Penrith Basketball Association have been recognised for developing the game’s next wave of officials at the 2024 Basketball NSW Annual Awards.
In what came as a surprise to those involved, Penrith picked up the 2024 BNSW Award for Referee Program of the Year for associations with over 3000 members.
It was the first time Penrith had taken home the honour, and it was also the first time they were nominated.
Speaking with the Weekender, Penrith Basketball Association Officials Manager Bruce Keirs said the award was a huge surprise.
“It was fantastic to win and everyone has been very positive towards it. We’ve had many players send their congratulations,” he said.
“I believe if we get it right and get good officials and make the games good then it makes it more enjoyable for the players and, in turn, that grows the competition.”
Penrith currently has between 150 to 200 officials on their books, with some as young as 13 involved. Penrith run basketball games nearly every night at their brilliant facility in Cambridge Park.
Keirs said the referee program at Penrith has undergone plenty of work over the past couple of years to get it up to the standard it is today.
“There’s definitely been a lot of work done over the past two years. My wife Debbie Keirs was Officials Manager prior to me, and she implemented a lot of policies and procedures to turn it all around,” he said.
“We are always recruiting and developing our officials. Some we develop from 13-years-old.”
To be recognised for the Referee Program of the Year award, Penrith had to submit a nomination outlining the work they do to develop and train officials as well as their plans for the future of the program.
“I quoted how many courses we did, the success of the referees throughout the various levels, the whole development program and then I gave them an oversight on our plans for the future and what we want to implement moving forward,” Keirs said.
“Our management and board have been very supportive of us in many ways, especially financially. It’s encouraging because you often don’t get that at all associations who are restrictive with their budgets.”
Keirs said ultimately the award was a team effort by everyone involved at Penrith Basketball.
“It wasn’t just one person… it’s the management, the referee supervisors, the referee coaches and of course our junior and senior referees themselves,” he said.
Nathan Taylor is the Weekender’s Deputy Editor and Senior Sports Writer. He also compiles the weekly Chatter on the Box TV column. Nathan is an award-winning journalist, who has worked at the Weekender for a decade.
