TANGIBLE CHANGE...

Of course, the transition to varsity status does not just mean getting assigned more field time and receiving a new coach. While the most notable difference may be that the team’s schedule and roster is posted right next to those of the football, volleyball, and basketball programs on GoCrimson.com, the more significant changes run much deeper—starting at the bottom with the team’s daily routine.

As a club team, practice three times a week was not strictly mandatory and not always a first priority. Getting enough field time was also sometimes a struggle.

But at the varsity level, the time commitment is much more demanding—practices run for two hours each weekday, with an extra hour two times a week for strength and conditioning work. Players are encouraged to arrive at the field early for special skill work and receive treatment from trainers before and after practice. Under Parker’s regime, according to Brown, practices and workouts have become much more structured and more closely supervised.

“One of the things I most look forward to every day is getting out onto the rugby field and seeing my team,” Brown said. “Being able to do that every day and having such high standards for practice, something that [coach Parker] has brought in, is that we use practice time to the fullest. If we are going to be across the river, we are going to get the most out of it.”

In addition to the practices themselves, support from the Athletic Department, along with access to facilities, has skyrocketed. Currently, the rugby program operates out of a trailer across from the Murr Center. Players have access to locker rooms, ice baths, and training facilities—commodities they didn’t have in the past.

Additionally, players no longer have to worry about finances. No longer do yearly applications for grants have to be submitted—all administrative duties are handled by the Athletic Department. And for the first time, travel expenses are provided for. No more e-mails sent out the day before asking players to pitch in for tolls; the administration covers the team’s varsity travel budget.

For the players, perhaps the most appreciated of these amenities is the presence of a trainer at all practices and games. When a player gets hurt, they can receive an immediate status evaluation from an expert, along with treatment. In the past, players tended to their own wounds and made their own judgments about playing hurt.

...BUT IDEOLOGICAL CONTINUITY

With its inaugural campaign underway, such changes have been a source of excitement for members of the team.

“Even before we got onto the field, the enthusiasm was palpable,” Parker said. “[The players] had a balance of excitement and trepidation…. Their attitude and courage was fortifying because I knew these kids would take everything I gave them and ask for more.”

The privileges that come with varsity status, players say, will help the team perform and compete at a higher level. But in their eyes, that may not be what’s most important. Indeed, what alumni remember about their experiences on the team is not the practice time, who played where, or even who won. What always comes to mind is what it means to be a part of Radcliffe Rugby.

“The most amazing part of the team was [always] how much we all looked out for one another,” former captain Evan Hoese ’11 said. “We took care of each other on and off the field, and that was a huge aspect. There was never any real division between starters and non-starters. We were just players on the same team.

As far back as anyone can remember, there has been a unique identity associated with playing on the club rugby squad. Rugby isn’t a sport for everyone—it’s fast moving, loud, and intense. You will get dirty, and you will get banged up. For players, the entire team identity revolves around the feelings of toughness, grit, and resilience. Stepping on the rugby field presents a chance to step away from the daily stresses of Harvard life and enter a completely different world.

This year’s captains have attempted to maintain these themes, while redirecting them to reflect their new status as part of the Athletic Department. The team’s catchphrase of the past now reflects its identity of the present.

“We have built on that same self-image of strength and empowerment,” Brown said. “Now it is, ‘Hey are you a badass and want to play a varsity sport? Do you want to do something you have never done before and do it at the highest level it is played in the US?’”

—Staff writer David Freed can be reached at david.freed@thecrimson.com. Follow him on Twitter @CrimsonDPFreed.

—Staff writer David Steinbach can be reached at david.steinbach@thecrimson.com.