Fresh from officiating at the pinnacle of international rugby, Canterbury District’s Senior Advisor Leadership Development Sarah Persico is back in her day job after serving as a citing commissioner at the recent Women’s Rugby World Cup.
Reflecting on her experience at the hallowed Twickenham turf, Sarah says what stands out for her now is the enormity of it all.
“It's a World Cup and we were on the world stage. That’s pretty big in my book.”
Sarah’s role was to pick up any acts of foul play that the on-field officials might have missed.
“We’re making calls that can impact players’ careers. If a decision is upheld, it can lead to someone being stood down.
“In fact, a couple were, based on our recommendations. Some of the incidents we dealt with even made international headlines.”
Sarah was the only Kiwi in a diverse team of citing commissioners from around the world.
“It was like the start of a bad joke,” she says, “an Englishman, an Irishman, a Welshman, a Canadian woman, a French woman, a Kiwi woman and an Australian woman – what could possibly go wrong?”
Thankfully nothing did and it was Sarah who got things under way. She was appointed chief citing commissioner for the opening game of the tournament, England vs USA, and admitted it was nerve-wracking.
“It was quite cool, and stressful. But you know you’re not on your own. You’ve got a group of highly skilled people alongside you.
“We’ve got access to every camera angle, at least 15 for a final, and we can pick wide, handheld left or right, back corner, or close-up. We clip incidents in real-time and review them during breaks or at halftime.”
Teams have four hours post-match to refer incidents, while commissioners have 12 hours to submit reports.
Understanding foul play is critical Sarah says. “It’s more than knowing the rules. It’s knowing the framework. Sometimes a head clash is just an unfortunate rugby incident. Other times, it starts legal and ends illegal.”
She highlighted the fine margins in technique. “They may have had a chance to bend at the hips and make a good tackle, but they chose to stay upright. That margin between getting it right and it going horribly wrong is really fine.
"Our role is to keep things fair, but also to keep players safe."
With record-breaking crowds, this year’s World Cup is being touted as being the most successful yet and Sarah has returned home confident that women’s rugby is in “a really good place”.
She praised Canada’s performance in the semi-final against the Black Ferns. “We just got outplayed and out-muscled but they’ll come home and reflect. Those top four teams – England, New Zealand, Canada and France are really close, and the others are getting closer, which is great for the sport.”
A former women’s rugby international herself, Sarah regularly serves as citing commissioner for NPC, Super Rugby and international rugby games.
She first got involved in the role following encouragement from the late former Superintendent Steve Hinds, who was head of citing for World Rugby and saw the need for greater diversity in the ranks.
Her selection for the World Cup is recognition of her experience and capability.
“I consider it a real privilege. It was an opportunity to give something back to the sport that gave me so much,” Sarah explains.
“When I was playing for the Black Ferns, I got a lot of opportunities, not only on the field but off the field as well. I’m really grateful for that.”
Sarah likes to joke with her police officer husband that she juggles three jobs to support their tight-knit family of four, but the truth is Sarah has managed to find that sweet spot between time, money and doing what she loves.
In addition to her full-time role as Canterbury District’s Senior Advisor Leadership Development and her regular rugby commitments, Sarah also takes spin and boxfit classes at a local gym.
The common thread she says is people.
“I'm a people person. I love my job here in Police – I like helping people, supporting them in their careers.
“We recently had two detective sergeants appointed and even if I’ve had just the tiniest part in their journey, it really makes my day.
“When I'm taking a spin class, I love seeing the same people coming back. I know when they're going on holiday or when they’re having surgery, so I can check in with them. I enjoy getting to know the people I deal with.”