Referee Colin High awarded for distinguished service

Posted on Nov 9, 2010 in Rugby News

Colin High was today presented with the IRB Referee Award for Distinguished Service 2010 in association with Emirates Airline.

During a 57-year rugby career High has made an exceptional contribution at all levels of the game, from playing to refereeing domestic fixtures and Test matches before establishing a reputation as one of the world’s foremost referee assessors.

High broke new ground when he was appointed as the RFU’s first full-time National Referees Manager in 1997, establishing the RFU’s Elite Refereeing Unit in 2001.

He drove referee development in the professional era in England, nurturing the development of elite referee talent for the national, European and international stage, culminating with the selection of four RFU referees for Rugby World Cup 2007 in France.

"The IRB Referee Award for Distinguished Service recognises those who have contributed significantly to the area of officiating and there are few who have given more to referee development than Colin High. His contribution to the game over nearly six decades as a player, Referee, Referee Manager and IRB Referee Assessor is nothing short of exceptional,” said IRB Chief Executive Mike Miller, who was in London to present High with his award.

"Colin pioneered Referee development and ensured that the RFU were always well represented on the IRB’s Elite Panel. We are very fortunate to have someone of Colin’s calibre as part of our referee development process, and thank him for his dedication and commitment to this key area of our Game.”

Ed Morrison, RFU Head of Elite Referee Development, said: “Colin’s contribution to refereeing cannot be underestimated. He was the pioneer for the giant strides that have been made in refereeing and everyone in the Game should be grateful for the huge contribution he has and continues to make. No-one is more deserving of this award.”

From his early days with the Cumbria Referees Society, the Manchester Referees Society, and the RFU and the IRB, High has served rugby and rugby referees with distinction, pride, dedication and enthusiasm.

High has also assisted Unions, including Russia, Romania, Uruguay and Morocco, to improve officiating in their regions, whilst providing opportunities for young English referees to experience international Rugby cultures through exchange schemes and Test match officiating.

The IRB Referee Award for Distinguished Service is the fifth of the IRB Awards in association with Emirates Airline to be presented in 2010. In May, Samoa’s Mikaele Pesamino was named IRB Sevens Player of the Year, while New Zealand’s Julian Savea was named IRB Junior Player of the Year in June. Women’s Rugby World Cup winner Carla Hohepa of New Zealand was presented with the IRB Women’s Personality of the Year award in September and Brian O’Shea received the IRB Development Award last month.

All Blacks released for ITM Cup matches prior to end of year tour

Posted on Sep 15, 2010 in NZ, SANZAR

The bulk of the All Blacks squad have been made available to play ITM Cup matches over the coming weeks, before the All Blacks end of year tour to Hong Kong, the United Kingdom and Ireland.

The All Blacks returned to New Zealand on Sunday following their 23–22 victory over Australia in the final match of the Investec Tri Nations, with players spending the next few weeks at home before the 30–strong All Blacks squad for the end of year tour is announced on Sunday 17 October.

The All Blacks will play Tests on consecutive weekends against Australia (Saturday 30 October), England (Saturday 6 November), Scotland (Saturday 13 November), Ireland (Saturday 20 November) and Wales (Saturday 27 November).

Seventeen players from the All Blacks squad will be available to play ITM Cup, if required by their provincial coaches, at various stages over the next few rounds.

All Blacks Coach Graham Henry said: “Many of the players, especially those in the All Blacks starting XV, have had a big year with Rebel Sport Super 14 rugby and the Test season, while others haven’t played as much rugby. So we are taking a sensible approach in managing their workload as we prepare for the end of year tour as well as the new Investec Super Rugby competition in 2011.”

The upcoming ITM Cup rounds and matches (with players available for selection if required in brackets) are as follows:

Week 8

• Waikato (Liam Messam) v Southland, Hamilton, Thurs 16 Sept.
• Manawatu v Auckland (Benson Stanley), Palmerston North, Fri 17 Sept.
• Taranaki v Canterbury (Colin Slade), New Plymouth, Sat 18 Sept.
• Tasman v North Harbour (Anthony Boric), Nelson, Sat 18 Sept.
• Otago v Northland (Rene Ranger), Dunedin, Sun 19 Sept.

Week 9

• Southland v Auckland (John Afoa, Benson Stanley), Invercargill, Thurs 23 Sept.
• Canterbury (Corey Flynn, Colin Slade) v Wellington, Christchurch, Sat 25 Sept.
• Waikato (Liam Messam) v Tasman, Hamilton, Sat 25 Sept.
• North Harbour (Anthony Boric) v Manawatu, North Shore City, Sun 26 Sept.
• Counties Manukau v Northland (Rene Ranger), Pukekohe, Sun 26 Sept.

Week 10

• Auckland (John Afoa, Benson Stanley) v Hawke’s Bay, Auckland, Fri 1 Oct.
• Northland (Rene Ranger) v Waikato (Liam Messam), Whangarei, Sat 2 Oct.
• Otago v Canterbury (Corey Flynn, Colin Slade), Dunedin, Sat 2 Oct.
• Manawatu (Aaron Cruden) v Tasman, Palmerston North, Sun 3 Oct.
• Counties Manukau v North Harbour (Anthony Boric), Pukekohe, Sun 3 Oct.

Week 11

• Hawke’s Bay (Israel Dagg) v Northland (Rene Ranger), Napier, Thurs 7 Oct.
• Waikato (Liam Messam) v Otago, Hamilton, Fri 8 Oct.
• Taranaki v Manawatu (Aaron Cruden), New Plymouth, Sat 9 Oct.
• Counties Manukau v Auckland (John Afoa, Joe Rokocoko, Benson Stanley), Pukekohe, Sat 9 Oct.
• Southland v Canterbury (Corey Flynn, Colin Slade), Invercargill, Sat 9 Oct.
• North Harbour (Anthony Boric) v Wellington (Victor Vito), North Shore City, Sun 10 Oct.

Week 12

• Manawatu (Aaron Cruden) v Waikato (Liam Messam), Palmerston North, Thurs 14 Oct.
• Tasman (Ben Franks) v Northland (Rene Ranger), Nelson, Fri 15 Oct.
• Bay of Plenty v Southland (Jimmy Cowan), Mt Maunganui, Sat 16 Oct.
• Canterbury (Corey Flynn, Owen Franks, Colin Slade, Brad Thorn) v Counties Manukau, Christchurch, Sat 16 Oct.
• Wellington (Victor Vito) v Taranaki, Wellington, Sat 16 Oct.
• Auckland (John Afoa, Keven Mealamu, Joe Rokocoko, Benson Stanley) v Otago (Tom Donnelly), Auckland, Sun 17 Oct.
• Hawke’s Bay (Israel Dagg) v North Harbour (Anthony Boric, Tony Woodcock), Napier, Sun 17 Oct.

Meanwhile, All Blacks and Waikato midfielder Richard Kahui will undergo an arthroscopy on his injured right shoulder today.

Kahui re–injured his shoulder in his return to rugby ten days ago playing for Waikato against North Harbour. He had been out of rugby since suffering a small fracture of his right shoulder socket in the All Blacks’ opening Investec Tri Nations Test against the Springboks at Auckland on July 10.

All Blacks Doctor Deb Robinson said the arthroscopic procedure would examine how much damage there was to the interior of the joint and, if required, Kahui would have surgery.  Alternatively, if surgery is not required, he will continue his rest and rehabilitation.

Additionally, Dr Robinson said hooker Keven Mealamu and first five–eighth Aaron Cruden are recovering from their respective injuries suffered in the weekend’s Test win over Australia.

Mealamu suffered a slight calf tear in his right leg and will be out of rugby for several weeks while Cruden sprained his left ankle early in the Test.

Colin Slade signs with Highlanders for 2011

Posted on Aug 25, 2010 in NZ, SANZAR

Highlanders Coach Jamie Joseph today announced that Canterbury first five-eighth Colin Slade will play for the Highlanders franchise in the 2011 Investec Super Rugby competition.

After two seasons with the Crusaders, 22-year-old Slade, will be moving further South to cement his place as a specialist in the No 10 jersey, after signing a contract with the Highlanders for the 2011 Super Rugby season.

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Hillman gets posthumous Welsh Sevens Cap

Posted on Dec 1, 2009 in Rugby News

The Welsh Rugby Union  paid tribute to former Wales Sevens coach, the late Colin Hillman and showed the importance it places on international Sevens by awarding caps to the Rugby World Cup Sevens winning players.

From now on, caps will now be awarded to all Wales Sevens internationals, but in recognition of all the players who have previously played the shortened game for Wales, a ceremonial ‘first cap’ was presented to Mrs Janine Hillman, Colin Hillman’s widow as a tribute to her husband’s services to Sevens rugby in Wales.

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Ireland Under-19 side to take on Australia

Posted on Nov 26, 2009 in Rugby News

The Ireland Under-19 side will take on their Australian counterparts in their first fixture of the season. The game will take place on Tuesday the 2nd of December in Cork IT under floodlights with a 7.30pm kick-off.

Ireland Under 19′s are coached by Allen Clarke who is assisted by Colin McEntee and Jonathan Bell. The side will be captained by Blackrock’s Jordi Murphy.

Speaking ahead of the game, coach Allen Clarke said “The Under 19′s is an integral part of the National Representative Pathway. As a nation it is our first combined age grade side.”

“The match against Australia provides a unique occasion to measure our young Irish talent against the best from the Southern Hemisphere whilst offering Irish Rugby the opportunity to benchmark the quality of our Elite Player Development Programs and the quality of this year group leading into next seasons Under 20′s Six Nations and Junior World Championship tournaments.”

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