Clearly his wife Victoria and his wider family have every right to be very proud of Ben's achievements on the rugby field , first as a player, and now as a senior referee. Ben was (& still is when he can find the time) always a great club man at Warwick Road from an early age.

He was a good team player and no mean scrum half before he made what has turned out to be a courageous decision; giving up playing in his early twenties to turn to a rugby career in refereeing, Ben started at the bottom of the whistling ladder in Cumbria and it was evident from the outset that there was an unlocked talent waiting to be set loose!

He quickly rose through the various grades and soon caught the attention of those that mattered at the RFU. Very soon he was travelling the country to officiate up to championship level and there is little doubt had he stayed with the RFU, he could have become one of their leading referees over the course of time. But, in 2016 he made the decision to join the SRU Referee Group. Principally, most of the senior games in Scotland are played in the central belt and the Borders, and within comfortable driving distance there and back in he same day.

Ben quickly made his mark north of the Border and by December 2017 he was on the Elite Referee Panel for Scotland and things have progressed well from there; Heineken Challenge Cup games (he's learning Italian having been there thrice). Overseas assignments have taken him to Ireland, Hong Kong (7s), Dubai (7s), Japan (2 x Premier League games), France & Georgia.

Tomorrow he makes his debut in the Guiness Pro14 League when he takes charge of Dragons v Munster. We wish him well and if anyone wants to see him in action, the game is televised. Interviewed by the News & Star when he embarked on this adventure, I recall him saying that his ambition was to referee in the Premier League. Well, the Guiness Pro14 set up is at least equal to that Premier League he aspired to. And in the next few weeks he isa off to France to officiate in France v Wales U20 international before making his way to Belgium to handle their match v Georgia in a Tier 2 International.

Enjoy, and do yourself and your family proud.

All at Carlisle Rugby Club wish him well along with his colleagues at Carigiet Cowen, Commercial Property Consultants, where he is an associate director, working as a qualified Chartered Surveyor, and registered valuer.

For more on Ben go to the Cumbria RFU website and the SRU website where you will find other interesting chat about his exploits.

Our picture shows him in his playing days.