A leaked report has shown that Coleraine Rugby club has been fined £5,000 by the IRFU’s Ulster branch for "sustained, vile, sexist abuse" directed by a small group of supporters towards a female referee.
BBC News Northern Ireland has published the report based on the six-page document written by referee Grainne Crabtree on the "tirade of profanities and sexual remarks" she was subjected to back in March when she oversaw a game between Coleraine and Dromore RFC in the Ulster Rugby Championship.
Crabtree details how four men continued the tirade of abuse for the full 80 minutes, leaving her feel "anxious and unsettled".
"Yo, you slag, you're a f***ing disgrace, you slag," was just one example of the language used.
One of just three female referees in Ulster, Crabtree confronted the four men after the final whistle to include their names in the match report, whereupon the verbal abuse continued.
The former Ulster player was dismayed at the £2000 suspended fine that was handed down to the club, and the Ulster Society of Rugby Football Referees (USRFR) refused to officiate at any Coleraine home games in protest over the lack of an apology.
A second investigation was held in September when the Ulster Branch received the referee’s report and it has been revealed that the club has now been fined £5,000.
It is understood that £2,000 of that fine will be returned to Coleraine RFC in two years if there are no further incidents.
None of the men responsible for the abuse have been identified or disciplined.
A Coleraine RFC spokesperson said this week the club was "pleased" that the issue had now been resolved.
Crabtree is one of only 12 female rugby referees in the country, but in its five-year strategic review released this week, the IRFU says it hopes to increase this number to 80 by 2023.
The match official has now completed a Level 4 course, qualifying her to referee All-Ireland League matches.
