Raelene joined Rugby Australia as the code’s first female Chief Executive Officer, commencing this role in January 2018.

She was previously the CEO of the Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs, where she spent four years leading the National Rugby League club after 6 years as CEO of Netball New Zealand.

Before beginning her career in sports administration, Raelene was a successful communications and marketing executive in the corporate sector. She is a former head of business marketing at Telecom NZ, communications manager at Bank of New Zealand and a marketing manager for Fuji Xerox.

Raelene has a rich sporting background as a former representative-level netball, tennis and lawn bowls player. Her father Bruce Castle is a former New Zealand Rugby Captain, and her mother Marlene a three-time Commonwealth Games lawn bowls medallist. Raelene has held several governance roles in sport, previously serving as a board director of the ANZ Championship netball, the International Federations of Netball Associations (IFNA) and as chair of the NRL club CEOs leadership group.

Raelene was made an Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit (ONZM) in 2015 for services to Business and Sport. Born in Wagga Wagga NSW, she moved to New Zealand as young child and returned to Australia following her appointment as Bulldogs CEO in 2013.