Australia’s first female ref wins international award

Nov 14 • General News, International, World Rugby • 2044 Views • Comments Off on Australia’s first female ref wins international award

NSW Rugby administrator and Australia’s first ever female rugby union referee, Robin Timmins, has been announced as the recipient of the International Rugby Board’s 2013 Development Award.

Robin today travels from Sydney to Dublin to join the rugby’s who’s who and accept her award at the IRB World Rugby Conference & Exhibition at the Aviva Stadium in Dublin on Monday (18 November). Her award comes just weeks after a fellow female NSW administrator, Sydney Juniors administrator Kerry Brady, won the Australian Rugby Union’s prestigious Nick Farr-Jones Spirit of Rugby Award for 2013.
The announcement caps off a huge year for Robin. In June she was awarded the Medal of the Order of Australia, having celebrated 45 years of service to the NSW Rugby Union. She is already Australia’s first female referee and the first female in the NSW Rugby Union’s 139-year history to receive an Honorary Life Membership.

The IRB Development Award recognises an organisation or individual who has made a significant contribution to the global development of rugby.

Past recipients include the South African Rugby Union (2012), The USA’s Rookie Rugby program (2011) and Brian O’Shea (2010), who was Australian Rugby Union’s High Performance Manager and coach of the NSW Waratahs.

Robin becomes only the second woman to win the award since Cambodian Federation of Rugby President, Tan Theany, accepted the award with Vice President, Philippe Monin in 2003.

NSW Rugby Chairman Nick Farr-Jones said he was thrilled to see Robin’s long-standing devotion recognised at the global level.

“This is a truly wonderful honour for Robin and, on behalf of the NSW rugby community, I offer her my heartfelt congratulations,” said Farr-Jones.

“Robin’s contribution to our game over an incredible 45 years has been phenomenal and she is a great example of the many incredible people who make rugby so special. I am delighted to see her dedication and passion recognised and rewarded, she is a thoroughly deserving recipient.”

Robin’s service to the development of rugby began in 1968 when Sydney Rugby Union employed her as Secretary.

She soon developed an interest in refereeing but was initially told she couldn’t sit for the exam due to her sex. Upon investigating the constitution and finding no mention of gender, was allowed to complete the exam, which she passed to become the first active female rugby referee in Australia.

In a 45-year career, Robin has been involved as a referee and as an administrator, and is currently serving as NSW Rugby Union’s Referee Assistant.

Robin will join rugby royalty in Dublin at the awards night next Monday with the IRB Hall of Fame induction ceremony taking place alongside the IRB World Rugby Conference and Exhibition for the first time. Her passion for the game has seen her fly out early in order to attend the Wallabies v Ireland Test match on Saturday.

Monday will also see four legendary NSW Waratahs inducted into the prestigious IRB Hall of Fame. David Campese, John Thornett, Ken Catchpole and Mark Ella are amongst 11 legends who will be inducted into the IRB Hall of Fame under the theme of ‘The British & Irish Lions and Australia’.

Held annually, the IRB Awards and IRB Hall of Fame recognises and celebrates those involved at the highest level of international rugby, on and off the field.