Simon Burns to umpire CTPL grand final after long health journey

Starting in Hobart on Friday between University and Lindisfarne, Burns was proud to follow in the footsteps of Sam Nogajski and Mike Graham-Smith - two Tasmanian umpires who are officiating the Sheffield Shield decider.

"When I found out, I shed a tear to be honest, just with excitement," he said.

"It's one of those sensations that you don't get very often, being so happy that you shed a bit of a tear but I'm just so excited about it."

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It's been a long road to the top of Tasmanian cricket for the 46-year-old, who began umpiring in 2003 after a bout of Hodgkin's Lymphoma meant Burns, who described himself as "not a great player", couldn't play anymore.

Taking it up mainly for money back then, he returned in 2010 and found himself in first grade rather quickly but was diagnosed with Hodgkin's Lymphoma for a second time in 2013.

Continuting to umpire the lower grades, Burns was back at the CTPL's top level by 2015 and as he and wife Carmen moved to Launceston several years later, it coincided with the Greater Northern Raiders joining the Southern-based competition.

He said being based in the North hasn't held him back in the umpiring fraternity.

"I was still able to continue to umpire CTPL half the time in Launceston and sometimes Latrobe but the other half in Hobart," Burns said.

"So it's still a fair amount of travel but it's just good that I can actually do both up North and South.

"With the advent of the Raiders, there's players from those teams that can make state squads and it's the same thing for umpires here and the North-West Coast - you can do your local comp and then progress through Raiders games into CTPL.

"It does require a lot of commitment from yourself but also your family because that's very important - you can't do this amount of travel just for local cricket without the support of your family."

Named umpire in the CTPL team of the year last season, Burns found a new level of confidence which he believed has helped him reach new heights.

Having previously umpired in the WNCL and WBBL, he took a step towards officiating first class-cricket, making his second XI debut as Tasmania played New South Wales in Hobart, featuring players like three-time Test representative Trent Copeland.

"I think it's just a steady growth and just getting to the next level, getting into WNCL and WBBL and getting comfortable there, learning from those experiences, and then continuing on down the pathway," Burns said.

"I think success breeds success and it's just like a rookie player going into first grade for the first time.

"They're going to have some hits and misses at the start but eventually, it just clicks for them and they know how to do it."

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