Joy Neville: Rugby union referee makes history

[L'irlandais]

Well done to Joy Neville.

The difference between the impossible and the possible lies in a [wo]man's determination.

An example to us all, not to get discouraged.

She said a less-than-encouraging conversation with a senior rugby official had only strengthened her determination to succeed. "I said 'look, I want your opinion on something, I have one question - do you think it's possible for a female referee to ref in division 1A in Ireland', and he said 'Joy, not in my lifetime'".
Her appointment to referee the Pro14 match between Ulster and South Africa's Southern Kings has cemented her place in history

Read more at source: BBC article

[L'irlandais]

Oddly, one has to scroll down to the bottom of this match report to find the video clip of the above interview.

Excellent interview.
At the 2014 Womens Rugby World Cup in Paris, she decided to give her ref’ing another 3 months before packing it in. She wasn’t enjoying it, because after 11 years of International rugby she wanted to be competitive at a much higher level. In those months, she came to realise mistakes happen, she stop trying to be a perfectionist and started enjoying taking charge of games. The rest is history

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[Marc Wakeham]

By all accounts a very good display in the PRO O'14 last night. She is building nicely.