To all members of the L.S.R.F.U.R.,
Today I am very humbled and proud to become the 20th President of the London Society since its founding in 1889. As I look back at the names who have occupied this position before me, I wish particularly to thank my predecessor, Simon Ambler, for all he has done for the Society in the six years he served, firstly as Deputy President, and then as President of the Society. In terms of difficulty, his term in office was matched only by those who saw the Society through World War I & II, not least because of the complete cessation of grassroots rugby for an extended period of time. I wish to put on record my thanks for keeping the Society going during those dark days.
As we look to the future and my term as President, there are many challenges to be dealt with. We have seen a significant number of referees leave the game post COVID, a rise of Match Official Abuse which is a concern at all levels of the game and once again we must adapt to the ever changing laws of the game - specifically the new tackle height due to be implemented in July. To deal with those, and the other challenges we face, I am hosting a Strategy session on June 6th for a large section of the various Committee leads who run the game centrally and across all four regions to discuss how we take the Society forward focussing on the following topics:
1) Recruitment & Retention of Referees and Match Observers
2) Referee & Match Observer Development
3) The Societies Social Agenda
The above is not an exhaustive list but a starting point from where we can grow the Society over the four years of my Presidency and beyond. We will provide updates on how that Strategy session went and the specific actions that will come out of it when we hold the Annual Conference later in the summer. If you have any thoughts of your own that you would like to put into the mix, please reach out to your Regional Manager or contact me direct; we would be delighted to hear from you.
I have also identified two further areas of focus which should encompass all we do in the Society and which I am asking all Committee members to ensure become enshrined as part and parcel of our future:
1) Transparency
- a clearer insight for our members into how we arrive at decisions across all Regions and at Management Committee and MODC level
2) Collaboration
- as a Society, we are doing excellent work in multiple areas but sometimes our size inhibits us from adopting best practice across all regions, so greater collaboration will benefit the whole Society
I know a lot of members are wondering where things stand on a new Sponsorship deal, so to practice what I am preaching, let me assure you, Peter Coulthard and I are in discussion with several firms about a new deal. However we want to get the right deal for the Society which will provide greater funds to plough back into the 3 areas we have identified above so as to benefit all members. Although we are taking our time to do that, we will keep you updated as things progress further.
The game we all love is undergoing a lot of change at present and while we as a Society don't always have a say in those changes, my aim as President is to provide all members with the necessary support structures to deal with whatever comes our way. I thank you for this opportunity and look forward to rising to the challenge of being President of the world's oldest Referees' Society.
On a final note, as it is June 1st, I wish all our LGBTQ+ members and allies a very happy Pride month.
Kind regards,
Andrew MacNeaney
President L.S.R.F.U.R.