Pazani, a former player for Zimbabwe’s sevens team, will be
an assistant referee for the championship, which began on 26 March and runs
until 30 April. South Africa’s Aimee Barrett-Theron was the other assistant
referee for yesterday’s clash in Grenoble.
“From watching the Six Nations back at home, I’ve always
been keen and thought it would be nice to be involved in such tournaments,”
Pazani told BBC Sport Africa. Now I am here and living that dream.
“I am really excited about it and can’t wait to be part of
it. It is a bigger challenge, a bigger game and bigger exposure. I am really
chuffed that I got that appointment. It’s big for me; I am really happy.”
Pazani refereed a World Cup qualifier between Kenya and
Colombia last September, but believes the Women’s Six Nations, which also
involves England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales, will be a step up.
“There are some strong teams,” she said. “Compared to the
qualifier that I refereed, the women who played in it are not as experienced as
these guys.
“Some of the people who play in the Six Nations are
professionals. There is some really good rugby being played at this level.”
Pazani believes being involved in the tournament will give
her the chance to be selected for this year’s Women’s World Cup, which will be
held in New Zealand in October-November.
Her view echoes that of World Rugby’s match officials
selection committee chairman at the time of the referees’ announcement.
“The 2022 Women’s Six Nations is a significant step for our
match officials on their journey to Rugby World Cup 2021 in New Zealand and
builds on recent selections for the men’s U20 Six Nations,” said Graham Mourie.
“Any referee that starts in their career, if you take it
seriously you want to be involved in the biggest tournaments,” rallied Pazani.
“The same teams that play at the Six Nations are the ones
you most probably have playing at the World Cup.
“If I do make it to the World Cup that would be good
because you have already experienced the atmosphere. You don’t get baffled when
you get on the park.
“If you don’t get the appointment (for the World Cup), then
you are already halfway there and know what it is that you are expecting,”
Pazani, who became a rugby sevens international after
previously playing basketball for leading Zimbabwean clubs, believes African
women’s rugby is slowly closing on Europe and the rest of the world.
“There is a huge gap between African countries and other
countries but I think as time progresses, with a lot of players coming in and a
lot more rugby happening in Africa, that gap can be reduced,” she said.
“But right now we are still growing. The rugby being played
a few years ago is not the same as the rugby being played now. Things have
changed, teams have developed and are playing better.
“It has improved over the years and it is still getting
better as the years progress.” Pazani has already been involved in the men’s
Under-20 Six Nations this year, along with Barrett-Theron and hopes more female
officials will break through and enjoy more involvement in the men’s game.
“You also have some women getting involved in it and it’s
pretty big. They have recognised a lot of women to be part of it, especially
for the Under-20s,” Pazani said.
“It is a good starting point to be having us in the U20s
and still doing our own women’s games.
“Hopefully we’ll see one of our own being part of the
senior men’s Six Nations. It’s huge being recognised by World Rugby like that.
We are going in the right direction.” – BBC Sport Africa
0 comments:
Post a Comment