In almost every sport, but especially rugby among South Africans, it has become a habit for fans to take out their frustrations on the ‘man in the middle’.

Of course it is easy to blame the referee for everything that goes wrong when the team is struggling on the field.

Few rugby fans realise however, the sacrifices referees have to make to ensure our favourite game is played every Saturday.

Few of us think about the fact that the game simply would not survive without a well-organised referees association.

One evening in the presence of the Blue Bulls referees association in the week before their busiest weekend of the year, would change any layman’s perception of this whistle brigade.

The Blue Bulls referees association has 160 members, of which 120 are active referees. Between them they have to officiate all high school, club and provincial (u.19, u.20 and u.21) games under the jurisdiction of the Blue Bulls.

This association’s high level of competency is well-known throughout rugby structures in South Africa.

To maintain this standard however, requires good management, good planning and hard work.

The Blue Bulls referees association therefore has a strong referee coaching and performance review committee structure that ensures Bulls referees perform at a high level.

Referees get assessed and evaluated on a regular basis throughout the season, and promotion of referees takes place annually through a strict performance-based system.

The Blue Bulls referees association currently provides about 30% of referees to all of SA rugby’s different referee panels nationally.

One of the Bulls’ referees, Ben Crous, was appointed to the World Sevens circuit, and has been on the circuit for the last two years.

He was also appointed one of only 12 international referees for the upcoming Rio Olympics.

Another of the Bulls’ referees, Jaco van Heerden, regularly handles SupeRugby and Currie Cup games and recently started doing duty at test level as an assistant referee.

Others referees such as Stephan Geldenhuys and Pieter Maritz are also on the Saru elite panel and are involved in games on Varsity Cup and Currie Cup level.

Many other referees are invited to different special tournaments and provincial school tournaments like Craven week.

One important fact to keep in mind is that most referees are involved in the game for the love of it.

Although they are compensated for basic expenses, they make no money from their involvement in rugby. There are, after all, only a handful of professional referees in South Africa.

To be able to pay for everything, an association like this needs a lot of money and the Blue Bulls Rugby Union cannot always pay all the bills. Sponsors are therefore needed.

Spectators at recent rugby games in Pretoria would have noticed that the Blue Bulls referees association bears the name of a new sponsor on their jerseys these days.

LP Baartman Attorneys, Conveyancer’s and Notaries will be sponsoring the Bulls referee association for the next three years.

Everyone is very excited to have them on board and they will also assist with legal matters such as disciplinary cases that are part of a referee’s world from time to time.

The Bulls’ referee association also recently elected its new executive for the next two years.

This executive will again be led by chairperson, Gerhard van Niekerk. The rest of the executive is: Pieter White (vice-chair), Tony Correia (secretary), Gerrie de Bruin (treasurer), André Botha (training), Maxwell Africa (marketing) and William Singleton (social).

One of the matters that will get a lot of attention this year in the association is a strong recruitment drive.

Young men and women who are interested in refereeing are therefore encouraged to join the association. They can contact Jan Venter on 082-478-2008.