Hong Kong Rugby Union has announced the elevation of Mr Robbie McRobbie to the Chief Executive Officer role after the departure of outgoing CEO, Mr Vern Reid.

“It is a great honour to be given the opportunity to serve Hong Kong rugby in this role as our rugby community is second to none. We have a great team at the Union and I look forward to working closely with them to drive continued growth in the game across all levels,” said Mr McRobbie.

“I would like to thank Vern for all his support and his tremendous contribution during his tenure; he is leaving a rather large pair of shoes to be filled,” he added.

The HKRU paid tribute to Reid, who will return home to Perth after 3½ highly successful years at the helm.

“Hong Kong Rugby bestowed me with a privileged and unforgettable part in its very special history,” said Mr Reid.

“I am enormously grateful for the opportunity I was given to be the Union’s CEO for the last 3 and a half years. I believe that the Hong Kong Rugby Union is in a very strong position and that our new structure will pave the way for continued growth band development of this great game. I wish Robbie, all of my colleagues at the Union and the entire rugby community every possible success in future,” Mr Reid added.

One of Reid’s final tasks was to assist incoming CEO Robbie McRobbie, the senior leadership team and the Union Board to conduct a comprehensive review of the organisation, which has led to a revised organisational structure focused around three functional pillars: Rugby, Commercial and Financial/Admin.

Three existing senior managers will take up new roles as head of each of the pillars reporting to the CEO, additionally, the Union has created a number of General Manager portfolios under the three heads.

Effective 1 May, Dai Rees will become the Chief Rugby Operations Officer (CROO)for the HKRU, with responsibility for all rugby aspects of the game, supported by three General Managers: Leigh Jones (General Manager for Rugby Performance), Nathan Stewart (General Manager for Rugby Development) and Brandon Huang (General Manager for Rugby Participation).

Rocky Chow assumes the role of Chief Commercial Officer (CCO), supported by Sam Pinder in his role of General Manager of Hong Kong Sevens. A new role is being created (General Manager of Business Development), to focus on developing new revenue streams and growing existing one, this role will be filled in the coming months.

Mr David Greaves, the Chief Financial Officer (CFO) will take responsibility for an enlarged portfolio, which includes human resources, support services and growing the very important facilities portfolio.

Further, the HKRU’s Medical Department, under Lucy Clarke, will sit as an autonomous unit directly under the CEO, in recognition of the importance of player welfare issues across all areas of rugby business.

The new organisation chart is shown as a addendum to this release.

For more information about the HKRU’s senior management team, please visit: https://www.hkrugby.com/about/board.