Northland Rugby were honored to present lifelong volunteers Roddy Finlayson and Warren Jones with Life Membership to the Northland Rugby Union at the recent Northland Rugby AGM.
Starting his journey as a Junior at Kamo Rugby Club in the 50’s, Roddy Finlayson gave hung up the boots when he started his business, Ruatangata Transport. Roddy still gave back to the game administratively, as part of Kamo Committee’s, Whangarei Management Board and then on the Northland Rugby Management board.
Roddy was part of the crew that took over the ground maintenance at Semenoff Stadium (Then known as Lowe Walker Stadium), including the removal of the athletics track from around the ground. Roddy was Co-Opted to the Northland Rugby Board as the sponsorship manager in the mid-late 90’s.
Roddy finished his volunteering for Northland Rugby in 2025, bowing out as Visiting Team Liaison officer after 20 years of service, covering Maori All Blacks, Almost every provincial union team in New Zealand and Rugby World Cup and British and Irish Lions Tours.
Warren Jones, better known as Wok, first came to prominence in 1950, Running the ball out before the match between North Auckland and British and Irish Lions, a game that North Auckland lost 6-8 in a very tight contest.
Wok has been an active member of the Kamo Rugby Club for his entire life, he can still be found on the sidelines at matches to this day, Wok was part of the Ground Maintenance crew at Semenoff Stadium (Then known as Lowe Walker Stadium) in 1997.
Wok’s most notable work was as Team Liaison for 35 years, only retiring in 2023 due to health reasons. Wok was team liaison Lion’s tours, Rugby World Cup matches, NPC and multiple international sides over the years.
Both of these men are still active in the rugby community and have helped carve a path for what Northland Rugby looks like to this current day.
Please join the Northland Rugby Whanau in welcoming Roddy and Wok to this exclusive club, as Life Members.
