1
English referees appointed for both All Blacks vs Springboks games
World Rugby have named the referees for the remaining 2021 Rugby Championship matches which will be played in Australia next month, starting with the September 5 meeting of the Wallabies and the All Blacks in Perth which will see Australian Damon Murphy make his debut in the Championship fresh from taking charge of the gold medal men’s sevens match featuring Fiji at the Olympics in Tokyo.
ADVERTISEMENT
While the Wallabies versus All Blacks game was originally pencilled to take place in Western Australia, it was only decided at the top of this week to also stage the other eight remaining fixtures in the tournament in Australia with the Gold Coast, Brisbane, Townsville and the Gold Coast for a second time staging double-headers across four successive weekends.
The most eagerly awaited match-ups are the two meetings featuring the All Blacks versus the Springboks, the 2019 World Cup winners who have flown out to Australia on Thursday fresh from their Test series victory over the Lions which they followed with two Championship wins over Argentina. With South Africa opting out of last year’s Australian-held Championship, the age-old rivals have not clashed since the September 2019 World Cup pool match in Japan, a game that was won by the All Blacks.
World Rugby have decided to appoint English referees for the renewal of this ancient rivalry with Luke Pearce on the whistle in Townsville on September 25 for the 100th All Blacks versus Springboks Test match followed by Matthew Carley taking charge of the following weekend’s rematch on the Gold Coast.
Carley, who hasn’t previously refereed in the Championship, will referee a total of three matches. He will make his bow in the tournament on September 18 when Australia play South Africa in Brisbane and he will also be in charge when the Wallabies play Argentina the following week in Townsville. Meanwhile, Pearce will also referee the September 12 meeting of South Africa-Australia, meaning English referees have been appointed for five of the remaining nine games in the Championship.
Rassie Erasmus is being egged on by a former Springboks coachhttps://t.co/l5sSQ0E5AK
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) August 24, 2021
The Championship fixtures will also see under-fire Nic Berry back on the Test match whistle after finding himself controversially on the receiving end of much criticism from SA Rugby director Rassie Erasmus following the July 24 first Test loss by the Springboks to the Lions in Cape Town. Berry will take charge of the All Blacks versus Argentina match on the Gold Coast on September 12. Meanwhile, South African Jaco Peyper has been handed two Argentina refereeing assignments, taking charge of their matches against New Zealand in Brisbane and versus Australia on the Gold Coast.
UPDATED RUGBY CHAMPIONSHIP SCHEDULE
Round One – August 14
New Zealand 57 Australia 22 (Auckland)
Springboks 32 Argentina 12 (Port Elizabeth)
ADVERTISEMENT
Round Two – August 21
Argentina 10 Springboks 29 (Port Elizabeth)
September 5: Australia v New Zealand (Perth – Damon Murphy, RA))
Round Three – September 12 (Gold Coast)
New Zealand v Argentina (Nic Berry, RA)
Springboks v Australia (Luke Pearce (RFU)
Round Four – September 18 (Brisbane)
Argentina v New Zealand (Jaco Peyper, SARU)
Australia v Springboks (Matthew Carley, RFU)
Round Five – September 25 (Townsville)
New Zealand v Springboks (Luke Pearce, RFU)
Australia v Argentina (Matthew Carley, RFU)
ADVERTISEMENT
Round Six – October 2 (Gold Coast)
Springboks v New Zealand (Matthew Carley, RFU)
Argentina v Australia (Jaco Peyper, SARU)
It's finally here ?
The Season – Brisbane Boys College – Episode 1 https://t.co/nNeVp2MbAt pic.twitter.com/AZBQO2hn8u
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) August 22, 2021
Comments on RugbyPass
The game was a quarter final, not a semi final. Barrett will be here for 6 months, he is no one's replacement at 13. That mantle will most likely ultimately go to Jamie Osborne, though Garry Ringrose has at least 4 more years in him. The long term problem position (in the next 3 years) for Leinster is tighthead prop, though there are a couple of prospects at schools level.
21 Go to commentsSo much for all that hype surrounding the ‘revival’ of Aussie rugby. The Blues were without the likes of regular starters Perofeta, Sullivan, Christie etc… This was a capitulation of the highest order by Australia’s finest. Joe Schmidt definitely has his work cut out for him.
2 Go to commentsYes they can ignore Sotutu. Like Akira Ioane plays OK at Super level but gets lost in tests. Too many chances too many failures.
2 Go to commentsA wallaby front-row of Bell, Blake and Tupou…now that would be hefty
1 Go to comments“But with an exceptional pass accuracy rating “ Which apart from Roigard is not a feature of any of the other 9s in NZ. Kind of basic for a Black 9 dont.you. think? Yet we keep seeing FC and TJ being rated ahead of him? Weird if it’s seen as vital to get our backline beating in your face defences.
1 Go to commentsThanks BeeMc! Looks like many teams need extra time to settle from the quadrennial northern migration. I think generally the quality of the Rugby has held up. Fiji has been fantastic and fun to watch
13 Go to commentsLets compare apples with apples. Lyon sent weak team the week before, but nobody raised an eyebrow. Give the South African teams a few years to build their depth, then you will be moaning that the teams are too strong.
41 Go to commentsDid footballs agents also perform the scout role at some time? I’m surprised more high profile players haven’t taken up the occupation, great way to remain in the game and use all that experience without really requiring a lot of specific expertise?
1 Go to commentsSuper rugby is struggling but that has little to do with sabbaticals. 1. Too many teams from Aust and NZ - should be 3 and 4 respectively, add in 2 from Japan, 1 possibly 2 from Argentina. 2. Inconsistent and poor refereeing, admittedly not restricted to Super rugby. Only one team was reffed at the breakdown in Reds v H’Landers match. Scrum penalty awarded in Canes v Drua when No 8 had the ball in the open with little defence nearby - ideal opportunity to play advantage. Coming back to Reds match - same scrum situation but ref played advantage - Landers made 10 yards and were penalised at the breakdown when the ref should have returned to scrum penalty. 3. Marketing is weak and losing ground to AFL and NRL. Playing 2 days compared with 4. 4. Scheduling is unattractive to family attendance. Have any franchises heard of Sundays 2pm?
12 Go to commentsAbsolutely..all they need is a chance in yhe playoffs and I bet all the other teams will be nervous…THEY KNOW HOW TO WIN IM THE PLAYOFFS..
2 Go to commentsI really hope he comes back and helps out with some coaching.
1 Go to commentsI think we are all just hoping that the Olympic 7s doesn’t suffer the same sad fate as the last RWC with the officials ruining the spectacle.
1 Go to commentsPersonally, I’ve lost the will to even be bothered about the RFU, the structure, the participants. It’s all a sham. I now simply enjoy getting a group of friends together to go and watch a few games a year in different locations (including Europe, the championship, etc). I feel extremely sorry for the real fans of these clubs who are constantly ignored by the RFU and other administrators. I feel especially sorry for the fans of clubs in the Championship who have had considerable central funding stripped away and are then expected to just take whatever the RFU put to them. Its all a sham, especially if the failed clubs are allowed to return.
10 Go to commentsI’m guessing Carl Hayman would have preferred to have stayed in NZ with benefit of hindsight. Up north there is the expectation to play twice as many games with far less ‘player management’ protocols that Paul is now criticising. Less playing through concussions means longer, healthier, careers. Carter used as the eg here by Paul, his sabbatical allowed him to play until age 37. OK its not an exact science but there is far more expectations on players who sign for Top 14 or Engl Prem clubs to get value for the huge salaries. NZR get alot wrong but keeping their best players in NZ rugby is not one of them. SA clubs are virtually devoid of their top players now, no thanks. They cant threaten the big teams in the Champions Cup, the squads have little depth. Cant see Canes/Chiefs struggling. Super has been great this year, fantastic high skill matches. Drua a fantastic addition and Jaguares will add another quality team eventually. Aus teams performing strongly and no doubt will benefit with the incentive of a Lions tour and a home RWC. Let Jordie enjoy his time with Leinster, it will allow the opportunity for another player to emerge at Canes in his absence.
12 Go to commentsLove that man, his way to despise angry little men is so funny ! 😂
5 Go to comments“South African franchises would be powerhouses if we had all our overseas based players back in situ. We would have the same unbeatable aura the Toulouses, Leinsters or Saracens of this world have had over the last decade or so.” Proof that Jake white does not understand the economics of the game in SA. Players earning abroad are not going to simply come back and represent the bulls. But they might if they have a springbok contract.
25 Go to commentsA lot of fans just joined in for the fun of it! We all admire O'Gara and what he has done for La Rochelle
5 Go to commentsThe RFU will find a way to mess this up as usual. My bet is there will be no promotion into the the Premiership, only relegation into National League One. Hopefully they won’t parachute failed clubs into the league at the expense of clubs who have battled for promotion.
10 Go to commentsWell that’s the contracts for RG and Jordie bought and paid for. Now, what are the chances we can persuade Antoine to hop over with all the extra dosh we’ll have from living at the Aviva & Croke next season…??? 🤑🤑🤑
37 Go to commentsWow, that’s incredible. Great for rugby.
37 Go to comments