The Ba Rugby Referees Association (BRRA) has formally adopted its first constitution and elected an executive committee to steer match officials through the next three years, a move organisers say marks a new era for refereeing in the western Fiji town.
Veteran match official Kolaia Caucau was chosen as president after a secret ballot held at the meeting last Saturday. The ballot was overseen by executives from the Ba Rugby Union and Taione Ratu of the Fiji Rugby Union, who acted as returning officer to ensure the vote was conducted transparently. Ba Rugby Union secretary Gaby Kautoga said 14 BRRA members attended the meeting in person while a further two lodged their votes by proxy in line with the new constitution’s provisions.
Ba’s most experienced referee, Gadolo, was elected unopposed as chair. Early reports named him as Bill Gadolo, while the official executive list circulated after the meeting records the chair as Filimoni Gadolo; organisers said the committee will clarify the naming. Mereani Ulamila won the vote for secretary, and Malcolm Blake — a familiar figure in local refereeing circles — returned as treasurer. The committee will serve a three-year term.
Kautoga said the constitution and election followed several preparatory meetings in which members reviewed a draft and proposed amendments. “It has taken a little while to get this far, but in the end everything went smoothly,” she said, adding that the new governance framework will guide the BRRA’s administration and help the group “move forward together.”
The newly elected executive will meet in the coming days to consider co-opting additional members on to the committee and to establish sub-committees responsible for referee appointments and discipline. Those structural decisions are expected to shape how referees are assigned to fixtures and how performance and conduct are managed under the association’s rules.
The timing of the BRRA’s formalisation coincides with the start of Ba Rugby’s 2026 season, which opens next weekend with the Ba Junior Championships. Organisers said having an established referees’ body and constitution in place is intended to provide clearer processes for match appointments and oversight as the season gets under way.
Leave a comment