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Wales Rugby League statement: Richard Hibbard appointed as new CEO
Former Wales rugby union hooker Richard Hibbard has crossed codes to become the new CEO at Wales Rugby League. The retired 40-year-old, who toured Australia with the 2013 British and Irish Lions, enjoyed a stellar 19-year career as a union professional player.
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However, he has now rekindled an interest in league that stemmed from winning a 2003 Four Nations cap with Dragonhearts, the community game’s rep side in Wales, and playing for Aberavon Fighting in the first-ever Welsh grand final that same year.
A statement read: “Wales Rugby League are delighted to announce the appointment of Richard Hibbard as our new chief executive officer. An entrepreneur from Port Talbot, Richard owns two restaurants in his hometown and has successfully launched the ‘Mortal Bunny Rum’ brand.
“Richard enjoyed a successful 19-year playing career in rugby union, winning 38 caps and two Six Nations titles for Wales. He toured Australia with the British and Irish Lions in 2013, starting the decisive Third test in Sydney.
“He played for Ospreys, Gloucester, Dragons, Aberavon, and Swansea, plus Crawshays and the Barbarians in a distinguished club and representative career which saw domestic and European success.
Penodiad ?
We're pleased to announce the appointment of Richard Hibbard as our Chief Executive.
A business owner and former rugby union international, Richard will focus on creating partnerships to support the development of the sport at all levels.https://t.co/PhaSEjYtEb pic.twitter.com/NyZmP6Ufbo
— Wales Rugby League (@WalesRugbyL) April 22, 2024
“His passion for rugby league pre-dates his rugby union career, earning a cap for Wales Dragonhearts – the representative side of the community game in Wales, helping them to win the Four Nations in 2003. He also played for Aberavon Fighting Irish in the first-ever Wales Rugby League grand final in 2003.
“Richard’s role will be particularly focused on creating partnerships that can support the development of the sport at all levels, from grassroots to senior international sides.”
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Hibbard said: “I’m delighted to join Wales Rugby League. Rugby league has always been important to me and I would have loved to have had a season or two as a player. But now I’m presented with the next best thing – an amazing opportunity to bring awareness of the rich talent we have in our country.
“I want to grow the sport of league in Wales the right way, from the bottom up, and shaping the game that’s right for Wales, creating opportunities both within the community to elite levels, built on strong foundations.
“To do that, we’ll all need to work together. Integral to that will be strengthening relationships with our stakeholders, and creating new partnerships and relationships that are mutually beneficial. And we can never forget our strongest asset – the community of players, families, and supporters”
James Davies, chair of Wales Rugby League, added: “I’m thrilled to have Richard join us as we strive to develop and strengthen as a governing body. What Richard has achieved both as a player and a businessman has been impressive.
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“We believe the attributes and characteristics he brings are aligned with our vision and cultural journey. He knows what being involved in an elite environment looks like and the importance of a strong balance sheet to support this.
“Richard will aim to create new partnerships that help us to achieve the vision – from providing more people with the opportunity to play the game in Wales, to successful representative teams that can showcase our nation on the international stage.
“Richard impressed the board during our discussions, and he knows the importance of creating a strong brand that people want to be involved in or associated with. We as a board understand that we have great people within the performance side of the governing body who will now be supported by our recent appointment of Clive Griffiths as director of performance.
“We also recognise the need to be more commercially focused where we build reciprocal partnerships which not only allow our game to grow but benefit the businesses and institutions we partner with too.
“We all know there is lots of hard work ahead of us, but Richard’s appointment along with that of some new board members in recent weeks, we believe we have the right foundations in place so we can build a sustainable high-performing governing body both on and off the field for the future.”
Comments on RugbyPass
My heart is with Quins, but the head is convinced Toulouse have too much. Ntamack is back, his timing and wisdom has been missed.
1 Go to commentsWow, what a starting line up for the Sharks) Tasty up front,kremer vs Tshituka or venter …fiery ,,Lavannini ,,will he knobble etzebeth? Biggest game for belleau?
1 Go to commentsIt was rubbish to watch, Blues weren’t even present. Did what they had to do, nothing more. Should be better next week against canes.
1 Go to commentsI’ve just noticed that this match has an all-French refereeing team. Surely a game like this ought to have a neutral ref? Although looking at the BBC preview of the Saints game, Raynal is also down as reffing that - so there may be some confusion about who is reffing what.
1 Go to commentsIf Havili can play anywhere in the back line, why not first 5. #10.
11 Go to commentsThe dressing room had already left for their summer break before they ran out in Dublin that year, and that’s on the coach. Franco Smith has undoubtedly made progress, particularly their maul, developing squad players and increasing squad depth. And against a very tight budget too. That said they were too lightweight last year and got found out against both Toulon and Munster in consecutive games. Better this season so far but they’ve developed something of a slow start habit occasionally, most notably losing at home to Northampton who played them at their own game. Play offs will ultimately show whether there has been tangible progress on last year, or not…!
2 Go to commentsAustralian Rugby has been a disaster, by not incorporating learning from previous successful campaigns. QLD Reds 2011 - Waratahs 2014. Players, coaches and administrators appoint there representatives for scheduled meetings, organisation’s agreement’s assessments and correspondence. This why a unified Rugby Union under one entity works. Every Rugby nation has taken that path. Was most difficult in the Northern hemisphere with over 100 years of club rugby before the game become professional. Took a lot of humility for those unions to eventually work together.
7 Go to commentsThough Wilson’s sacking was pretty brutal, it wasn’t just down to that Leinster game; Glasgow had a lot of 2nd half collapses that season, in the URC and Europe, and only just scraped into the playoffs. Franco Smith has definitely been an improvement, some players are delivering far more than they did under Wilson.
2 Go to commentsjesus - that front 5!
1 Go to commentsShould be an absolute cracker of a game! Will be great to see DuPont & Ntamack in tandem once again🔥
1 Go to commentsBest team ever…. To have played? These guys are still pressure chokers. Came nowhere when it counted. What a joke
75 Go to commentsMusk defends anonymous terrorism, fascism, threats against individuals and children etc etc But a Rugby club account….lock ‘em up!!!
1 Go to commentsActually the era defining moment came a few years earlier. February 2002 to be precise, when Michael D Higgins as finance minister at the time introduced his sports persons tax relief bill to the dial. As the politicians of the day stated “It seems to be another daft K Club frolic born in Kildare amongst the well-paid professional jockeys with whom the Minister plays golf” and that the scheme represented “a savage uncaring vision of Ireland and one that should be condemned”. The irfu and Leinster would be nowhere near the position they are in today without this key component of the finances.
5 Go to commentsIt is crystal clear that people who make such threats on line should be tried and imprisoned. Those with responsibility in social media companies who don’t facilitate this should be convicted. In real life, I have free speech to approach someone like Reinach and verbally threaten him. I am risking a conviction or a slap but I could do it. In the old days, If someone anonymously threatened someone by letter the police would ask and use evidence from the postal system. Unlike the Post, social media companies have complete instant and legal access to the content in social media. They make money from the data, billions. Yet, they turn a blind eye to terrorism, Nazi-ism and industrial levels of threats against individuals including their address and childrens schools being published online all from ananoymous accounts not real people. They claim free speech. Free speech for anonymous trolls/voilent thugs threatening people under false names? The fault is with the perps but also social media companies who think anonymous personas posting death threats constitutes free speech.
2 Go to commentsSo if this ain’t the best Irish team ever then who exactly is? I don’t remember any other Irish team being this good & winning a series in the Land of the Long White Cloud. Yes I may rip them often for 8 X QF RWC exits & twice not even making it to the QF, but they’re a damn good team who many think can only improve, including me!
75 Go to commentsNot a squeek out of Leinster for weeks about this match. So quiet. The first team have been quitely building for this encounter under Nienaber’s direction. All fresh, all highly motivated. They are expecting a season’s best performance from Northhampton. They will match that. They will be fresher and apparently they will have 80,000 out of the 83,000 shouting for them. I do expect Northhampton to turn up big time. Not to be missed. On a tangent it is evident how the loss of a few Premiership teams has in some respect helped other Premiership teams and England. More quality over less teams makes the teams better, which has a knock on effect on England. Not the only factor contributing to England’s rise but one of them.
5 Go to commentsOur very own monster teddy bear Ox😍💪
17 Go to commentsThis is might be the most generalised, entitled, patronising, out-of-pocket cultural indictment on a group of people you’ll ever see on what is supposedly a sports publication. I can only assume the author is weak like a woman or homosexual. I’m feeling an incredible range of emotions but I am not quite sure how to express them. I might go beat up a hockey player - assuming that’s okay with Duane and the boys? 🙂
9 Go to commentsBest thing the Welsh clubs could do is apply to join Gallagher prem surely be more exciting matches for there support than they have now.
2 Go to commentsRugbyPass writers are useless! you guys should get a real job because you all suck at writing about rugby!!!
9 Go to comments