'Fantastic' Barnes set to overtake Owens' Test referee record
England referee Wayne Barnes is set to make history when he takes charge of his 100th and 101st Test matches during the upcoming November international window. The 43-year-old, who made his debut in Fiji in June 2006, will become only the second referee to reach a century of Test games after Nigel Owens when he takes charge of Wales versus New Zealand at the Principality Stadium on November 5.
Englishman Barnes will then set an outright record of 101 Test matches when he referees the game between Six Nations Grand Slam winners France and reigning world champions South Africa in Paris a week later on November 12.
World Rugby chairman Bill Beaumont said: “Congratulations to Wayne on his selection and pending record. To be so good for so long as a referee is no easy feat. Wayne Barnes, like Nigel Owens before him, reaches 100 Tests by being not just a fantastic referee, but a great team player, a student of the game and someone who is greatly respected by players, coaches and fans alike.”
In total, 23 match officials representing ten nations will take charge of the 37 November Test games announced so far. The Emirates World Rugby match official appointments, made by World Rugby’s match official selection committee, marks another important milestone on the road to Rugby World Cup 2023 in France and these latest appointments also include the RWC 2023 final qualification tournament in Dubai where the 20th team will be confirmed for next year’s tournament.
Georgia’s Nika Amashukeli takes charge of the first Test of the window – Japan versus New Zealand on October 29 – and Australia’s Angus Gardner the last with England versus South Africa on November 26. South Africa’s Jaco Peyper will referee two matches in November, bringing up 60 Tests with Ireland versus Fiji on November 12. Luke Pearce takes charge of Scotland versus Australia on October 29, his 40th Test as a referee.
“My contract is up with the RFU at the end of the season… but I’m fit as I have ever been – that’s what my scores tell me”
– veteran match official Wayne Barnes talks to @heagneyl ahead of his latest Six Nations assignment #WALvFRA ?????????https://t.co/R6KYLJ5svz— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) February 22, 2020
Six different referees will officiate matches in the final qualification tournament. Tual Trainini (France) will referee the opening match – USA versus Kenya – on November 6 and Paul Williams (New Zealand) will take charge of the final one, USA versus Portugal on November 18. Christophe Ridley (England) will referee his first test involving a Six Nations team with Italy versus Samoa on November 5. Meanwhile, Andrea Piardi (Italy) also referees a Six Nations team for the first time with his appointment for Wales versus Georgia on November 19.
World Rugby selection committee chairman Graham Mourie added: “I would like to echo Bill Beaumont’s congratulations regarding Wayne’s impending milestone. Wayne is a role model, a leader and an outstanding match official, he thoroughly deserves what will be a fine record.
“As we move towards next year’s Rugby World Cup, as a group we are constantly challenging ourselves to be better, to achieve greater consistency and clarity of decision-making. There is a great work ethic within the team, and we will continue to ensure that safety, speed and space are our priority.”
- Click here to view appointments for the November Test window.
- Click here to view appointments for the RWC 2023 final qualification tournament in Dubai.
Comments on RugbyPass
We’re building a bridge but can't agree where the river is.
2 Go to commentsfirst no arms shoulder or helmet tackle into his rib cage is going to be so very painful even to watch. go back to RU mate.
1 Go to commentsBulls by 5. Plus another 50.
3 Go to commentsJohan Goosen avatar. Cute. Surely someone at RP knows how to do a google image search?
3 Go to commentsCan’t these games play a little earlier? Asking for a friend.
3 Go to commentsIt’s impressive that we can see huge stadiums with attendance in the 40 000 to 50 000 region. It shows how popular this competition is becoming. What is even more impressive is the massive growth in broadcast viewership. The URC is one of the two best leagues in the World, the other being the Top14.
7 Go to commentsChristie is not Sottish, like the majority of the Scotland team.
2 Go to commentsHold the phone, decline over-rated. Is it a one game, dead cat bounce or the real thing? Has the Penney dropped? Stay tuned.
45 Go to commentsTotally deserved win for the Crusaders Far smarter than the Chiefs who seem to be avoiding the basics when it matters Hotham showed them what was missing and Hannah seems a real find - a tad light but that can be fixed over time
8 Go to commentsGreat insight into the performance culture with Sarries and I predict Christie will be a fixture in the Scotland team now for some time to come. However, he is slightly missing his own point around Scotland “being soft” when he cites physicality examples in defence of that slight. The issue is much closer to the example he referenced around feeling off before a game but being told “it doesn’t matter, you can still play well” by Farrell. Until Scotland can get their psyche in that square, they will carry on folding under extreme pressure…
2 Go to comments> We are having to adapt, evolve and innovate more than when we were in Super Rugby where there was only really one style that everybody had to play to gain the most success. Have = able to? Interesting what that one style might be? I thought SA sides still had bad tours now, or at least bad schedule, months away? Those extra few hours flights have to be a killer though, no surprise to see their sides doing so badly at the start of the season each year. I wouldn’t enjoy that unfairness as a supporter.
7 Go to commentsThe problem for NZ, and Aus, is they ripped up the SR model and lost a massive chunk of revenue that hasn’t been replaced. Don’t forget SA clubs went North because they were left with no choice, Argy unceremoniously binned and Japan cast adrift. Now SR wasn’t perfect, far from it, but they’ve jumped into something without an effective plan, so far, to replace what they’ve lost. The biggest revenue potential now lies in Japan but it won’t be easy or quick to unlock, they are incredibly insular in culture as a nation. In the meantime, there is a serious time bomb sitting under SH rugby and if it happens then the current financial challenges will look like a picnic. IF the Boks follow their provincial teams and head north then it’s revenue meltdown. Not guaranteed to happen but the status quo is a very odd hybrid, with the Boks pointing one way and the clubs pointing the other way. And for as long as that remains then the threat is real.
45 Go to commentsI think Etene has had some good tuition, likely while at the Warriors to be a professional that helped his rugby jump, but he was certainly thrown in the deep end way too early. Should have arguably 20 less SR caps, and therefor a way better record that he does at his age, but his development would have been fast tracked by the need to satiate his signing away from league. Again, credit to him and others that he has done it so well. Easy to fall over under that pressure in the big leagues like that but he kept at it when I myself wasn’t sure he was good enough.
1 Go to commentsAwesome story. I wonder what a bigger American (SA) scene might have mean for Brex.
1 Go to comments“Johnny McNicholl and the Crusaders” save a Penney. Who has been in camp this week and showed them how to play?
8 Go to commentsSo, reports of the Crusaders’ demise / terminal decline are perhaps just - slightly - premature/exaggerated…? 🤔 Will we see a deep-dive into that by the estimable Rugbypass scribes, and maybe one or two mea culpas? Thought not.
8 Go to comments1. The Chiefs are rudderless without DMac, which enhances his AB chances 2. Chiefs pack are powderpuffs. The hard men arent there anymore 3. They had their golden title chance last yr and wont threaten this yr. Gone in second round of playoffs.
8 Go to commentsHonestly, why did you have to publish such a foolish article the day they play us? 😂
45 Go to comments> They are not standalone entities. They are linked to an amateur association which holds the FFR licence that allows the professional side to compete in the league. That’s a great rule. This looks like the chicken or egg professional scenario. How long is it going to be before the club can break even (if that is even a thing in French rugby)? If the locals aren’t into well it would be good to se them drop to amateur level (is it that far?). Hope they can reset from this level and be more practical, there will be a time when they can rebuild (if France has there setup right).
1 Go to commentsWhat about changing the ball? To something heavier and more pointed that bounces unpredictably. Not this almost round football used these days.
35 Go to comments