Declan (14) is youngest touch rugby ref
"In terms of touch rugby, I would love to be selected to referee at the World Cup that will take place in 2019 at Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia."
ALBERTON can now boast being home to the youngest fully qualified touch rugby referee.
Declan Mason, a St Declan’s School for Boys learner, recently turned 14, and already qualified as a fully-fledged touch rugby referee last year.
For years, touch rugby was simply a warm-up game or one for fun, but it is growing fast and has become a sport in its own right, with its own set of complex rules, independent of other rugby types.
Declan is a player too, which was a great stepping stone to becoming a referee because he already understood the game. When asked why he wanted to become a referee, he didn’t hesitate to say: “I’ve always been exposed to it. My dad is a referee for the Easterns team under SATA, the South African Touch Association.”
This active young man not only keeps himself busy honing his skills on the field as referee and player, but also plays soccer and cricket and makes time for family, church and youth activities. “I don’t really have much of a social life, he says with a smile and adds: “I need to stay fit for sport, but people don’t realise that as a referee you run about eight kilometres per game so that is also a good way to keep my fitness levels up.”
On his future plans, Declan says he would like to become a chemical engineer or maybe a biokineticist.
“In terms of touch rugby, I would love to be selected to referee at the World Cup, that takes place in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, in 2019.”
As for attributes or traits he possesses that make him a good referee, he said: “I think my knowledge of the game,” to which his proud father and coach, Craig Mason, added: “And, I think, the fact that he is confident and doesn’t get intimidated.”
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