Aimee Barrett-Theron, the first professional female rugby referee in South Africa and one of only four fully professional female rugby referees in the world, was the Guest Speaker at Cannons Creek Independent High School on 22 September 2023. She spoke at the Certificate Awards Assembly, where she initially congratulated all pupils for doing what they loved.

Aimee Barrett-Theron, during her motivational speech.

Theron shared insights into being a referee – they are scrutinised in terms of how they behave, what they look like, and how they run on the field; adding that they run 7-8km per game, have 6-10 training sessions per week, and make approximately 800 decisions per game. She added that they need to pass a Law exam every year, as well as a fitness test for every competition. However hard the moments of intense chaos are, she shared that she is privileged to travel and have experiences such as sharing a deep-dish pizza in USA and cuddling a koala in Australia.

Aimee Barrett-Theron handing out a certificate at the Awards Assembly.

Her advice to the pupils was to do what you love, set a goal, and be determined to achieve it. It’ll be tough, but it’ll be worth it. She added, “sometimes a mistake is the best way to learn, so don’t be afraid to make them.” Theron shared her reason for choosing her career was choosing something you love, and you’ll never work a day in your life, adding “If I can make it for Rugby in South Africa… you can do anything!” Theron encouraged interested pupils to pursue reffing as it is a great way to challenge yourself as each game is different so it poses a good mental challenge implementing the 21 laws of Rugby.

Theron’s determination was inspiring to all, to continue breaking barriers – for Rugby as a sport, for women, and for sport in South Africa. She shared the harsh reality of being a woman in a male-dominated sport, that she needs to operate at 150% just to be seen to be operating at 100%. She gifted the school a signed official’s shirt.

Aimee Barrett-Theron, with the Sports department – Mrs Ju-Anita Skea (Head of Sport), Ms Satcey Block, Mr Keith Ingram, and Mr Tim Davidse, with some Grade 11 pupils.

More about Aimee: Aimee is the first professional female rugby referee in South Africa and one of only four fully professional female rugby referees in the world. She comes from a playing background as she represented South Africa as a player in three Touch Rugby World Cups as well as one 7’s World Cup and one 15’s World Cup. Aimee was the first South African woman to referee Craven Week, Varsity Cup, Currie Cup, Super Rugby and URC.

She has refereed 35 international test matches which equals the record for the most capped women’s referee of all time. She has also refereed at the Rio Olympics (2016), Commonwealth Games (2018) and Women’s Rugby World Cup (2017 & 2021). She has her Masters in Sport Science and is a qualified Biokineticist running her own practice here in Pinelands.