It is my pleasure to introduce my coach, and one-time Williams’ rugger, Gina Coleman class of 1991. This is a special weekend for the women’s rugby team, we are celebrating 40 years of on-the-pitch excellence and off-the-pitch shenanigans. Since 1996 when the school decided that the women’s team needed coaches, Gina has been our illustrious leader, taking the team to new heights, and even to the national finals in 1999. In honor of this weekend I decided to catch up with Gina and ask her about her favorite memories from the past twenty years as player and coach!
JD: How did you get involved with rugby when you were at Williams?
GC: My JA/RA was an officer of the team and she was one of the coolest women I had ever met, so I was obviously curious. I stalled going to the pitch because I thought rugby was polo and I had never ridden a horse nor had the means to purchase and stable one. I was pleasantly surprised when I finally found out I was wrong and only needed cleats and a sense of fearlessness to participate.
JD:Was it difficult transitioning from player to coach?
GC: Not entirely. I started coaching the WWRFC six years after I graduated from Williams, so I wasn’t coaching former teammates. Additionally, I was coaching a team I had formed immediately after graduating from Williams, Berkshire Woman’s Rugby, so I had 3-4 years of experience as a rugby coach. I was called to be the womens’ coach when USA Rugby made the decision that all collegiate teams needed to have a certified coach. A former teammate called me and informed me that the women’s would fold if they couldn’t secure a certified coach. She reached out to me because I was coaching rugby and I lived 30mins away from the College. I was initially reluctant as I was already coaching a team, but I decided I could do it for a season while the team continued looking for a coach. Twenty years later …. And here we are.
JD:What are your favorite rugby traditions?
GC: I really love how cordial we are with our opposing teams after the match… More of a celebration that we all play this outsider sport in the U.S.
JD: What have been your favorite memories from coaching rugby?
GC: All victories against our rival, Amherst, are memorable, but there are two occasions that really stand out for me. Making it to Div II National finals in 1999. We played at Mary Washington University in VA and played against Plymouth State College from NH. It was the first and last time I every coached a rugby match in a linen suit. The other favorite memory was defeating West Point in an NRU playoff match at West Point. They were certain they would be the victor and their coach was audibly disturbed when he realized we could realistically best them. I’ve honestly never heard another coach have such a fit.
JD: Looking back on the past forty years of women’s rugby at Williams, is there something distinctive about the WWRFC?
GC: I started as a player on the WW in 1987, so l can only look over 29 of the 40 years. Jokes aside, the most distinctive thing for me about Women’s Rugby at Williams are the people. Many of my teammates are the closest friends I hold, and many of the young women I have coached are like older siblings to my own children. In a word, the WWRFC means family.