Its rare for a referee in any sport to be popular, yet Nigel Owens has always courted strong affection throughout the world he is loved by players, coaches, officials, TV commentators and even fans. A real character, some of his famous put-downs whilst lecturing players such as This is not soccer, have gone viral on social media. The best rugby referee of his generation, Nigel also has an incredible backstory to tell. After coming through dark times, during which he tried to take his own life, he was the first leading figure in the macho world of rugby union to come out openly as gay and went on to command respect everywhere for his honesty off the pitch and ability as a referee on it. This is an inspirational story of triumph over adversity, hope over despair. It all makes for a truly compelling read. The hardback version of this autobiography is a bestseller, widely seen as the rugby book of the year when it came out in 2022.
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Its rare for a referee in any sport to be popular, yet Nigel Owens has always courted strong affection throughout the world he is loved by players, coaches, officials, TV commentators and even fans. A real character, some of his famous put-downs whilst lecturing players such as This is not soccer, have gone viral on social media. The best rugby referee of his generation, Nigel also has an incredible backstory to tell. After coming through dark times, during which he tried to take his own life, he was the first leading figure in the macho world of rugby union to come out openly as gay and went on to command respect everywhere for his honesty off the pitch and ability as a referee on it. This is an inspirational story of triumph over adversity, hope over despair. It all makes for a truly compelling read. The hardback version of this autobiography is a bestseller, widely seen as the rugby book of the year when it came out in 2022. -- Publisher: Y Lolfa
Foreword by Dan Carter Acknowledgements Prologue 1 Breaking down
barriers 2 Dark days, seeing the light 3 This is not soccer and the odd
Twitter spat 4 How it all began (or very nearly didnt) 5 Death threats and
great games 6 Towards the top of the world 7 Reaching the summit 8 Steak
lunch with the Queen 9 2019 World Cup 10 100 and out, but not quite the
farewell planned 11 Barrie and me, farming and the future Nigels 100-Test
career
Nigel Owens is an internationally respected Welsh rugby union referee, loved by fans and respected by players worldwide. When he retired in 2020, he was the world record holder for most Test matches refereed and he is one of only two Welsh referees ever to officiate at a Rugby World Cup Final. He has also presented shows on S4C, and in 2011 was appointed to Wales' prestigious Gorsedd of Bards. In 2007 he came out as gay, and is an icon in the LGBTQ community. Both the first volume of his autobiography, Half Time (Y Lolfa, 2009) and the hardback version of this book are huge bestsellers.
Paul Abbandonato is an award-winning journalist and author. He spent many years as Head of Sport at WalesOnline, and was 2018 UK Regional Sports Journalist of the Year. He is the author of Barry John: The George Best of Rugby(Mainstream Publishing, 2000), Gary Speed Remembered (Andre Deutsch Ltd, 2012) and In the Dragons' Den: The scarcely believable stories from 30 years at the sharp end of Welsh football (Y Lolfa, 2025).
