Friday: ‘NFL, NBA must help USA Sevens’
Mike Friday knows that the powers that be in the United States might not be ready to listen to "a bloke from South-East London", as he puts it.
Given his vision however for the future of the sport, in a country which when it comes to rugby is still a slumbering giant, they would be wise to open the door to him.
The USA are fifth heading into the final leg of this year's HSBC World Rugby Sevens Series at Twickenham, their best finish coming in Singapore when they finished as runners-up.
Carrying on from when the sport was exposed to millions of new supporters last year with the Olympics, Friday believes his side remain on track. But the potential for more is hanging tantalisingly in front of him.
"We have maintained momentum," Friday happily admits.
"The Olympics can be looked at in two ways; firstly being three years ahead of schedule, but from another way we were in contention for medals. Except in that environment the dice did not go our way, with points difference costing us.
"We have thrown ourselves into the World Series and maintained that respect amongst our peers. Nobody wants to play us which is great, and as long as we do our best and continue to learn then we are in a good place.
"We continue to improve, but there is still lots to do in order to consistently make that top four."
Rugby remains a secondary sport in the United States but for now that is not the issue. Creating awareness that those players who fail to make it to the top in the NFL and NBA have an alternative sport waiting for them is the priority.
Friday doesn't hesitate using Perry Baker as an example to support this, suggesting that rather than Collins Injera and Dan Norton fighting it out for the record the for the most tries ever in the Series, the flyer from Florida would be in the box seat.
"In a population of 320 million rugby is still a minority sport. It needs to be repositioned in the country to compliment American Football and Basketball, and that is the key to the kingdom," Friday adds.
"The Olympic platform, in the sporting landscape of America, is the next best thing, and at the moment we have not capitalised on that.
"Our role models in Madison Hughes and Perry Baker need to play that part, because kids in the USA want to be Tom Brady. But if they cannot be Tom Brady, or Steph Curry, they could be a Hughes or a Baker.
"Once we achieve that we will create more depth in our athletic pool and you will see more players like Nate Ebner, an example of someone who played rugby in high school, went to the NFL, but had the rugby IQ to come back to the sport in eight to nine months.
"Perry [Baker] was with the Philadelphia Eagles and had no rugby background, because he didn’t play in high school. Had he done that then he would have broken every Sevens record going.
"There are loads of those types of kids, and we are not making the most of the potential. Record crowds in Las Vegas are one thing, and we need to shoot higher than that.
"Across the 52 states rugby is played in small pockets, and we need to strive that it is played in high schools and colleges to compliment the bigger sports, not threaten them, and to give the sporting population alternatives.
"We need to get stakeholders like the NFL and NBA involved. They have a responsibility to all of those young college athletes that don’t make it, and to be fair 99 percent don’t, to make sure that schools and colleges are investing in these other sports.
"It would be a smart move from those organisations. It is going to have to happen at boardroom level. The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) would be huge as well. A lot of athletic ability is lost which is a shame."
Giles Morgan, Global Head of Sponsorship & Events, HSBC commented: “Success for the United States at the 2020 Tokyo Games could be transformational for a game that is growing fast in the Americas. If a gold medal for the USA happens, I believe other countries in the far east such as China will really start to invest in Devens and then you have genuinely the start of a global game… to get the seismic change and really dramatic shift in numbers, I think it starts with the USA and will end with China."
As for the current season coming to a close, Friday like anyone else keeping tabs on the first post-Olympics season has been full of admiration for South Africa.
Figures released by the HSBC World Rugby Sevens Series on Wednesday showed the game has experienced strong growth following its Olympic debut in Rio. Attendances are up seven percent on last year and broader participation levels for rugby reveal an eight percent increase on 2015 levels.
It has been a difficult wait between HSBC Series titles for the Blitzbokke, long enough that current coach Neil Powell was a player in the last group to win it all back in 2009.
This time around the divide between first place and the rest has been crystal clear for all to see down to one element that the Blitzbokke have mastered better than anyone else; consistency.
"The reality is that South Africa have been phenomenal. Their consistency and ability to deliver game after game has set them apart," acknowledged Friday.
"That is down to what they have done, making every final bar one, which is utterly phenomenal in any season. People bring up the Fiji team who went back to back – I’m not sure they would have been better, because they had some ups and downs.
"Consistency wins you the Series over fair play, and we have to respect that. The humility and work ethic has been outstanding and testament to Neil Powell and his staff, who have been first class.
"There will however be plenty of runners next season in the race to chase South Africa down. The champions and England will be there again, thanks to their "consistent operations". Fiji still undoubtedly have "the most talent available".
A dark horse other than the USA?
"I’m interested to see what France do, with them set to make a sea change approach now Bernard Laporte is around. They have the capability of being world class with the type of players and flair they can create."
All in all, the days of New Zealand or Fiji thoroughly dominating the Series as in years passed feel long gone. Repeating their consistency trick next season will be remarkably tough for South Africa. Friday will be hoping his USA side are edging that little bit closer to the top.