Ulster Schools' Cup Final 2016

STUART GAFFIKIN

How do you prepare for a game like this? Just the same as for any other game save for a few extra considerations. Which ref do you most admire? The referee I most admire is Alain Rolland, who retired at the end of the 2014 season after refereeing at three Rugby World Cups and refereeing the final in 2007. I had the pleasure of being his Assistant Referee in the Heineken Cup on a number of occasions. Favourite match you have officiated? I refereed a Rugby Europe match between Georgia and Spain in Tbilisi in 2014. It was a real experience travelling to a new country with its own particular culture, not to mention refereeing a host of players who were playing their rugby in the French Top 14 - a definite challenge. Best ground you have experienced? I refereed the final of the Rugby Europe U18 International tournament between France and Georgia at the Stade Ernest-Wallon in Toulouse in One of my first appointments in the Heineken Cup was to be an Assistant Referee with Alain Rolland for a match between Montpellier and Toulon. Montpellier is a great venue and a beautiful city but the match was a late night kick off and both teams were loaded with huge stars of world rugby. What advice would you give to someone interested in refereeing? I would really encourage anyone to take up the whistle. It is such a great way to be or remain involved in rugby and it is a real challenge to keep 30 guys in line. I’ve met so many great people through rugby on and off the pitch and I’ve had the opportunity to be involved in some great matches. Added to that, I’ve had the opportunity to travel round Ulster, Ireland and Europe with other referees, many of whom are now great friends. For more information on becoming a referee, please email david.wilkinson@irfu.ie front of a packed house of 19,500. Most memorable experience?

How did you get into refereeing? I always enjoyed playing rugby and played at school but an injury when I was 16 curtailed what would have been a distinctly average career. I wanted to be involved in rugby in some form and refereeing appealed to me because you had an active role on the pitch, in the thick of the action. So I attended a New Recruits Course 11 years ago with Referee Development Officer, David Wilkinson. The course lasted one day and the following week I was on the pitch refereeing my first match, a cracker between Civil Service IV and Lurgan III at Stormont! What key skills are required to be a good referee? For me the most important skills are communication with players, coolness under pressure, fitness, knowledge of the law and the ability to apply the law fairly to ensure that a fair contest can take place. If a referee can develop and show these skills then you normally get a good rugby match that people want to watch. Are you looking forward to being the man in the middle at the most anticipated domestic game of the season? Of course, the School’s Cup final is a hugely important game, for players, coaches, parents, the rugby public at large and for referees. Running out at Kingspan Stadium on St. Patrick’s Day will be a great honour. What challenges do you face refereeing such a hyped up game? For me it’s important to remember that this is ‘just’ another game. If you take away the thousands of supporters, the stadium, the history, the occasion and the TV cameras this could be any other school game anywhere in the Province. There are still two teams and thirty players trying to win a game of rugby and I’m just trying to facilitate that! What do you think of the standard of rugby these two teams have produced this season to get to the final? Honestly, I haven’t seen either team play but knowing the standard of the competition, any team that reaches the final has certainly earned it. No doubt both teams will be hoping to put on a show for their school and supporters.

MAN IN THE MIDDLE

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