Rugby league referee James Child was married in North Yorkshire on Saturday to his fiance, Steven.

James, one of nine full-time referees employed by the Rugby Football League who took charge of the Challenge Cup final in May, announced he was gay in February 2021.

He tied the knot at Birdsall House near Malton to Steven, 32, an aesthetician who has his own aesthetics business.

Among the guests were the couple’s adopted son Harris, who recently turned one and, by a remarkable coincidence, was born on the day James and Steven were due to get married in 2021, with the event postponed because of the Covid pandemic.

The couple are spending a short “mini-moon” in the North West but hope to honeymoon in South Africa in December.