As a fan of San Jose State it was only natural to contact the rugby conference they play in and get in touch with the commissioner of the Pacific Western Rugby Conference or PWRC. James Founda was a coach once for SJSU till he took the head job of the conference and is now leading all those involved down a bright future as the league continues to enjoy success with in their own conference and also against the rest of the nation, UC-Davis being a example. With so much emphasis given to DI-A and the Varsity cup, DI-AA tends to be over looked in my opinion and am glad to help shed a little more light on a portion of the level of rugby being played at DI-AA.
A man who wears many hats for the PWRC isn't just your ordinary commissioner who just holds the title and attends a few occasion meetings but instead he is also heavily involved with the growth of the conference and growing the collegiate game and helping to build bridges between everyone involved. I will leave the rest to further explain and give insight..
JF- My name is James Fonda and I am the commissioner of PWRC. I have been involved in rugby for 28 years starting from years at Chico State to ending my playing career at Back Bay RFC in Newport Beach, CA. I have coached, BBRFC, UCI Men's Rugby and San Jose State Men's Rugby. As being the commissioner of PWRC currently, I also sit on the Collegiate Eligibility Committee for USA Rugby and scout for the Collegiate All Americas.
LLR- The Conference last experienced growth in 2014 with the inclusion of Sacramento State and UC Davis, does the conference have plans to grow more or is 8 teams it for now?
JF- With the constant change of competition year after year, we are looking to expand that makes sense for all the teams. There are numerous competition idea's floating around and we review it every year. But, in the end our conference universities wants to compete for a national title year after year both in 15's and 7's.
LLR- When Sacramento and UC Davis joined what was the process, was there certain criteria that clubs must meet before coming in, who has a say in the process?
JF- Any change in competition, gets review by the board, which consists of 5 elected members, and than members are told to vote on it.
LLR- UC- Davis are defending DI-AA champs and find them self’s in the Finals once again, how significant is this for the conference?
JF- It is massive!!! Especially if UC Davis repeats again as a national champion, the only team that has beat UC Davis is another conference team Chico State.
LLR- For those who are not aware of the PWRC, what makes this rugby conference different from the others in the west and California?
JF- First off, we have back to back USA Rugby Div 1AA National Champions. Second, our top four teams can beat other top teams from other conferences and some Div1A teams. Third, we were first conference both Div 1A or Div 1AA that has a representative side. We are going into our third year and will be heading to the Aspen Tournament.
LLR- How many conference games do you attend as commissioner, how involved are you with the 8 clubs and relationship with USA Rugby?
JF- Since we do have a representative side, I attend a match a week during the season. I get involved when teams are struggling or when they are bending the rules. I try to help prepare teams get ready for a national title run. Otherwise, the teams run their own programs.
I work very closely with USA Rugby. I am trying to build a healthy relationship with them while also building a successful national competition. I also try to build relationships with other conference commissioners.
LLR- Now to move on to some world rugby news, what do you make of the Super Rugby mess that has accord, do you agree with the axing down to 15 teams, how would you like to see it played out?
JF- I think rugby has a major issue. If you watch some of the super rugby matches, there are some clubs that can barely fill the stands. The bottom line is that some clubs do not have a good product on the field and our barely being supported or definitely losing money. This in return, puts pressure on the governing body to help fill in the deficit. I think they are tired of doing this.
They need to consolidate. They need to get the high standard of the product back on the field. This brings back the fans and better TV viewing from around the world.
LLR- -there was a article out recently that there is still a shot for a super rugby team to be placed in Canada and USA come 2020, Patrick Johnston from The Province. Is having a team in super rugby and say the PRO12, USA Rugby future or should we just focus on developing our own “League” for Union?
JF- Well it sounds like super rugby is definitely getting back to consolidation so I do not see this happening anytime soon. I think a pro rugby league will happen in the US. But, it's success will depend on how the competition is built. It can be rushed, it really needs to be thought through. Every time we try this, we fail and than it takes a few more years to get the fans back. Remember, the key is the product on the field has to be excellent so people can say to themselves, "Wow, that was entertaining".
LLR- Next year is the 7’s world cup played in the Bay Area, what are your predictions?
JF- It will be successful. I also think the world should take notice if USA Rugby does well from operating the tournament than this can lead to the grand daddy of hosting the 15's world cup. I also think the Pat Clifton does not know what he is talking about when is stating that the USA Rugby is built on a house of cards from his article on www.rugbytoday.com. If I had to evaluate where we are in 7's it is that we are right on track to really give it a go in 2018. I even like the depth of some real talent coming in as well.
LLR- Last two questions, the Toronto wolf pack kicked off this year in the league 1 and plan on working their way up to the super League, if things go according to plan there is talks to start 2-3 US based Professional league clubs just like the Wolf Pack, with that talk and also again with Pro12 and Super Rugby eyeing US for potential teams, could League and Union work at the professional level in America?
JF- Union by far, it is really grabbing on the roots level while league has no youth program what so ever. Once again, it is the time to set up the competition properly and not rush it that will make the difference.
LLR- Lastly, if you could see one match up of any National side or Club team, what would that be?
JF- Wow, a tough question, I think that a collegiate representative side tournament brought back could really be huge. The college game is where it is at. The structure is there as well. I am hoping to see this in 2018.
 |
| PWRC representative side. |
________________________________________________________________________________
I would like to thank James for taking the time to respond and hope to do one of these again in the lead up to the 2018 season and what new developments we can expect from the Pacific Western Rugby Conference. if anyone has any question for me or James please feel free to use the contacts listed below, and I encourage everyone to not only fallow and support the PWRC but also there own local college programs, the more support and enthusiasm shown to these programs the more serious those university associated with them will begin to lend a helping hand in many shapes and ways.
*Stanford over the weekend won the PacWest 7s tournament and will be heading to the USA 7s nationals.
PWRC: pacwestrugby.com/
PWRC Commissioner: James Fonda - jamesfonda@pacwestrugby.com
LLR: llrugby@yahoo.com
No comments:
Post a Comment