World Rugby Chairman Sir Bill Beaumont has paid tribute to Ireland and British and Irish Lions legend, former World Rugby Chairman, Rugby World Cup pioneer and Hall of Fame inductee Ronnie Dawson who has passed away aged 92.

Captain of the 1959 British and Irish Lions tour to New Zealand, Dawson won the first of his 27 Ireland caps at hooker against Australia in 1958, before distinguishing himself as one of the game’s most insightful administrators.

Dawson laid the foundations of the Irish coaching system, becoming the first ever Irish national team coach in 1969. He began 24 years of service on the IRFU executive committee in 1970, acting as President for the 1989-90 season.

While his achievements as a player and coach are well celebrated, Dawson was an accomplished and influential administrator. A longstanding member of the International Rugby Board (IRB) Council as an Ireland representative (1974-94), the predecessor of World Rugby, Dawson served as IRB Chairman in 1983.

Dawson’s legacy to the global game is one of the biggest and best loved major global sports events, the Rugby World Cup. As a member of the organising committee for the first-ever tournament held in Australia and New Zealand in 1987, he was one of the architects of a sporting success story.

Dawson’s lifetime contribution to the game was recognised by the IRB firstly in 2004, when he was awarded the Vernon Pugh Award for Distinguished Service, and again in 2013, when he was inducted into the World Rugby Hall of Fame.

Remembering Ronnie Dawson, World Rugby Chairman Sir Bill Beaumont said: “Ronnie Dawson had a huge impact on rugby at every level of the game. Whether it was at his club, Wanderers, the IRFU and the British and Irish Lions as captain and coach, or off the field in running the sport, Ronnie leaves an enduring legacy. It is thanks to him, and that first-ever 1987 organising committee, that today we have the incredible celebration of international rugby that is the Rugby World Cup.

“The thoughts of everybody at World Rugby go out to Ronnie’s family and friends at this sad time.”