Glen Jackson joins referees camp

New Zealand born former Saracens first five-eighth Glen Jackson has swapped his playing strip for the referee's whistle, this week joining New Zealand's professional referees in a training camp in Motueka.

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The referees are in camp preparing for the ITM Cup and Heartland Championship seasons which get under way in July and August respectively.

The NZRU announced in July last year that Jackson would return to New Zealand to take up the whistle as the next phase of his professional rugby career.

NZRU High Performance Referee Manager Lyndon Bray said Jackson’s experience as a professional player would add depth and provide a new dimension to New Zealand’s professional pool of rugby referees.

Glen Jackson Bio

Jackson has played for Bay of Plenty, Chiefs, New Zealand Maori, New Zealand Barbarians and, after moving to the UK in 2004, for the London-based Saracens in the UK’s Guinness Premiership. He was the club’s leading points scorer of all time in the Premiership and after the 2006/07 season when he was named the Professional Rugby Players’ Association Player of the Year for his 428 points in all competitions.

In that same season, Jackson won the Saracens Player of the Year Award and was the Gilbert Golden Boot winner as the Premiership's top points scorer and goal kicker.

Jackson started refereeing age grade rugby in Tauranga while playing for the Chiefs, and he continued to develop his skills in the United Kingdom where he is currently contracted to play with Saracens. Jackson first picked up a whistle seven years ago, and since then has refereed club rugby in New Zealand and in the UK. He has completed his English RFU referee exams and is a member of the Hetfordshire Referees Society.