Last Wednesday, the president of the would-be rugby club was denied the $1,900 requested from the AS Senate to cover the cost of insurance that is required for them to become a club, thus stripping the rugby “club” of their title.
The president, freshman Adam Crane, and his friends, freshmen Sam Rood, Josh Lawman and Megan Taylor, all have a common vision to make rugby games a part of Biola’s athletic experience. They have the enthusiasm, the drive and the love of the game. The only catch is the cost. Rugby is considered to be a dangerous sport, and the liability for a school that sponsors a team is substantial. A rugby team on Biola’s list of sponsored clubs would cause the school’s insurance premium to go up $1,900 a semester.
While the budget required for such clubs is high, AS is not opposed to providing the funds if there is proven student commitment. However, such a large sum of money was not in the AS club budget for this year, as the budget was drawn up last spring. Justin Woodside, AS club director, encouraged Crane to take his request before the senate.
Official procedure states anytime a Biola student wants to start a new club, they must find a way for the club to front its own costs for the first semester. Once they have established themselves and proven their intent to stay, AS will add them to the budget.
Unfortunately for Crane, the rugby club had not yet held an official meeting or made any concrete plans for raising the first semester’s costs by the time he went before the Senate. The hopeful club’s lack of concrete numbers and objectives led to a “no” vote by the Senate for this semester. According to Woodside, the Senate said they “just weren’t sure [they] wanted to shell out $1,900 to something that dies out in two weeks.”
If Crane and the other leadership wanted to bring a second proposal before the Senate, they could do so next semester with some fundraisers and a little experience under their belts. And this is something they certainly plan to do in the spring.
“We’ll all be around for awhile,” Crane said, “so we’re going to keep pursuing this rugby club for at least four years.”
The prospective club members seem to be taking the whole process rather well.
“I think it’s understandable,” Rood, the club’s secretary, said. “We’d love for this year to be a time for people to get to know rugby, build the club and get ready to compete in the future.”
Biola’s rugby team would be structured much like the lacrosse club in that it would compete against club teams at other schools in various games and tournaments. This intercollegiate nature of play has raised questions about the possibility of turning lacrosse and perhaps a future, established rugby team into varsity sports teams.
“I really feel strongly that if the athletic department could take on lacrosse and rugby, it would be so much better for clubs in general,” Woodside said.
Lacrosse requires a lot of expensive gear, and rugby has high insurance premiums. Clubs like this are taxing on the club fund’s budget, and it requires a lot of commitment on the part of AS to continue that funding. This strain on the budget is a big reason why AS is requiring a strong show of continued enthusiasm before approving funding for another expensive sport.
Azusa Pacific, Point Loma and Cal State Fullerton all have rugby clubs, as do many other California colleges and universities, so a Biola rugby team certainly has opportunities to grow and establish itself.
“Rugby creates brotherhood,” Lawman said. “Things like the scrum [an all team face off for the ball] and the lineout [when the ball is thrown in from an out-of-bounds play]; you have to rely on each other to do what they need to do.”
