progress in that time has been incredible,” said the Asian rugby union president.

    “The UAE Rugby Federation put on a fantastic tournament and the team was full of young players, which is where the future of the game is.

    “The UAE made a decision with sevens to start training an all-Emirati team. They are striving to make the Olympics and it was a sensible decision. It was a big decision not to include expats.

    “The sevens World Cup is a different target because at the last one in Moscow there were already three Asian teams there. The target for the UAE is to get on the Asian 7s World Series.”

    Overall, the future is bright he said, adding: “There are a lot of good things happening. Emirati kids are now playing alongside expats, which is a win-win situation, and there will be more Adel Al Hendi’s.”

    Gregory met Ibrahim Abdulmalik, the secretary general for youth and sports welfare in the UAE, prior to the weekend.

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