NZ star making mark as ref

THERE is is no other word for it … Rebecca Mahoney’s rise to rugby refereeing stardom has been phenomenal.

How else could you describe her effort to be appointed to control the 2015 national provincial championship women’s final between Auckland and Wellington (won by Auckland) in what is her first full season in the refereeing ranks? Or the women’s final, won by Australia, at the Youth Commonwealth Games in Samoa for that matter.

And then there is her selection to attend a World Rugby Sevens Female Rugby Referee development workshop in Dubai at the end of this month. Quite an achievement as well.

Even Mahoney is still pinching herself at how rapidly she has progressed in her new role after a stellar playing career in which she played 16 tests for the Black Ferns, including World Cup-winning campaigns in both 2006 and 2010, as well as 13 seasons of interprovincial competition where she has worn the colours of Wellington, Manawatu and Hawke’s Bay.

“Honestly, I never thought for a moment things would happen so quickly, it’s been crazy really,” Mahoney said yesterday from the cattle farm she manages with husband Luke near Eketahuna.

Making Mahoney’s effort even more noteworthy is the fact she missed most of the Wairarapa-Bush club season through a calf injury and was understandably a “little unsure” of her readiness to step up to NPC level as a consequence.

“I guess it wasn’t the ideal preparation but it all worked out well in the end.”

Mahoney believes her experiences as a player have been a huge help to her in the refereeing ranks, particularly when it comes to visualising what teams are trying to do before they actually do it, but, at the same time, she has found there are major differences too.

“Refereeing is a lot about player management, you are out there to ensure the players are given a fair go and can enjoy the game so the quicker you get them on side the better for everyone. Communication is so important, if you get that right everything else pretty much falls into place.”

Mahoney is also at pains to emphasise the “very valuable” support she has received from the refereeing hierarchy, both here in Wairarapa-Bush and the national body.

“The encouragement has been fantastic, I couldn’t have asked for anything more,” she said. “It hasn’t all been me, that’s for sure, there’s been a heck of a lot of help along the way.”

Meanwhile, Bay of Plenty referee Bree Johnson will control the match between the New Zealand Heartland XV and New Zealand Marist XV to be played at Memorial Park, Masterton, on Saturday, kicking off at 6pm. Assistant referees will be Alistair Payne and Chris Jefferies.

By Gary Caffell – Wairarapa Times-Age