For someone still coming to grips with his rapid rise in the referee ranks, Mate Samuels is happy he took the advice of other refs and picked up the whistle.

The 33-year-old is the recipient of the Bay of Plenty Rugby Union's Referee of the Month after a short 10 months in charge of controlling rugby matches.

Photo: C Miki Murase.

Unable to commit to pulling on the boots each week anymore due to study commitments, he admits there was still a want to be involved in the game.

'I was also asked by many refs over the years if I wanted the whistle so I finally said yes,” says Mate.

Mate, who lives in Otumoetai but is originally from Matakana Island, loves the challenge of refereeing.

'It looks easy from a players perspective but when you try it, it's a lot harder than you think and it actually takes a lot more skill than it looks.”

Having only been refereeing for a short time, Mate was involved in this year's Bayleys National Sevens in Rotorua, something he describes as his biggest highlight to date.

'I've come to realise that these refs are not such bad guys like I used to think they were in my playing days.”

When asked what he would say to others considering becoming a referee, he thinks more people should give it a go.

'It's a good physical challenge but also mentally challenging too.

'Tauranga is a great place to learn the trade as we have some top refs from the area that pass on their knowledge to us. There is some great young teenage talent coming through the ranks as well.”