Wayne Young & Max Spence elected by NZR

By Peter Jones [Marlborough Weekly]

Marlborough businessman Wayne Young may have risen to the lofty heights of NZ rugby but, he quickly pointed out, there is no chance of it going to his head.

Just hours after being elected to the board of New Zealand Rugby (NZR), the former Marlborough Red Devils halfback and Tasman Rugby Union (TRU) chair headed off to training with the Central division two team he coaches.

“The boys will definitely make sure I keep my feet on the ground,” he laughed. “My son just walked through the door and gave me a high five, so I suppose that means, ‘well done Dad’”.

Wayne, who was nominated by the TRU, headed off Whanganui Rugby Union nomination Richard Dellabarca for the coveted and hotly-contested role at the 130th AGM, replacing Shaun Nixon on the nine-person board.

Wayne has held the role of TRU Rugby Director for the last 11 years and most recently served as Chair for the Union. A Marlborough local, Wayne has played and coached rugby in the region over the past 30 years. His career in car dealership sales, acquisition and property development is extensive.

In 2021 Wayne implemented a youth council for Tasman Rugby, to ensure representation across the entire game – demonstrating his passion for the game and the future of rugby.

Wayne said the process of lobbying for a place on the board was a lot of hard work and “quite harrowing”, especially since he contracted COVID during the process, but he was “proud and happy” to have been eventually given the nod.

“When my name was read out, I straight away felt terrible for Richard, and I’m sure he would have been the same with me if the boot was on the other foot.

“Then I went straight into my first board meeting, which was reassuring and gave me a good early feel for how things are done.”

Wayne was happy to come through the process of being nominated, then elected and saw his selection as a triumph for “grassroots” rugby.

“The way I was elected [through the appointments panel] shows that I have the trust and confidence of the provincial unions and that means a lot to me.

“I am confident that what I campaigned on is the right thing for rugby in New Zealand, which starts at grassroots.

“It is important that people realise that the real stakeholders of the game are not only the provincial unions, but also the clubs. Sometimes that gets forgotten.”

He joins recent appointments of Dame Patsy Reddy and Rowena Davenport as the three new NZR Board members.

There was more good news for Tasman with veteran administrator Max Spence elected as NZR President, replacing former All Black Bill Osborne, who had served as President since 2019 and finished his tenure. Max has held various club, provincial and Super Rugby administrative posts over the past 23 years, is a Life Member of the Nelson Bays Sub Union and became the first Life Member of Tasman Rugby Union in 2013.

Former All Black Sir Bryan Williams was elected as Life Member of NZR while Matthew Cooper was elected Vice President, taking over the role from Spence, who had completed his term.

Spence said: “I’ve got big shoes to fill after the job Bill has done as President. I would like to thank him for his service and acknowledge the mana he brought to the role as an ambassador for our game both here in New Zealand and overseas. It’s an honour to carry on his fantastic work and hopefully I can do as good a job.” 

Article added: Thursday 28 April 2022