Members of the WRU Referees Academy met with Their Royal Highnesses in the prestigious President’s Lounge at half-time during the clash with the All Blacks.
The royal couple talked at length about the sport and the future of refereeing with The Duchess professing to be a massive rugby fan.
“It was absolute honour to meet The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge at the Wales v New Zealand game,” said budding referee Ben Whitehouse.
“They both seemed really interested in the Academy. The Duke asked me about my refereeing career and my aspirations for the future and the Duchess asked about the work of the Academy and said she’s a big rugby fan.”
The Referees Academy provides the game with a constant flow of quality Welsh match officials who are capable of performing at the highest level. The academy ensures that future referees are provided with the necessary specialist support in a variety of areas ranging from fitness, diet and nutrition to game management and analysis.
WRU National Referee Manager Rob Yeman described the royal visit as a ‘tremendous honour’ for the young refs. He said: “You could see by the look on their faces that they were awestruck – we couldn’t stop them talking, which is great, and I’m sure the visit will be a day that they’ll remember for the rest of their lives.”
The Referees Academy is run under the High Performance Department headed up by WRU Head of Rugby Joe Lydon. Mr Lydon commented: “It is clear that the Duchess is very clued-up about rugby, and the Duke, too, knows and loves his sport. It was great encouragement for our young referees to see that the Royal family is right behind them.”
Earlier that day their Royal Highnesses also met with injured former players who are beneficiaries of the WRU’s nominated charity, Welsh Rugby Charitable Trust.
