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鈥淚 feel incredibly humbled to receive the award. I鈥檝e put more into this season of umpiring than I have in any other year,鈥� said.

The Academic Fellow has continually made history throughout her 10-year career as an umpire.

As a member of the AFL鈥檚 National Female Umpiring Academy, she was the first female Sydneysider and the second woman to officiate as a field umpire in a NEAFL (North East Australian Football League) game.

鈥淲e are very proud of Dr Victoria Rawlings鈥� success as an AFL umpire,鈥� said Professor Annamarie Jagose, Dean of .

鈥淎t the heart of umpiring is the exercise of good judgment under pressure. Victoria鈥檚 ability to manage her academic alongside her sporting commitments make her a role model for both her students and her colleagues.鈥�

Away from the field, Victoria鈥檚 academic research focuses on the relationships between gender, sexuality, youth and social structures, particularly in relation to the ways that traditional concepts of 'bullying' fail to address violence in schools.

She finds her research connects with her experience as a female umpire.

鈥淚t can be a double-edged sword. On one hand, young people can see a pathway in football apart from just playing, which is excellent as it provides a new perspective,鈥� she said.

鈥淎t the same time, being noticed as a female umpire creates more pressure to perform as it can foster gender-specific doubt in my capabilities.

鈥淭here are times that sexism rears its head from players, coaches or crowd members, which is something that only female umpires face. I鈥檓 lucky to be well supported by my umpires and coaches when this happens.鈥�

Academia and AFL

鈥淲orking in education with a focus on gender provides me with a lot of perspective about the experiences I have umpiring,鈥� she said.

鈥淚鈥檓 able to take a critical lens to moments of inequality, exclusion and discrimination, which are thankfully less and less common as time goes on, to analyse the structural and cultural iniquities that are at play.鈥�

鈥淚 also find that my experiences at umpiring enhance my teaching. I鈥檓 able to talk through metaphors and examples to explain theoretical concepts in different ways, which are beneficial to students.鈥�

Keeping both balls in the air

鈥淪o far, I鈥檝e managed to make my double-life work, although sometimes it does feel like I work two jobs,鈥� Victoria said.

鈥淚鈥檓 incredibly lucky to have supportive colleagues at the University of Sydney who understand that sometimes I need to miss events or meetings due to football commitments. Equally, my coaches and team mates at umpiring respect that I sometimes need to miss training sessions or games due to work.鈥�

And her award is recognition of great things to come: 鈥淚t鈥檚 an incredible reward which will motivate me to keep running and pushing for improvement over summer and into the AFLW season. My love of being involved in the game keeps me persevering.鈥�