Who is ’s greatest referee?

There have been many contenders over the years: George Bishop, Darcy Lawler, Keith Page, Mick Stone, Gary Cook and Greg Hartley. But for mine, it’s between Col Pearce or .

Born 43 years apart, they were so different in so many ways. But where it counted on the paddock, they were both top-shelf whistlers.

Pearce – very calm, very polite, very methodical – refereed 343 games between 1947 and 1968, with six grand finals and nine Tests.

Harrigan – very flamboyant, very controversial, very flexible – refereed 392 games from 1986 to 2003, with 10 grand finals, 21 Origins and 25 Tests. All records. Chalk and cheese alright, but both earned the respect of the players – the ultimate litmus test. But Pearce had the more interesting career, highlighted by the world record 11 successive premierships by the Dragons from 1956 to 1966. Pearce refereed them right through their reign, including the 1964, 65, and 66 grand finals.

That domination prompted a major change from unlimited tackles to the four-tackle rule to stop the Dragons owning the ball for most of the 80 minutes.

It was a culture shock for every player, referee, and fan, but the move proved successful. The Dragons didn’t win another premiership for eight years. Four clubs – Manly, Souths, Balmain, and Easts – shared the spoils in that period.

Pearce also refereed in an era of no Sunday play. The match-of-the-day was always at the SCG – St George virtually lived there – and the media coverage was just a fraction of what it is today. The four-tackle rule became six in 1972, and Origin kicked off in 1980, both before Harrigan began his stellar career.

Pearce was a regular on Rex Mossop’s famous “Controversy Corner” panel every Sunday on Channel 7, with Ferris Ashton, Noel Kelly, and SMH chief league writer Alan Clarkson, was an expert commentator on 2UE, and a Sydney Morning Herald columnist.

But to give Harrigan his credit, he was among those who were instrumental in Origin becoming the showpiece of rugby league, outstripping the premiership and internationals for media and fan interest, even though it’s only three games a season.

But both gave sterling service over long periods to the 13-man code as referees.

The best? Col Pearce by a whisker in a photo finish.

By David Lord, www.theroar.com.au – 28 September 2011.

Welcome

In October 2012 I was on holidays from a long winter rugby league season and was looking forward to what I perceived would be a well-earned rest.

Fast forward 12 months and I have had the privilege of working with a resilient, motivated group of match officials. I have spoken to many people over the course of the year explaining the style of person that undertakes this understated and undervalued role in rugby league. To be honest, I’m not sure I can pigeon hole any one style. The fraternity of match officials is certainly unique in their make-up but I have never had any concern of their application to their craft.

I have developed a genuine respect for part time and full time match officials who rival any other rugby league group for their love of the game. To be invisible but relevant on a rugby league field with up to 14 cameras is hard to come by but nevertheless remains a weekly quest.

Congratulations must go to our ‘milestone’ achievers of 2013. Whether it is your debut, 50 or 100, these are to be remembered and celebrated. A special note to the new members of the ‘300 Club’. Steve Carrall now holds the NRL touch judge career caps of 331 and rising as well as with 303 NRL refereeing appearances and Russell Turner with 322 NRL touch judge caps.

Congratulations to all award recipients tonight and our 2013 representatives Shayne Hayne, Ben Cummins, Ashley Klein and Grant Atkins. Congratulations also to who will represent New Zealand in the 2013 RLWC.

Thank you to all members of the Elite Refereeing ranks for their effort and performance. Special mention to Todd Greenberg, Nathan McGuirk, , Russell Smith, Don Stuart, Cam Black, Michelle Minichiello, Bernie Sutton and Steve Chiddy for their contribution.

Rugby League at the professional level will bring plenty of everything in 2014 but plans are in place for the match officials to make further improvements again. Enjoy your break

Daniel Anderson

2013 Match day officials:

No. Name No. Name 4 Steve Clark 100 Rickey McFarlane 5 Steve Chiddy 101 Ashley Klein 6 Paul Simpkins 102 Adam Reid 7 Sean Hampstead 103 Grant Atkins 34 Chris Ward 104 Gavin Morris 52 105 55 Shayne Hayne 106 Henry Perenara 58 Steve Carrall 107 David Munro 64 Russell Turner 108 Adam Gee 69 Paul Holland 109 Michael Wise 70 Gerard Sutton 110 Clayton Sharpe 71 Gavin Badger 112 Chris Butler 72 Jeff Younis 113 Paul Mellor 73 Jason Robinson 115 Shane Rehm 79 Ben Cummins 116 Peter Gough 80 Brendan Wood 117 Nick Beashel 85 Jason Walsh 118 Dave Ryan 87 Alan Shortall 119 Jay Farlow 89 Jared Maxwell 120 Neil Wharton 92 Chris James 121 Luke Patten 93 Adam Devcich 122 Justin Morgan 94 Bernard Sutton 123 Matthew Rodwell 95 Brett Suttor 124 Matthew Noyen 96 Phil Haines 125 Tony Maksoud 97 Daniel Eastwood 126 Reece Williams 98 Gavin Reynolds 127 Chris Sutton 99 Luke Potter

Coaching, training and support staff

Referees Elite Performance Manager: Daniel Anderson

Assistant Referee NYC Referees Touch Judge coaches: coach: coach: Russell Smith Tony Archer Bernard Sutton Steve Chiddy

Ref eree Operations Manager: Don Stuart

Training & conditioning staff: Cameron Black Tom Wilson Michelle Minichiello Performance Manager Strength & conditioning Physiotherapist

2013 Referees’ squad

Award recipients

Col Pearce Medal:

“Awarded to the most consistent and best-performed referee throughout the full 26 competition rounds and representative season .”

2004 Tim Mander 2005 Paul Simpkins 2006 Steve Clark 2007 Tony Archer 2008 Tony Archer 2009 Shayne Hayne 2010 Tony Archer 2011 Shayne Hayne

2012 Ben Cummins 2012 Col Pearce Medal Winner, Ben Cummins with May Pearce 2013 Shayne Hayne

Clubman of the year:

“Awarded to any squad or management member who contributes to the enhancement of the NRL squad through their commitment and dedication, internally and externally.”

2003 Tony Archer 2004 Jason Robinson 2005 Paul Kalina 2006 Steve Nash 2007 Michael Stone 2008 Klinton Hoare 2009 Ben Cummins 2010 Russell Smith 2011 Gavin Badger 2012 Allan Shortall 2013 Reece Williams

Rookie of the year:

“Awarded to any official with minimal experience in previous years, where they excelled within the current season”

2006 Ben Cummins 2008 Alan Shortall 2010 Ricky McFarlane 2011 Adam Devcich

2012 Gavin Morris 2013 Chris Butler

Touch Judge of the year:

“Awarded to the most consistent and best performed Touch Judge through 26 rounds and the representative season”

2010 Paul Holland 2011 Daniel Eastwood 2012 Russell Turner

2013 Russell Turner

Referees’ Referee Award:

“Awarded to the squad member who contributes the most to the squad on and off the field. Voted by the squad members.”

2008 Jason Robinson 2009 Bernard Sutton 2010 Gerard Sutton 2011 Ben Cummins 2012 Ben Cummins 2013 Shayne Hayne

Grand Final appointments

We congratulate the following NRL members for their success at the conclusion of the 2013 NRL season:

2013 National Rugby League Grand Final Referees: Shayne Hayne & Ben Cummins Touch Judges: Russell Turner & Steve Carrall Video Referees: Ashley Klein & Luke Patten Standby Officials: Gerard Sutton & Grant Atkins

2013 Holden Cup Grand Final Referees: Chris Butler & Dave Munro Touch Judges: Rickey McFarlane & Jason Walsh Video Referee: Luke Phillips Standby Official: Chris Sutton

End of 2012 major fixtures:

The 2012 Col Pearce Medal was presented prior to the conclusion of the 2012 season. The Grand Final teams from last season are acknowledged below:

2012 National Rugby League Grand Final Referees: Ben Cummins & Tony Archer Touch Judges: Russell Turner & Paul Holland Video Referees: Chris Ward & Shayne Hayne

2012 Toyota Cup Grand Final Referee: Grant Atkins Touch Judges: Chris Butler & Dave Ryan

2012 Post-season Test Match – vs New Zealand Dairy Farmers Stadium, Townsville Referee: Ben Cummins Touch Judges: Russell Turner & Anthony Eliot (NZ) Video Referee: Paul Simpkins

2013 Debutantes – Welcome to First Grade :

#120 - Neil Wharton Former Queensland Rugby League player & coach Video Referee debut in Round 1, Brisbane vs Manly

#121 - Luke Patten Former National Rugby League ex-player Video Referee debut in Round 1, Bulldogs vs Cowboys

#122 - Justin Morgan Former First Grade player & coach Video Referee debut in Round 1, vs St George

#123 - Matthew Rodwell Former First Grade player Video Referee debut in Round 2, Rabbitohs vs Sharks

#124 - Matt Noyen NSW Rugby League Referee Touch Judge debut in Round 3, Roosters vs Broncos

#125 - Tony Maksoud Former Queensland Rugby League & ARL referee Video Referee debut in Round 3, Titans vs Sea Eagles

#126 - Reece Williams Former First Grade player & NSW Rugby League referee Video Referee debut in Round 4, Warriors vs Cowboys Touch Judge debut in Round 26, Raiders vs Sharks

#127 - Chris Sutton NSW Rugby League referee Touch Judge debut in Round 20, Dragons vs Raiders

Retirements

The following squad members retired prior to the start of the 2013 NRL season. We acknowledge their service and thank them for their contribution:

# 29 - Phil Cooley NRL Touch Judge debut Round 1, 1998 (Inaugural NRL round) 30 ARL Central Referee appointments 194 NRL Touch Judge appointments (including 1996, 1997 & 2000 Grand Finals) 8 State of Origin Touch Judge appointments (Retired from on-field officiating after 2001 season) 279 Video Referee appointments (including 2003 & 2007 Grand Finals) 1 State of Origin Video Referee appointment

# 49 - Rod Lawrence NRL Referee debut Round 6, 1999 9 NRL Central Referee appointments 124 NRL Touch Judge appointments (including 2006 Grand Final) 2 State of Origin Touch Judge appointments (Retired from on-field officiating after 2008 season) 22 NRL Video Referee appointments

# 51 - Tony Archer NRL Referee debut Round 21, 1999 295 NRL Central Referee appointments (including 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011 & 2012 Grand Finals) 16 NRL Touch Judge appointments 1 NRL Video Referee appointment 13 State of Origin Referee appointments 2008 World Cup Referee 2010 Four Nations Referee 2007 Great Britain vs New Zealand series Referee 2006 City vs Country Referee

# 53 - Steve Lyons NRL Referee debut Round 23, 2000 166 NRL Central Referee appointments 95 NRL Touch Judge appointments (including 2000 Grand Final)

# 62 - Pat Reynolds NRL Touch Judge debut Round 2, 2001 151 NRL Touch Judge appointments 1 State of Origin Touch Judge appointment Retired from on-field officiating after 2006 season 37 NRL Video Referee appointments

# 63 - David Abood NRL Touch Judge debut Round 2, 2001 279 Touch Judge appointments (including 2009 Grand Final) 6 State of Origin Touch Judge appointments

# 81 - Tony DeLas Heras NRL Referee debut Round 6, 2006 104 Central Referee appointments 46 Touch Judge appointments

# 84 - Russell Smith NRL Referee debut Round 1, 2005. (Russell also controlled many international fixtures in the years prior to making the move to Australia in 2005.) 39 NRL Central Referee appointments Tri-nations Referee Retired from on-field officiating after 2006 season 123 NRL Video Referee appointments (including 2011 Grand Final) 1 City vs Country Video Referee appointment 2 State of Origin Video Referee appointments 1 Test match Video Referee appointment 2010 Four Nations tournament Video Referee

# 111 - Gavin West NRL Touch Judge debut Round 24, 2010 13 Touch Judge appointments

The following officials retired during the 2013 season:

# 6 - Paul Simpkins Retired after Round 4, 2013. NRL Referee debut Round 1, 1998 (Inaugural NRL round) 284 ARL/NRL Central Referee appointments (including 2006 Grand Final) 5 State of Origin Central Referee appointments 2006 Tri-Nations Central Referee 2 City vs Country Central Referee appointments Retired from on-field officiating after 2007 season 163 NRL Video Referee games 6 State of Origin Video Referee appointments 2008 World Cup Video Referee 1 Test match Video Referee appointment 1 City vs Country Video Referee appointment

# 7 – Sean Hampstead NRL Referee debut Round 1, 1998 (Inaugural NRL Round) 290 NRL Central Referee appointments 3 State of Origin Referee appointments Retired from on-field officiating after 2008 season 127 NRL Video Referee (including 2010 Grand Final) 4 State of Origin Video Referee appointments

2013 Representative appointments:

Australia vs New Zealand Canberra Stadium, 19 th April 2013 Referee: Ashley Klein Touch Judges: Russell Turner & Shane Rehm (NZ) Video Referees: Steve Clark & Henry Perenara (NZ) Standby Officials: Shayne Hayne & Paul Holland

State of Origin – Under 20’s Penrith Stadium, 20 th April 2013 Referee: Grant Atkins Touch Judges: Peter Gough & Chris Sutton Standby Official: Matt Noyen

Samoa vs Tonga Penrith Stadium, 20 th April 2013 Referee: Matt Cecchin Touch Judges: Steve Carrall & Paul Holland Standby Officials: Shayne Hayne & Adam Reid

City vs Country Coffs Harbour, 21 st April 2013 Referees: Adam Devcich & Chris James Touch Judges: Michael Wise & Rickey McFarlane Video Referees: Chris Ward & Luke Patten Standby Official: Phil Haines

State of Origin I ANZ Stadium, Sydney, 5 th June 2013 Referees: Shayne Hayne & Ashley Klein Touch Judges: Steve Carrall & Russell Turner Video Referees: Steve Clark & Henry Perenara Standby Officials: Matt Cecchin & Grant Atkins

State of Origin II Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane, 26 th June Referees: Shayne Hayne & Ashley Klein Touch Judges: Steve Carrall & Russell Turner Video Referees: Steve Clark & Henry Perenara Standby Officials: Matt Cecchin & Grant Atkins

State of Origin III ANZ Stadium, Sydney, 17 th July Referees: Shayne Hayne & Ben Cummins Touch Judges: Steve Carrall & Grant Atkins Video Referees: Bernard Sutton & Henry Perenara Standby Officials: Matt Cecchin & Russell Turner

Australia Prime Ministers XIII vs Papua New Guinea Port Moresby, 29 th September 2013 Referee: Gavin Morris

Rugby League World Cup 2013 England, Wales & France October – November 2013 Referees: Ben Cummins Shayne Hayne Ashley Klein Henry Perenara (NZ) Touch Judge: Grant Atkins

All-time Match Official milestones

“300” CLUB

The following officials were retrospectively granted membership to the “Men of League 300 Club” for their services prior to the NRL:

Bill Harrigan, Steve Clark & Col Pearce – Referees Steve Betts & Max Tomsett – Touch Judge

Chris Ward – Video Referee 2008 Graeme West – Video Referee

2010 Steve Chiddy – Touch Judge

2012 Steve Carrall – Touch Judge

Russell Turner – Touch Judge (Round 6) 2013 Shayne Hayne – Referee (Finals Week 1)

“200 ” CLUB

Tim Mander – Referee 2005 Paul Simpkins – Referee

Sean Hampstead – Referee 2006 Steve Clark – Referee

Tony Archer – Referee 2009 Phil Cooley – Video Referee David Abood – Touch Judge

2010 Paul Holland – Touch Judge

2011 Tim Mander – Video Referee

2012 Jeff Younis – Touch Judge

Steve Clark – Video Referee (Round 8) 2013 Jason Robinson – Referee (Round 10) Ben Cummins – Referee (Grand Final)

“100” CLUB

Bill Harrigan – Referee Steve Nash – Touch Judge 2001 Phil Cooley – Touch Judge Ian Parnaby – Video Referee John Gocher – Video Referee

Paul Kalina – Touch Judge 2003 Eddie Ward – Video Referee

Darren Gocher – Touch Judge Pat Reynolds – Touch Judge 2004 Allan Foster – Touch Judge Mick Stone – Video Referee

2006 Matthew Cecchin – Touch Judge

2007 Rod Lawrence – Touch Judge

2008 Michael Jones – Touch Judge

2009 Bill Harrigan – Video Referee

Steve Lyons – Referee 2010 Gavin Badger – Referee Jared Maxwell – Referee

Matt Cecchin – Referee 2011 Russell Smith – Video Referee Sean Hampstead – Video Referee

Jason Walsh – Touch Judge Tony DeLas Heras – Referee 2012 Russell Smith – Video Referee Ashley Klein – Referee

Rickey McFarlane – Touch Judge (Round 5) Adam Reid – Touch Judge (Round 6) 2013 Allan Shortall – Referee (Round 11) Gerard Sutton – Referee (Round 14) Brett Suttor – Referee (Round 22)

Photo Acknowledgement: Thanks to George Jankowski (NSW Referees Association) for the images used in this booklet, and for the on-going support of the NRL Referees Squad.

NRL Grand Final Officials

Year Referee(s) Touch Judges Video Referee(s) Bill Harrigan Steve Betts Ian Parnaby 1998 John McCormack Bill Harrigan Col White Chris Ward 1999 John McCormack Bill Harrigan Steve Lyons John Gocher 2000 Phil Cooley Bill Harrigan Shayne Hayne Chris Ward 2001 Steve Richards Mick Stone Bill Harrigan Shayne Hayne Mick Stone 2002 Steve Richards Ian Parnaby Bill Harrigan Steve Carrall Phil Cooley 2003 Glyn Henderson Steve Clark Tim Mander Steve Chiddy Graeme West 2004 Matt Cecchin Chris Ward Tim Mander Steve Carrall Graeme West 2005 Matt Cecchin Mick Stone Paul Simpkins Steve Carrall Chris Ward 2006 Rod Lawrence Bill Harrigan Tony Archer Russell Turner Bill Harrigan 2007 Steve Chiddy Tony Archer Steve Chiddy Bill Harrigan 2008 Jeff Younis Steve Clark Tony Archer David Abood Bill Harrigan 2009 Shayne Hayne Paul Holland Shayne Hayne Paul Holland Bill Harrigan 2010 Tony Archer Jeff Younis Tim Mander Tony Archer Paul Holland Sean Hampstead 2011 Matt Cecchin Daniel Eastwood Russell Smith Tony Archer Paul Holland Chris Ward 2012 Ben Cummins Russell Turner Shayne Hayne Shayne Hayne Russell Turner Ashley Klein 2013 Ben Cummins Steve Carrall Luke Patten

All time first grade match official statistics

Referee – all time Touch Judge* Rank Name No. Rank Name No. 1 Bill Harrigan 393 1 Steve Carrall 331 2 Col Pearce 343 Steve Chiddy 325 2 3 Steve Clark 314 Steve Betts 325 4 Shayne Hayne 303 4 Russell Turner 322 5 Tony Archer 295 5 Max Tomsett 308 6 Tim Mander 292 6 Paul Holland 298 7 Sean Hampstead 290 7 George Benson 294 8 Paul Simpkins 284 8 David Abood 279 9 Kevin Roberts 273 9 Colin Jones 274 10 Darcy Lawler 272 10 Gordon Hedger 274 11 Jack O’Brien 262 11 Bryan Gately 266 12 Tom McMahon Jnr 246 12 Brian Wiseman 265 13 Graham Annesley 244 13 Col White 264 14 Greg McCallum 241 14 Ian McCall 259 15 Laurie Bruyeres 239 15 Frank Walsh 257 16 Eddie Ward 217 16 Michael Howell 242 17 Tom McMahon Snr 211 17 John Martin 230 18 Jason Robinson 210 18 Jeff Younis 230 19 George Bishop 208 19 Martin Weekes 218 20 Keith Page 206 20 John Kelly 213

* Includes all Touch Judge first grade statistics from start of the 1945 NSWRL season

Video referee – all time Rank No of games Name 1 427 Chris Ward 2 302 Graeme West 3 279 Phil Cooley 4 218 Steve Clark 5 187 Tim Mander 6 163 Paul Simpkins 7 146 Bill Harrigan 8 141 Ian Parnaby 9 139 Mick Stone 10 132 John Gocher

State of Origin officials Year Referee(s) Touch Judges Video Referee(s) Bill Harrigan Col White John Gocher David Goener Bill Harrigan Leon Edney Chris Ward 1998 Steve Betts Bill Harrigan Steve Nash John Yard Col Jones Bill Harrigan Steve Betts Graeme West John McCormack Steve Clark Phil Cooley Chris Ward 1999 Col White Steve Clark Col Turnell Noel Bissett Steve Nash Bill Harrigan Phil Cooley Chris Ward Steve Nash Bill Harrigan Phil Cooley Eddie Ward 2000 Steve Chiddy Bill Harrigan Phil Cooley Graeme West Steve Chiddy Bill Harrigan Phil Cooley Mick Stone Alan Fallah Bill Harrigan Phil Cooley Eddie Ward 2001 Alan Fallah Bill Harrigan Phil Cooley Chris Ward Darren Gocher Bill Harrigan Darren Gocher Chris Ward Allen Foster Bill Harrigan Alan Fallah Eddie Ward 2002 Steve Chiddy Bill Harrigan Steve Chiddy Chris Ward Allen Foster Bill Harrigan Darren Gocher Eddie Ward Pat Reynolds Bill Harrigan Darren Gocher Phil Cooley 2003 Glyn Henderson Steve Clark Bill Harrigan Darren Gocher Eddie Ward Glyn Henderson Tim Mander Sean Hampstead Steve Chiddy Steve Clark Steve Carrall Graeme West Sean Hampstead Steve Chiddy Tim Mander 2004 Steve Carrall Graeme West Paul Simpkins Steve Chiddy Graeme West Steve Carrall Sean Hampstead Paul Simpkins Steve Chiddy Graeme West Steve Carrall Steve Clark Steve Chiddy Graeme West 2005 Steve Carrall Paul Simpkins Steve Chiddy Graeme West Steve Carrall

Year Referee(s) Touch Judges Video Referee(s) Sean Hampstead Matt Cecchin Graeme West Steve Carrall Steve Clark Russell Turner Graeme West 2006 Rod Lawrence Steve Clark Russell Turner Graeme West Rod Lawrence Paul Simpkins Steve Carrall Bill Harrigan Russell Turner Tim Mander Shayne Hayne Steve Chiddy Bill Harrigan 2007 Steve Carrall Tim Mander Paul Simpkins Steve Chiddy Bill Harrigan Russell Turner Tim Mander Tony Archer Steve Chiddy Bill Harrigan Paul Holland Tim Mander Tony Archer Russell Turner Bill Harrigan 2008 Gerard Sutton Tim Mander Tony Archer Steve Chiddy Bill Harrigan Russell Turner Tim Mander Tony Archer Jeff Younis Bill Harrigan Shayne Hayne Steve Chiddy Tim Mander Tony Archer Paul Holland Bill Harrigan 2009 Shayne Hayne Russell Turner Tim Mander Tony Archer David Abood Paul Simpkins Shayne Hayne Steve Carrall Sean Hampstead Tony Archer Paul Holland Bill Harrigan Shayne Hayne David Abood Paul Simpkins Tony Archer Paul Holland Tim Mander 2010 Shayne Hayne David Abood Bill Harrigan Tony Archer Paul Holland Tim Mander Shayne Hayne David Abood Bill Harrigan Tony Archer Jeff Younis Tim Mander Jared Maxwell Steve Carrall Chris Ward Shayne Hayne Paul Holland Sean Hampstead 2011 Jared Maxwell Daniel Eastwood Russell Smith Tony Archer Paul Holland Steve Clark Shayne Hayne Daniel Eastwood Paul Simpkins Ben Cummins Paul Holland Sean Hampstead Matt Cecchin Jeff Younis Ben Cummins Russell Turner Steve Clark 2012 Tony Archer David Abood Paul Simpkins Ben Cummins David Abood Steve Clark Tony Archer Russell Turner Russell Smith Shayne Hayne Russell Turner Steve Clark Ashley Klein Steve Carrall Henry Perenara Shayne Hayne Russell Turner Steve Clark 2013 Ashley Klein Steve Carrall Henry Perenara Shayne Hayne Grant Atkins Bernard Sutton Ben Cummins Steve Carrall Henry Perenara

Controversy Corner panellists (from left) Col Pearce, Alan Clarkson, Rex Mossop, Ferris Ashton, and Noel Kelly.