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Brett Robinson names the thing 'he really wants to get stuck into'
By Liam Heagney reporting from Dublin
New World Rugby chair Brett Robinson has promised to unite the game as quickly as possible following his close fought election win in Dublin on Thursday. The Australian was named successor to Bill Beaumont on a four-year term when he pipped fellow candidates Abdelatif Benazzi (France) and Andrea Rinaldo (Italy) to the post.
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Following the first round of voting, Robinson had 22 votes to Benazzi’s 21 and Rinaldo’s nine. The next step was to eliminate the Italian and the second and final vote concluded with Robinson beating Benazzi 27 to 25.
Appearing at his first media conference in the role alongside new vice-chair Jonathan Webb of England, Robinson was asked what was the thing he was really looking forward to getting stuck into now that he was the new World Rugby chair?
“I am really looking forward to sitting down with Alan (Gilpin, World Rugby CEO) and mapping out the next six months. We have got some really good plans in place. There is an opportunity to improve.
“But the other thing I really want to do is unite the game. We have got differences of opinion, we have got some challenges and there will be some people who will be disappointed out of the election.
“It’s really important in my role that I bring the game together and we agree what shared success looks like and we pursue it together because as a game we know that the teams that are the most united are the most powerful – and I guess my role as chair is to facilitate that happening.”
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He looks like he could want to get stuck into the petty cash.
I’m joking. 😗