The Bald Ref - standing up for referees, and for mental health
Update: 2025-10-24
Description
Today, we're joined by Jonny Cartwright, who you may know as The_Bald_Ref on Instagram. He's just been recognised as Loosehead Of the Year 2025 at the Looseheadz Community Awards.
We talk about:
- Jonny's journey from coach to referee
- How he develops referees in his role as T&D lead in Manchester & District Referees (MADRefs)
- How Looseheadz is and how he got into supporting them (trigger warning)
- #WaffleWednesday
- His officiating at the World Record rugby matches in Ireland earlier in 2025
- How he got into trouble for calling out clubs on Instagram when they fail to respect referees
- The effect that has on referee resilience and mental health of match officials
Resources & Links:
- Jonny on Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/the_bald_ref/
- LooseHeadz: https://looseheadz.co.uk/
- LH help and support: https://looseheadz.co.uk/help-and-support/
- Previous episodes covering mental health and resilience subjects in rugby and refereeing - Nick Marshall and Tim Wyatt
If you have any comments about this episode, or suggestions for future shows, then drop me a line at ref@rugbyreferee.net!
You can follow us here:
Instagram: RugbyRefereenet
Facebook: Page: RugbyReferee.net
Facebook Group: RugbyReferee.net Community
Or you can connect with Keith personally on Twitter or LinkedIn
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