INTERNSHIP INSIGHT: Bant Discovers His Own "Field" Of Dreams At The Alaska Mountain Rugby Grounds

1)  Why Alaska Mountain Rugby Grounds?

I chose the Alaska Mountain Rugby Grounds first and foremost because rugby is my passion and being able to get a head start in a potential career in rugby was a great opportunity. On the other hand, I had always wanted to experience Alaska or "the last frontier" and see what drew people to the Alaskan lifestyle and get a taste of it for myself. I had read previous interns' stories about their experiences and knew it was a once-in-a-lifetime experience that I could not pass up.

2) What was the process like to obtain your internship?

One day I found myself scrolling through the World Rugby monthly newsletter and stumbled upon a picture of the Alaska Mountain Rugby Grounds in the article, referred to as "Rugby's Field of Dreams", I decided to do more research on the Alaska Rugby website and found a link to internship opportunities, which led me to the contact information of my future intern coordinator, Dave Delozier. After submitting my resume and information about myself, I received an email from Dave telling me to book my plane tickets, as I had been accepted into the internship program.

3) Describe your overall internship experience.

During my time in Alaska, I really had no idea what to expect going into it, as I knew no one there, and all I had was a bag of clothes and a pair of rugby cleats. When I arrived at the baggage claim, my teammates, who I would be coaching and playing alongside, gave me the warmest welcome as soon they saw me. For the next six weeks, I coached the Alaska Youth Rugby Club's under 13 division and the Alaska Rugby Club's Turnagain Boretide men's rugby club.

In this position, I found myself and the other interns setting up and organizing events as well as teaching the game to both the kids and the men of the club when away from the grounds in downtown Anchorage. While at the grounds, we were tasked with daily chores that included maintenance of the pitch, cleaning up before and after events, and other "Alaskan adventures" like chopping wood. We held two rugby tournaments at the ground this past summer; Midnight Sun Sevens and The Last Frontier Sevens Youth Tournament, in which we organized both the teams and the different activities that would be happening in tandem with the tournament. In addition to our "intern work" we got to do some amazing extras that none of us would trade for the world which included hiking, fishing, hunting, rugby, and seeing the flora and fauna that Alaska has to offer. Overall, it was an experience that I could have never anticipated but would never change.

4) What have you learned from your internship?

I learned that being a coach is a lot more than just teaching the game, there are many organizational challenges such as scheduling and setup that needed to be overcome that many people do not see. This is a journey that teaches one that they don't do it for themselves, they do it for the love of the people they coach and the love of sport, which is one thing I learned I have. Learning from the other coaches around, it became apparent that this journey is nothing without help, as none of my mentors were afraid to ask for help. If someone has the mindset that they can do it all by themselves, then they will inevitably fail because no one is perfect, and making mistakes is the best learning tool, and without someone to help fix these mistakes, the journey means nothing. I also learned about the ins-and-outs of what it takes to be the owner and proprietor of a major sports facility in the Alaska Mountain Rugby Grounds, as we lived there full time, and learned from Justin Green, the owner of the grounds, and just how much work and effort go into the grounds. It was an amazing learning experience from some of the best in the business.

5) How will this internship help you in your career moving forward?

I believe this internship will help me in my career through both connections and experiences. I met so many wonderful sport managers who were all extremely informative and so willing to help someone who was just starting out in the business further themselves as a sport manager. Since my internship, they have all reached out to ask how I am, how school is going, and, most importantly, if they could do anything for me. This has left a lasting impact on me because I now know I have a team of experts to rely on if I ever were to need anything in anything in life, not just rugby or sport management. This welcoming attitude that they showed me, as well as their willingness to help me has given me experiences they said they wished they had had before being thrown into the so-called fire of the sport industry.  Being able to manage, organize, and set up with the aid of these experts has given me an edge over someone who has not been able to have this experience which will for sure put me ahead of the sport management game. 

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(Photo Credit - Matthew Bant '24)