‘It’s not about me, it’s about the team,’ SaberCats veteran Dean Muir

By Aaron Wilson
Dean Muir discussed his long and successful career during a break following another intense practice. Standing inside Aveva Stadium, Muir reflected on his journey to the highest level of rugby in North America. One of the most experienced and successful rugby players on the SaberCats roster, Muir was a second-team Major League Rugby all-star selection last season.

The native of Durban, South Africa was named a SaberCats team captain last season after playing three seasons for the San Diego Legion. For Muir, accolades are certainly nice and he’s extremely proud of his accomplishments. It’s not his primary focus, though. It’s about the collective, not the individual for Muir. “You know, making captain, making all-star, it’s not about me, it’s about the team,” Muir said. “That’s a nice nod at the end of the season, but the main thing is for me to help the team this year. That’s what I’m thinking about.”

And, of course, his family. Muir and his wife are expecting a baby girl. He’s going to fly home to South Africa closer to the birth date to be with them.
“My wife is currently pregnant and I’ll be going back home for the birth,” he said. “I will be in the next month. I can’t wait. This is our first baby.”

For now, Muir is working on his game and getting acclimated to new teammates as the SaberCats prepare for their first and only preseason game Wednesday night against the New England Free Jacks. Their preseason game against the NOLA Gold was canceled due to widespread illness among their team and they were unable to travel for the game.

The SaberCats advanced to the playoffs for the first time in franchise history last season after the arrival of director Heyneke Meyer, coach Pote Human, Muir and several other players. “Last year, the preseason was a bit choppy,” Muir said. “We managed to get it together. We’re having a good preseason so far. There’s high expectations.” Muir (5-foot-11, 240 pounds) played 1,121 minutes in 16 starts last season for the SaberCats after playing 740 minutes in 11 starts with three tries for the Legion the previous season.

“We have great leadership,” Muir said of Heyneke and Human. “Our structure, we all understand it very well. Muir studied at the University of South Africa, playing youth rugby for the Sharks before later joining the TUT Vikings, Border Bulldogs, Valke Falcons, Old Blue in New York in the American Rugby Premiership, the Western Province, the Stormers and played in Japan for the Kintetsu Liners.

Having a proven veteran player like Muir back provides a boost to the team.
“It’s great to have him back,” Human said. “He was our captain last year. Awesome guy, experienced, good player, good leader. He can play the ball very, very. He’s a good leader. He leads by example. It’s awesome to have him on the team.”

Leadership takes on many forms, and styles.

The way Muir prefers to lead is primarily through his actions, not words.
“Myself personally, I like to set a good example,” Muir said. “I always want to work hard. I say things when I feel like I need to. I like to lead by example. I have a good leadership group around me. We push and pull off of each other.”

*Photos by Nick Romero