CRL REFEREES SUPPORTED BY BIM SEISMIC SERVICES SPONSORSHIP
Canterbury Rugby League is delighted to announce BIM Seismic Services has come on-board as a sponsor for the CRL referees programme in 2025.
Specialising in Building Information Management deliverables in the construction environment in New Zealand, BIM Seismic Services is based in Christchurch and was incorporated in November last year.
BIMSS scan buildings with 3D cameras to create a point cloud survey, aligning those to BIM models created by architects and structural engineers, identifying inefficiencies in existing and new buildings, and manufacturing seismic products to deliver to site.
Employed on projects across New Zealand and in Australia, BIMSS does a lot of work with hospitals – an Importance Level 4 building, designed to withstand a one-in-1,500-year earthquake – and their speciality in seismic products keeps them busy in Christchurch, Wellington and Queenstown.
“We are very grateful to Nick Gee and Darren Littlewood from BIM Seismic Services for their support to the Canterbury Rugby League referees programme,” CRL CEO Malcolm Humm says.
“Referees are critical to our game, and with significant growth in numbers over the past 18 months this requires external support, which BIM Seismic Services has provided.”
BIMSS’s core team consists of local businessman Nick Gee, operations manager Darren Littlewood and Brisbane-based project manager Theo Curd.
Littlewood is well known in rugby league circles in Canterbury and Wellington, particularly in the refereeing space.
Born in the rugby league heartland of Leeds and a lifelong Rhinos fan, Littlewood began playing the game as a nine-year-old and started refereeing in his early teens when a knee condition forced him to give up contact sport for two years. He officiated age-group matches at hallowed Leeds venues Headingley and Elland Road.
Littlewood returned to the playing ranks and the fullback/centre showed enough promise to be picked up as a semi-pro by Hunslet, before his work took him to Norwich and London. Moving to New Zealand, where wife Gemma is from, Littlewood turned out for Kapiti Bears’ Masters team, served on the WRL board and was involved in sponsoring the Wellington Orcas and the WRL Referees Association, and refereed in the area.
Based in Christchurch with his growing family since 2022, he has also picked up the whistle in Canterbury Rugby League’s youth grades.
“From playing and refereeing in England as a young guy, I’ve always been an advocate for referees – with referees there’s no game of rugby league,” Littlewood says.
“And it’s not the easiest job on the park, so I feel for them and want to get behind them. I’m still doing a bit myself when I can, school competitions and the [youth grades] at Ngā Puna Wai on Mondays and Wednesdays.
“Referees often don’t get the support they need, so it’s nice for me to be involved and give them that support. It gives them the attitude that they’re being looked after and we can then improve the standard of officiating.
“The standard here is good from what I’ve seen in Wellington and Canterbury, so it’s good to give them a bit of recognition for what they do for the game.”
Canterbury Rugby League’s referees are coming off a banner year in 2024.
The 2023-24 Whitehead Plumbing & Gas Men’s Premiership grand final referee, Jack Feavers, who also refereed Jersey Flegg Cup matches and earned a NSW Cup touch judge call-up, was joined in the NZRL National Premierships by experienced local whistle-blower’s Daryl Mataiti, Owen Harvey and Simon Buttery, and relative novices Micah Lepou and Porfi Vivas.
Jordyn Robertson, Darryn Hopewell, Reon Hatata and Dan Jourdain officiated South Island Championship matches.
Meanwhile, Feavers, Mataiti, Harvey and Robertson were on deck at the New Zealand Secondary Schools and National Youth Tournaments.
Lepou and Cheyenne Cleeve refereed at the NZSST, where Aleigha MacDonald Cope and Jackson McKnabb partook in an invaluable development opportunity as part of NZRL’s Young Referee Programme. MacDonald Cope went to feature at the girls’ National Youth Tournament in Tauranga.
Last week, Feavers was named Match Official of the Year in the 2024 NZRL Grassroots Awards.
“I’ve known Jack for four or five years, I saw he had the talent when he was refereeing in Wellington to go on to great things. He’s got that dedication and now he’s getting the opportunities,” Littlewood praises.
“There’s actually an easier pathway to get to the NRL from New Zealand if you can show the commitment and do the game-time.
“I know the numbers are up in Canterbury from talking to (CRL Director of Football) Jamie (Lester) and Malcolm.
“It’s really good to see Jack, in particular, leading the way from what he’s done in Wellington and now in Canterbury and at national level. He’s got his eye on the World Cup in Australia (in 2026), he’s very dedicated and he’s seeing the rewards.
“He’s given the younger level of referees the aspirations to get there as well.”
Littlewood says BIMSS is looking forward to becoming more involved in Canterbury Rugby League and the wider community.
Amid a frenetic growth period, the company is always on the lookout for more work – big projects and small – as well as supporting local initiatives.
“We’re a local business and we’re constantly growing. We’ve got a large project in Library Chambers on Cambridge Terrace coming, working with Apollo Projects at Christchurch Airport and on a couple of jobs at Christchurch Engine Centre.
“Any digital engineering and 3D drawing work that’s needed for any building, we’ve got that resource – we do architectural and house designs, structural engineering and structural shop flooring, seismic and mechanical, electrical across that digital space, and BIM coordination that we offer for our big clients.
“We can also assist with the smaller projects, too: single house 3D modelling and manufacturing from 3D.
“We’re trying to get our business out there but we’re supporting something I’m pretty passionate about – rugby league refereeing in the lower North Island and South Island.
“Nick’s happy to support areas of sponsorship that I’m passionate about and down the track we’re looking to do more – it’s good to support a local organisation.”
