Maybe renaissance is too big a word, but rugby in Qatar is definitely undergoing a churn.
After staying dormant on the national scene for many years, post the participation in rugby sevens at the 2006 Asian Games, the new Qatar Rugby Federation (QRF) has already sent a national team to an international sevens tournament, hosted the country’s first sevens league and starting today, will host Iran and Lebanon in a tri-nations Asian Division III Championship.
All this furious activity has created a buzz in a sport that was largely left to clubs and expat communities in recent years.
And while players from five clubs have found a place in the national 15s team that will play Iran and Lebanon, with regional club competition regulars Doha RFC being represented heavily with 15 players, five Qatari nationals stand out—Abdulaziz al-Dosari, Abdul Karem al-Muhannadi, Mubarak al-Malik, Talal Mujalli and Rakan Mutawaa.
All their stories are different, yet so similar on many levels.
For instance, all of them played a different sport before rugby tried and then converted them.
Al-Dosari played volleyball, al-Muhannadi had made it to national teams in handball and volleyball, Mujalli dabbled in basketball, al-Malik played handball while Mutawaa made a switch from American football.
The Asian Games that Doha hosted 2006 was when rugby sauntered into the lives of at least three of these five players. “A friend introduced us to this game. Because it was a new game, it was all through word of mouth,” says Talal Mujalli, who led the Camels 2 side in the recently-concluded Qatar Rugby Sevens League.
“They needed some players for rugby. We were 44 of us, chosen from among other sports, and then after training, they chose the sevens team for 2006, while the rest returned to their original sports.”
Al-Dosari and Al-Muhannadi were part of the team that played Asiad, while Mujalli missed out on a spot due to a minor injury.
“I had a few friends who used to play this game back in 2005. They used to always harass me to come and check out this game, but I never did. Till one day I actually did. I sort of liked it and then joined them,” says 28-year-old al-Muhannadi.
Since 2006, al-Dosari, who works at the Ministry of Labour, says number of Qatari nationals have dwindled down fast. “We were some 30-35 of us but slowly they pulled away from the game because there was no real support. Now we are down to 15-20 players, but now there is more support. This is really the time for players to come forward and join,” the 31-year-old adds.
In fact, Mujalli and al-Dosari were among those who drifted away from the sport, before there was renewed interest in 2011 when the Asian 5 Nations was being hosted in the neighbourhood.
“Moving from sevens to 15s was good news for me. Sevens requires a lot of speed, while 15s requires a lot of teamwork, even as both are very tough formats,” says al-Dosari.
Around the time, al-Malik, then a 24-year-old, found his way on to the scene too. “It was a great honour to represent my country. I went to Dubai in 2011 for the Asian 5 Nations and we won. I thank God for being part of a winning team then and also being a part of the team now,” he says.
As to how it started for al-Malik, “I only wanted to experience a sport that I had heard of by chance. I liked the fact there is speed, strength, intelligence,” the winger says.
Mujalli, who plays prop, adds, “If you look at it, rugby is almost like an amalgamation of a couple of other sports. There is a wrestling element to it, there is a running element to it and then there is also a loose boxing element in that that you have to dodge and attack. I like that about it. It’s also a very masculine.”
With the general perception being that it is a very tough sport, how did the families react?
“Everyone in my entire family, from the oldest to the youngest have refused rugby because of the way it looks,” says al-Muhannadi, who works with Lekhwiya, with a big laugh.
“They called me crazy,” Mujalli adds. “But it has changed since then. Now it’s just a matter of an odd ice bag if I am feeling sore after playing,” he smiles.
Al-Malik agrees. “Now they are the ones to support me before anyone else does.”
Perhaps this conundrum was something Mutawaa did not face given his time in the United States and his time playing American football.
“While I was younger, I would always want to get out and play. Not necessarily American football, but anything. Whenever I could, I would want to go outside and play with my friends, have a reason to hang out. I would even play with my sisters when I was younger. Whenever I wanted to have fun, playing a sport was the easiest thing to do,” says Mutawaa, who works at Muntajat as a Learning and Development Executive.
The 24-year-old was spotted while he played American football in Qatar. The next thing, off went the helmets and the shoulder pads and other protective gear, and it was all six feet two inches of Mutawaa playing only rugby.
“I was till recently playing in the American football team, and I was the captain. Everyone knew that and supported that. But when I switched to rugby they understood that here rugby is more well-known. They are just very happy that I have an opportunity to play,” says Mutawaa, who has a Bachelor’s degree in History and Politics.
With the QRF, under the leadership of president Yousef al-Kuwari and general secretary Ali al-Malki, trying to boost the profile of the sport in the country, these men have a lot of responsibility and pressure.
“There is pressure for all of us – Qataris or non-Qataris. After all, we are all representing Qatar and that is important. We have played well together. We should be able to do well. This is a big challenge for us,” Mujalli, who studied mechanical engineering at CNA-Q and now works with Qatargas, says.
Al-Muhannadi adds, “We hope more Qataris will come and join us. It is a hard game. They need to come and watch, and enjoy the game. If they enjoy watching the game, they will enjoy playing the game.”
Mutawaa has a different take on it. “Frankly, it is a big opportunity. I just think that if we do good in these matches, there is so much that can happen. I am actually looking forward to that.”
“There are players who have just started from little to no experience. But we also have players from the opposite side of the spectrum. They have played this sport their whole life. Because of this range, it allows people to learn different ways. Someone with no experience gets to see and learn best rugby possible,” Mutawaa adds.
There are impediments, no doubt. Mujalli’s brothers, for instance, dropped the idea of playing after looking at their brother’s icing ritual. Mujalli just laughs at the thought.
“There needs to be awareness about the game and about the rules. Without explaining the rules and explaining the game it is difficult to attract people to this game,” says al-Muhannadi.
“It has slowly started to change under the new federation, in the last eight months. And in the future we will surely see more and more people playing the sport.”
Al-Malik adds, “We need to boost a culture of sport in Qatari society; a programme to increase awareness around the schools of Qatar.”
“In my opinion, anything you do, can be unsafe if you don’t know what you are doing,” Mutawaa says. “If you understand the fundamentals of anything, you can play it at a safe level. Of course there are going to be injuries, but that can be in any sport.”
The job at hand for the boys, being coached by DRFC veteran Aaron Palmer, is tough too, even though Qatar has fared better than both the teams whenever they have played together in the last few years.
“Iran and Lebanon teams are strong and they have experience, but we also have excellent elements in the team,” says al-Malik.
“We had practice today. And the team is looking great, and I am so excited to play. Good things are to come,” Mutawaa says.
All of them are confident of the sport catching up. “There are people who like challenges. In two to three years’ time, we will see that the sport has developed well here,” Mujalli says.
Mutawaa adds, “Let’s just put it this way. Qatar has given me so many opportunities. This is why I love Qatar so much. This is a big opportunity right here.”

Asia Rugby Championship Division III schedule
April 16: Qatar vs Iran
April 19: Iran vs Lebanon
April 22: Qatar vs Lebanon
Venue: Aspire Rugby Track