Mark Alexander, President of SA Rugby, congratulated three South African women referees who have earned appointments in the two Women’s Six Nations competitions in the coming months.
Aimee Barrett-Theron will become the second woman to referee 50 tests (after England’s Sara Cox) with her appointment to the Women’s Six Nations along with Zoe Naude, while Giana Viljoen will feature in the inaugural U21 Women’s Six Nations series.
“The work done by our Referees Department to uplift and upskill our women’s match officials has just been amazing,” said Alexander.
“Over the years, Aimee has cemented her name as one of the top referees in the world, and to reach 50 tests is a well-deserved accolade, and we would like to congratulate her on this achievement.
“Zoe and Giana are now where Aimee was many years ago and their appointments are just reward for the hard work they’ve been putting in. We are very proud of them and would like to wish them all the best on the missions ahead.”
Barrett-Theron will become only the fourth South African match official to take charge of 50 tests – following Jonathan Kaplan, Craig Joubert and Jaco Peyper – with the Women’s Six Nations opener on 11 April, when France host Italy in Grenoble.
She will then travel to Kansas City in the USA for the Pacific Four Series clash between Canada and New Zealand on 17 April, and Barrett-Theron will also referee the Six Nations test between Scotland and France in Edinburgh on 9 May.
Naude refereed the first of her two tests on 19 September 2024, when the Bok Women took on Spain at the DHL Stadium in Cape Town.
She has been appointed to referee the Women’s Six Nations match between Scotland and England in Edinburgh on 18 April.
Viljoen, who is part of World Rugby’s Talent ID programme, is one of seven match officials on the panel for the nine games in the inaugural U21 Women’s Six Nations, which runs from 18 April to 10 May.
Her appointments are for the matches on 2 May between France and Scotland in Tarbes, and 10 May, when Wales host Ireland in Caerphilly.