Six Nations captain halts press conference to make speech about female ref | Rugby | Sport
Michele Lamaro has praised referee Hollie Davidson (Image: Getty)
Italy captain Michele Lamaro concluded his post-match press conference following the close 20-13 loss to Ireland with a tribute to referee Hollie Davidson.
Davidson made history on Saturday as she became the first woman to ever officiate a men’s Six Nations match. The Scot received widespread acclaim for her handling of the gripping contest.
After fielding numerous questions about the game, Lamaro, unprompted, offered plenty of praise to Davidson before leaving the media room in Dublin, as per Wales Online.
“I want to emphasise that the referee, Hollie Davidson has been outstanding. It’s obviously the first time ever for a woman referee in the Men’s Six Nations, and I want to congratulate her,” Lamaro said after Italy’s 20-13 defeat by Ireland in Dublin.
“She has been doing so much for world rugby and our game and I think it’s an important thing to say. I appreciated the work we did together today on the pitch.
“Whatever the decision was, I was backing her and making sure everything was going the right way so I just want to congratulate her and thank her for the effort on the field.”
Davidson, aged 33, became the first woman to oversee an All Blacks match during the autumn when they played Wales in Cardiff.
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Her journey to the summit has not always been straightforward, with the official disclosing she has endured abuse from supporters throughout her career.
Davidson took charge of her first men’s match in 2021, though has still found herself subjected to abuse from critics, despite establishing her reputation as a highly-regarded official at the highest level.
Online abusers launched vicious attacks following the European Challenge final between Bath and Lyon in Cardiff last season, with her family members also being targeted.
Hollie Davidson refereed the Six Nations match between Italy and Ireland (Image: Getty)
“I made a wrong call on a head contact and my name was being pulled through the mud and then my family received abuse,” Davidson said. “It really challenged me when I thought I was causing my family pain.
“You have to accept this is part and parcel of our job. But I hope we don’t get to a point where the only people left at the top are the people that can hack it. Because then we don’t have the best officials, we just have the people with thicker skins.”
Davidson was raised in Aberdeenshire, played as a scrum-half during her playing career, having been inspired to take up the sport by her father.
She received a call-up for the Scotland U20 team in 2010 and subsequently the senior squad but she was never capped, having suffered a dislocated shoulder. She studied economic history at the University of Edinburgh and worked for banking giants JP Morgan following her graduation.
Davidson began her officiating journey in 2015, and would oversee her first men’s fixture six years later.
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