Lawrence ready for final

Hopes of great match

Bryce Lawrence of Bay of Plenty has been appointed to referee the first Air New Zealand Cup Final. He has high hopes of a great match.

First – but the 15th in the line of New Zealand provincial championships, taking over from the old NPC with a new format.

Bryce is the son of Keith, a Test referee in his day and a top refereeing official in New Zealand.

Asked how he thought his father would feel about the appointment, son Bruce said: "He hasn't said. He keeps his thoughts pretty private but I imagine Mum and Dad will feel proud. They'll be more nervous than me."

Nervous? A referee nervous? Just as all sportsmen are before a big occasion, Lawrence will be nervous with anticipation. At 36 he is making his way up the refereeing rankings. He has refereed three Tests, eight Super Rugby matches and 55 provincial matches in New Zealand.

In conversation with this website, he said of the appointment: "I feel very privileged as there are seven or eight referees in New Zealand who could officiate the game. I respect all of these guys and realise it's just the right time and place for me to have a go at the highest level.

"To have my name down as a finals referee for Division One was never a specific goal, but it's obviously a really nice feeling to think 'others' think you're capable of controlling New Zealand's biggest domestic rugby competition.

"I have done only three Tests and only one with a big crowd, I'd imagine the atmosphere and tension will be bigger in this game. It will be very noisy (cow bells) and the crowd is very close to the ground in Hamilton."

Lawrence is aware of those who have done finals before him – Dave Bishop, Colin Hawke, Paddy O'Brien, Kelvin Deaker, Paul Honiss, Steve Walsh and Lyndon Bray.

Lawrence said: "It's a pretty impressive line up of referees to follow isn't it! I've chatted to a few of them and they all just say: 'Be yourself, back yourself and enjoy the occasion'. They all have some good tips."

Change of approach? "I'll just be trying to do the same – same build-up, do the basics as well as I can to set the game up and allow the players to express themselves. It sounds easy but isn't always so easy to achieve."

Lawrence may not have had the final as one of his goals, but he has ambitions for the final, hoping that it will be a match "that will be remembered for the players involved in the match, with the better team of the night winning".

"The final has the best two teams, coached by two sets of very good coaches who have at their disposal two very good forward packs and two backlines with pace and power," he continued.

"It promises to be a real contest, with some of New Zealand's best players involved. It's an honour to be part of the game. As a referee 'team' we will be doing our absolute best to make the right contribution to the match."

Fact file:

Name: Bryce Lawrence
Born: 23 December 1970
Province: Bay of Plenty
Occupation: Schoolmaster turned professional Referee
Educated: Otumotai College (Tauranga), Waikato University
Played: First five-eighth for school first XV and University Colts
Started refereeing: 1994, "because I wanted to stay involved in rugby and I have a family background in refereeing".
First-class debut: 1997