Hollie Davidson makes history (again) and sets sights on men’s Rugby World Cup

Hollie Davidson has challenged rugby’s status quo throughout her career and the Scot will make another breakthrough next month when she becomes the first female referee to officiate in the men’s World Rugby U20 Championship.

Not content with that, Davidson set herself the goal of a men’s Rugby World Cup. Having refereed the women’s Rugby World Cup final between New Zealand and England last year it would be a remarkable double for the Aberdonian who made history last summer when she took charge of the Portugal v Italy international, becoming the first female to officiate a men’s Six Nations team in a Test match. She has also refereed regularly in the United Rugby Championship and led the first all-female team of officials in a European match when Scarlets hosted the Cheetahs in the Challenge Cup in January.

“When I got involved in reffing, I always wanted to try and push myself to become one of the best,” she told World Rugby. “Push boundaries, push perceptions and continue to challenge.” Before heading to South Africa to work at the World Rugby U20 Championship, Davidson will take up assistant referee duties in three men’s Rugby World Cup 2023 warm-up matches in August – Romania v USA in Bucharest, Portugal v USA in the Algarve and England v Fiji at Twickenham. Davidson hopes the U20s tournament can be a staging post on the way to earning selection for a men’s Rugby World Cup.

“The under-20s is a great opportunity to make that step into the next stage of World Rugby men’s tests,” she said. “To be honest, I see this as maybe the first step on that journey [to a men’s Rugby World Cup]. What’s probably most important now is that yes, I go down there but I put in performances that I’m proud of and it allows me to continue that journey. It’s fine me being there but if I then go down and don’t perform, then it’s maybe a backward step. So, I just need to go down, stay focused and then hopefully the journey continues after the junior World Cup.”

Hollie Davidson took charge of the Scarlets v Cheetahs European Challenge Cup match in January. (Photo by Michael Steele/Getty Images)

The U20 world championship, which kicks off on June 24, will mark a swift return to Cape Town for Davidson who was an assistant referee for the Stormers’ URC semi-final defeat of Connacht at the DHL Stadium last month. “South Africans love their rugby,” she said. “We were just down for the URC semi-final and to get 47,000 in Cape Town was unbelievable and I’ve got no doubt they’ll turn out for the U20s as well. So, to get the experience in front of those crowds and to be in a country that just absolutely is so passionate about their rugby is great, it’s so exciting.”

The sternest test of Davidson’s career thus far came at Eden Park last November during the World Cup final as hosts New Zealand beat England 34-31 and she needed to make a huge decision after 17 minutes. Davidson sent off England winger Lydia Thompson for a dangerous tackle on Portia Woodman-Wickliffe. “In that situation, because it was red, I just felt quite still actually, quite calm and in control because it wasn't a 50-50 decision,” she explained. “It probably was very clear cut, which then makes it a little bit easier.”