SA’s best referee talks to library forum

INTERNATIONAL rugby referee Craig Joubert, is the guest speaker at the next Friends of Kloof Library Forum at Kloof Junior Primary School Hall on Tuesday 15 April at 6pm.

His talk is titled Super Rugby – blowing the whistle. The Forum is looking forward to stories of games, personalities and controversial refereeing decisions.

Craig has refereed 72 provincial games, 69 Super 12/14 games and 47 international tests. In addition, in the 2011 Rugby World Cup he refereed a quarter final, a semi-final and then the final match between New Zealand and France.

Craig grew up in a rugby household. His late father coached the DHS 1st XV and started refereeing when the family moved to Maritzburg. His first job entailed being the ball boy every Saturday afternoon for club rugby at Woodburn Stadium in Maritzburg – for the princely sum of R4. By the time Craig reached high school his dad had become a provincial referee and following an injury he encouraged him to stay connected with the game by attending law meetings at the local referees’ society. This started a journey that culminated in refereeing the Rugby World Cup final.

Craig’s dad taught him that refereeing is all about people management and this advice is still the mantra on which he bases his refereeing philosophy: treat people with respect and like adults and the feeling is likely to be reciprocal.

Having worked in corporate banking for five years after graduating from University, Craig is fascinated by the parallels that exist between the corporate world and the world of professional sport.

Retired rugby referee Jonathan Kaplan maintains that Craig Joubert is unquestionably the best referee in SA at the moment. “Besides his big match experience, he has the intelligence and charisma to be the flag bearer and is probably one of the two best in the world at the moment.”

Tickets, which cost R50 for visitors and R35 for members of the Friends, are available at Kloof Library on 031 764 7543.