[ad_1]
Aimee Barrett-Theron and Embrose Papier (Rooster)
The Bulls ended a 10-year trophy drought by beating the Pumas 21-5 on Saturday to win the South African Super Rugby Unlocked competition, but the referee was also making history.
For the first time in South African rugby, a woman refereed a match of 15 top-level players.
Aimee Barrett-TheronThe 33-year-old was the one who made history and delivered an impeccable performance in a rain-soaked Loftus Versfeld Stadium in Pretoria as the Bulls triumphed after leading 21-0 at halftime.
“This is not how we scrum, we solve it,” he instructed the rival front rows two minutes before halftime after another reset from set pieces.
“That’s unnecessary, don’t do that,” Barrett-Theron told Bulls side David Kriel after he shoved an opponent in a off-the-ball incident during the second half.
Barrett-Theron has been a familiar figure as an assistant referee throughout the tournament, but was elevated to the role of match referee on Saturday.
Turning his attention to the importance of victory, Bulls captain and Rugby World Cup winner Springbok loose forward Duane Vermeulen said: “It’s great to be champions again after 10 years, although our performance hasn’t lived up to it.
“We were disappointed in the performance of basics like lineouts and scrums due to lack of focus, especially in the second half.”
The Bulls’ first triumph since winning the Super Rugby title in 2010 confirmed former Springboks coach Jake White as a world master in reviving the fortunes of teams.
He transformed South Africa from the loser of the quarter-finals at the 2003 Rugby World Cup to the winner of the next edition four years later.
White then improved on the ACT Brumbies in Australia, the Sharks in South Africa, Montpellier in France, Toyota Verblitz in Japan before joining the Bulls.
