Announced in the Montpellier staff next season, where he would be in charge of defense, Alexandre Ruiz is not the first referee to consider becoming a coach. In 2020, Glen Jackson (45) has come the same way. After putting away his whistle, the New Zealander immediately joined the staff of Fiji where he takes care of the game on foot but still provides advice on the discipline and educates the players on the functioning of his former profession.
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Above all, Jackson already had a particular career: that of a former professional player who became a referee. Half opening, he had played Super Rugby with the Chiefs and had even been successfully exiled to the Saracens in the English championship. The New Zealander then became a professional referee as soon as he hung up his crampons, in 2010, at the age of 35, roughly the age at which Alexandre Ruiz (34) changed lanes.
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Jackson, “a good student of rugby” according to Cotter
A member of the field referee list for the 2015 World Cup in England, Jackson was not selected four years later in Japan. Close to the age limit (45), he reoriented the following year towards training.
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“Glen had always been a good student of rugby, straightforward and open in his analysis of the game, explains Vern Cotter, who integrated him into his staff in Fiji. I think former players like him switch over to coaching more easily once their urge to officiate is over. Glen thus brings us two added values, on skills, thanks to his knowledge of rugby, but also on the interpretation of refereeing. “
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