#INSPIRE inspiring women to referee rugby
Women from all walks of life are being inspired to pick up the whistle in a new RFU initiative aimed at growing the game.
Just before kick-off at the Autumn Nations Series England v Japan Test, 50 female match officials from across England walked out onto the pitch in celebration of female refereeing in rugby. They helped with the parade of the flags, as well as officiating the curtain raiser match.
Among them was Lindsay ‘Lenny’ Evans, who began her refereeing career seven years ago at her local club, Darlington RFC.
“I didn’t sleep the night before due to nerves and I was up at 4am reading and re-reading the laws. I was then sick at half time,” she says. “However, I got some positive feedback and was asked to ref them again during the next few seasons. From that point on, I was hooked.”
The England Rugby Referees Society has 3,585 referees signed up, but a really low number of those are female. The #INSPIRE campaign is sharing stories of women who have already taken up the whistle and highlighting female role models with the #SeeitBeitRefit tag.
See it to be it
The hope is that, seeing how much other women are enjoying the experience, more women will be motivated to try refereeing themselves.
Nomtha Gray never had the opportunity to play rugby when she was younger, but when she was taken to her first university game she loved it. She now coaches and referees at her local club Didcot and says that providing positive role models for younger generations can only be a good thing for the game.
“It’s knowing that me being there is the see it part of ‘see it to be it’ for so many young girls and boys that I referee. Hopefully, now some of them won’t think it unusual to have a woman referee them. It’s also a great way for me to keep challenging myself.
“My first game was an U15 girls’ match, some of whom had never played before and they were all amazed at a woman being their referee! After the game, the players and coaches all thanked me. One coach was so pleased to see a woman on the field, he asked if I could referee their next game.”
Sara’s amazing journey as a referee
Sara Cox made headlines in 2021 when she became the first female to take charge of a Premiership rugby game. She’s an inspirational figure in English rugby and is paving the way for others to follow.
“The women’s game has grown massively since I first began playing and started my refereeing career in 2007. Rugby really is for everyone and I’m really proud if I can inspire other people to pick up the whistle,” she says.
“I could never have imagined at the outset being able to referee as a profession, but it has been an amazing journey. It doesn’t matter who you are or where you’re from, being a match official at whatever level builds your confidence and means games get played.
Whether you’re refereeing men or women they are glad you are there.”
If you feel inspired to pick up the whistle, head to keepyourbootson.co.uk for more information.
Main image: John Cooper/ACME Whistles
