Beaumont stopped me quitting game – Owens

NIGEL Owens has revealed how a handwritten letter from Bill Beaumont stopped him from walking away from refereeing a year before he took charge of the 2015 World Cup final.

Back in 2014, Owens was the victim of homophobic abuse during England’s defeat to New Zealand at Twickenham - with two supporters banned from the ground for two years and fined £1,000.

Owens considered quitting officiating after the incident, but, in a piece with the Telegraph , he revealed how a handwritten letter from then Rugby Football Union chairman Beaumont helped change his mind.

“I remember opening the post that day and seeing a letter with an RFU postmark on it and wondering what it was,” said Owens. “I opened it and what first struck me was that it was handwritten and then I saw it was from Bill.

“I sat down and read through it and I found a huge amount of strength from it, in that they had taken the time to handwrite the letter and shown his support to me.

“He said the RFU was doing everything it could to deal with this issue in the correct manner, because there was no place for it in sport, at Twickenham or any other stadium.

“He said I was respected in rugby and Twickenham as a person and as a referee, and it brought a tear to my eye. It really meant a lot. I read it again and again and again and the bit that stayed in my mind was that I would always be welcome at Twickenham.

“The letter didn’t feel like a letter that had been typed up and just sent so they were ticking all the boxes. It was a letter that really meant something.

“It came from a true rugby person - a powerful rugby person, as chairman of the RFU. The words meant something... it was meant to show me support and to encourage me to keep on doing what I was doing and also to show that people truly and really care.”

Also speaking to the Telegraph, Beaumont, who is now World Rugby chairman, revealed that he decided to write a letter to Owens after what he described as “repugnant” comments towards the referee - wanting to show the Welshman that both he and the RFU cared about the incident and the game as a whole.

“I felt it was better being handwritten because, too often, you can get somebody to type you a letter and you top and tail it,” explained Beaumont. “I wanted it to be more personal.

Beaumont explained in the letter that he felt it was sad that someone would stoop so low to personally insult him and that he would always be welcome at Twickenham.

He also expressed his respect for Owens as a referee and a person praising his strength for carrying on.

Beaumont believes others would have played a part in Owens not hanging up his whistle, but admits he feels humbled if his letter played any part in Owens’ decision to keep on going.

“He would have had friends and colleagues in the refereeing fraternity who would also have supported him and requested that he carried on,” continued Beaumont.

“But I feel quite humble in a way if my letter enabled him to carry on refereeing.

“And to think that the highlight of his refereeing career came a year later, at the World Cup final between New Zealand and Australia (below) – at Twickenham.”