I may have lost my chance to play for Wales – Dollman
PHIL Dollman doubts whether he will be capped by Wales after cruelly being denied a chance by injury.
But the Exeter Chiefs star insists he wouldn’t swap full international honours for the English Premiership title.
Utility back Dollman, who was esteemed coach Rob Baxter’s first signing when he took charge of the Chiefs back in 2009, had finally been called up by Wales for last year’s Tests with Tonga and Samoa at the age of 32.
The call-up was widely backed by his fellow professionals, with many publicly congratulating him on social media. This was the ultimate underrated players’ player finally getting his chance, perhaps many years later than it should have come.
It was then that fate interevened. When the day came for the Wales squad to jet out of the country, Dollman was unable to board after suffering a serious knee injury days before during the famous Premiership final win Dai Young’s Wasps at Twickenham.
Having now turned 33, the fullback or centre is a realist and knows his chances of being called up (he’s still eligible because his current deal was signed before the introduction of the 60-cap rule) by Wales coach Warren Gatland are slim, to put it mildly.
“To lose the dream of playing for Wales was a real disappointment,” said Caerphilly-born Dollman.
“It would have been up there with the highlights of my career but, at the same time, one of the biggest highs I have ever had was winning the league final in which I got injured.
“I wouldn’t change being injured for a cap. I may look back on it later and have a different view but that’s how I see it now.
“You never say never about playing for Wales, but I may have had my chance.”
Dollman played for Bedwas and the Dragons, but his career flourished when the Gwent region let him go and he joined Exeter.
“Sometimes a change is as good as anything, Ever since I came here we haven’t looked back as a club,” he said. “They have bought into me, put effort into making me a better player and trust me, which has helped my confidence. Rob leads the squad really well and says the right things to the guys. Man management is a massive part of rugby nowadays and he’s a master of it.
“It’s my 10th season here and I have loved every minute of it. It’s tough but I’m still enjoying it.”
Dollman has appeared more than 200 times for the Devon club and been an integral part of their climb through the ranks.
He is one of the few survivors of the Championship winning side of 2010 and his honours include winning the Aviva title – Exeter were runners-up to Saracens last season – and AngloWelsh Cup in 2014.
Dollman arrived for the interview following Chiefs’ 38-10 rout of Cardiff Blues with his face and jersey covered in blood following a clash of heads with team-mate Ian Whitten.
“It looks worse than it is - I only had four stitches in it,” he quipped.
“We’ve had a tough pre-season build-up, as you’d expect. It was a good win for us against a decent Blues side.
“When we started to put our game on the Blues that’s when it really told. We started to score points, we did some good stuff and it was a decent run-out for us.
“You can’t replicate games in training no matter how hard you try. You need to get out there and experience those physical actions, getting up off the floor, and turning ball over.
“Last season was another good year for us, but we have to look to build on that.”