That was quick!

[Riptide]

Former Chiefs player Glen Jackson who only hung up the boots as a player in 2010, will make his international officiating debut as the TV Match Official for the NZ versus Australia 3Ns match at Eden Park on August 6.

Jackson, has also been appointed Assistant Referee for the Tonga versus Fiji match on August 20.

Not up on officiating to know the career paths of refs, but that seems like a very quick promotion for Jackson.

 

[Bruwheresmycar]

Yea, well done to him. But he must have been reffing a fair bit throughout his life? (But was possibly held back due to his playing commitments)

 

[barbarian]

He was bloody good in the Super Rugby games I saw him ref. We need more ex-players reffing, they have an understanding of the game that it is impossible to teach. Hopefully his rise will continue.

 

[Riptide]

Apparently, he completed the English RFU referee’s exams and officiated some youth matches while still playing for Saracens in London.

Here is a profile on him from the NY Times, of all places.
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/04/19/sports/rugby/19iht-RUGBY19.html

 

[elementfreak]

He has definitely risen quickly, although some people think a little too quickly. Only the powers that be will be able to answer that though.

 

[MajorlyRagerly]

I think it's a little early for him to be doing a 3N match.

Well, actually I don't, but I don't think it's worth the ballache that will reverberate from the usual suspects should there be anything, absolutely anything that could open him up for some controversy.

 

[DPK]

A preemptive anti-whinger whinge? Noice.

 

[MajorlyRagerly]

A preemptive anti-whinger whinge? Noice.

Not really a whinge, I just dont think it's worth it. Just potential for more ammunition from the ususal suspects whose claims I fear are getting more and more noticed.

 

[DPK]

I actually hate it as much as you, MR. (Well, maybe not as much, I think it's your pet peeve)

It's just a different way of making excuses for ourselves, usually spread by unofficial representatives of Australian rugby fans who wear swimming caps for condoms.

 

[MajorlyRagerly]

I actually hate it as much as you, MR. (Well, maybe not as much, I think it's your pet peeve)

It's just a different way of making excuses for ourselves, usually spread by unofficial representatives of Australian rugby fans who wear swimming caps for condoms.

Ha! This actually wasnt a finger point at GAGR, the split here on blame the ref/team is much better than it used to be & dare I say it... almost balanced!

I was having a pop at the global media more than anything.

The way I see it a young up and coming ref, who most people have watched and thought highly of is being rewarded by being fast tracked into the upper echelon. But others will see it as another young kiwi, one of paddies boys, being given the easy route into test match footy.

 

[Lee Grant]

Well done to Glen. He has the makings of a fine ref and it is well that an ex-player is being fast tracked, just as Paul Reifel is in cricket.

As with playing, the speed of a referee is priceless. Honiss had it naturally, but Jackson was not the fastest in his playing days and will need to trim down and work on his speed.

 

[Elfster]

As with playing, the speed of a referee is priceless. Honiss had it naturally, but Jackson was not the fastest in his playing days and will need to trim down and work on his speed.

Speed is important? The fact that I worked on my weight and trimmed my speed was obviously the sole factor in my qualities as a ref not being recognised to their fullest. Especially those who were lucky enough to endure my efforts with the whistle: forgetting which side was kick-off after half time, taking a startingly long time to work out what the touch judges various arm movements on the sideline actually meant and having expansive periods of open and letting the "full advantage go" style of play as I was too buggered t blow the whistle to stop play.

And, perhaps most importantly, my penchant for refereeing a blanc mange of rules randomnly picked out from the previous three or four years of different law interpretations.

 

[daz]

Good luck to him and I hope he does well. There should be more emphasis placed on securing ex-top shelf players in the reffing ranks. When they talk about reffing in the "spirit of the game" (as well as knowing all the rule bending behaviour on the field), why not someone who knows it better than most?

After all, they can't all be a rugby journo or tv commentator post-playing days!


As for the perceived bias, well, that isn't ever going to go away. You could pluck a native from the Amazon jungle and give him a whistle. Someone somewhere will find a way to accuse him of bias.

EDIT: Hey, that sounds like a decent signature...damn, I think I'll start quoting myself...

 

[Nusadan]

Well done to Glen. He has the makings of a fine ref and it is well that an ex-player is being fast tracked, just as Paul Reifel is in cricket.

As with playing, the speed of a referee is priceless. Honiss had it naturally, but Jackson was not the fastest in his playing days and will need to trim down and work on his speed.

Great minds think alike...I thought of Paul when I first started reading this thread...Paul has a wonderful rapport with the players and they respect him, he appears to have a quirky laid back attitude and I enjoy watching him.

 

[Eyes and Ears]

IMO, he has been rushed too quickly. I thought he struggled in the Schoolboys test last year. I believe referees need to have a few disasters to learn from. I don't think he has experienced enough of this yet and Super and International rugby are not the places to learn those lessons.