Pollock a pro ref in NZ
Sixth of his kind
Chris Pollock of Hawke's Bay becomes New Zealand sixth full-time referee.
Pollock is the latest to join the New Zealand Rugby Union’s group of professional referees.
He made his provincial debut as referee in 2000 and joined the national squad in 2001. Last year he made his Test debut, refereeing in the IRB Rugby World Cup qualifying match between Niue and Tahiti.
Pollock has refereed in 29 first class games, including the last ever Air New Zealand NPC Division Three final in 2005. Last year he was the New Zealand representative at the 2005 IRB Under-19 World Championship in South Africa and he has also officiated at the Hong Kong Sevens.
NZRU Manager of High Performance Refereeing, Keith Lawrence, said Pollock was one of New Zealand’s up-and-coming referees with immense potential.
Lawrence said: “Chris has made huge strides since he joined the national squad five years ago and his elevation to the professional squad attests to that."
Pollock’s appointment means relocating to Wellington from Hawke’s Bay where he was Head of the Physical Education Department at Hastings Boys’ High School.
Meanwhile, the pool of referees for the inaugural Rebel Sport Super 14 competition has been confirmed. Pollock is one of six New Zealand referees who will officiate in the tournament, which kicks off on Friday 10 February. The other New Zealand referees are Lyndon Bray, Kelvin Deaker, Paul Honiss, Bryce Lawrence and Steve Walsh.
