Captain Nikki takes charge
Nikki O’Donnell will be only the second female referee to reach this level in the men’s game.
When Nikki O’Donnell takes charge of Leeds Tykes v Birmingham Moseley on Saturday, she will be only the second female referee to reach this level in the men’s game, the first in the middle at a National League One match being Sara Cox.
Having often officiated at women’s international matches and Allianz Premier XV games, as well as men’s National Two level and military encounters, Nikki is a Nursing Officer in Queen Alexandra’s Royal Army Nursing Corps, currently stationed in York. She has been in the Army for a decade and has worked both at the Defence Medical Rehabilitation Centre, and at Joint Hospital Group (SE) at Frimley Park Hospital. When she isn’t on the wards or out on the pitch, she runs a charity rugby team fundraising for Scotty's Little Soldiers who support children whose parents have died while serving in the armed forces.
I took a refereeing course to understand what I was and wasn’t allowed to do...”
Nikki O’Donnell
“I was playing as a back at Darlington Mowden Park Sharks with the likes of Katy Daley-Mclean and Tamara Taylor on Sundays and refereeing on Saturdays. I stopped playing around 2015, having played about five years for the Army, after needing an operation for an injury.
“I’ve coached both football and rugby but always really enjoy the refereeing side, you are really involved and facilitating what the players are trying to do. Not so much of the challenge standing behind the white line at a match, watching on. The similarity is when you do a good job everyone is talking about the players and not the coaches or referees, that is the goal.
“Serving in the Army, I’ve been really fortunate that my clinical duties allow for me to keep most Saturdays free and I’m now on the Army Elite Sport Program which gives me access to the TASS scheme. That means that when I can’t get to Twickenham to train with the professional match official team, I’m able to train closer to home with tailored support and being in the military you have to maintain your fitness levels.
“I would love to officiate at the coming Women’s Rugby World Cup. Just like players, I think if you are enjoying yourself on the pitch, the performance will take care of itself. At 36, I’m still loving every minute but again, like the players, is not in your hands. I’m still intent on going out on the pitch and doing a good job, still loving it and refereeing Leeds Tykes against Birmingham Moseley will be a great day and one I will certainly remember.”
