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Rugby pioneers jet off to heat of Dubai

by Carl Marsden
30/ 4/2008

SADDLEWORTH Rangers will become the first-ever team to play a Rugby League match in the searing heat of Dubai this weekend.

As the Advertiser went to press, a touring party of more than 40 players and club officials was jetting out to spend four days in the city and take on a United Arab Emirates side at the brand new Emirates Stadium tomorrow.

The National League One club’s mini-tour also includes a Masters game for over-35s and a nine-a-side game.

And with temperatures expected to climb as high as 40 degrees centigrade, it will be a huge test of stamina for the men from Shaw Hall Bank Road.

Terry Flanagan, Rangers’ chairman, said: "Our club will be a pioneer for rugby league in the Emirates and we’re immensely proud to lead the way.

"Their team will be made up of locals but also a few ex-pat Brits and Aussies so it will be tough – but we’re going there to win as well as enjoy the experience. The Emirates lads are really marketing it well and the email has been buzzing with interest from rugby people out there so we are hoping there’ll be a decent crowd."

The United Arab Emirates Rugby League side, officially named the Falcons, played their first and only game of rugby league in the Lebanon in a friendly international last month.

The game against Rangers will be their first-ever on home soil and is being widely promoted as part of their bid to become a recognised body under the Rugby League Euro-pean Federation.

Sol Mokdad, UAE development director, said: "This will be a momentous event for rugby league in the Emirates and we are indebted to Saddleworth for coming to launch league here."

"We intend to have a competition running in autumn when it’s cooler and this game will undoubtedly flush out loads of league players and fans who are living and working in this amazing city. To play in the brand new Emirates rugby complex in the desert is a massive bonus for us."

The trip is the latest pioneering venture for Rangers, who celebrated their 75th centenary in 2005 with a tour of Western Australia.

Mr Flanagan added: "This is really an exciting time to be involved at Saddleworth Rangers.

"Our club hosted the launch of the Masters Rugby League in the UK a couple of weeks ago and now we’re breaking new ground with this tour. We’re just glad to be part of the game as it continues going forward."