- Video
-
Club Roar
Captured a great grassroots sporting moment? We want to see it!Content Collections
The Roar Community
- Join
- Login
New Zealand referee Steve Walsh. AP Photo/Mark Baker
South African referee Marius Jonker will control the Wallabies-Samoa international season opener at ANZ Stadium on Sunday. Amazingly, Jonker is not a member of the elite Rugby World Cup 2011 refereeing panel, he’s not even rated as a stand-by ref. And he’s a far better whistler than that.
To further cloud the issue, only four southern hemisphere refs have made the 10-man RWC 2011 panel – Craig Joubert, Jonathan Kaplan, Steve Walsh, and Bryce Lawrence.
Heaven help the Rugby World Cup with the majority of refs from the northern hemisphere who have vastly different interpretations on advantage, the breakdown, and offside – with the exception of Englishman Wayne Barnes.
He refs like a southerner, and the Wallabies are fortunate to have him controlling the last of their five internationals leading into the World Cup, kicking off September 9 with the All Blacks and Tonga at Eden Park.
Kiwi born-and-bred Steve Walsh is the only Australian on the elite RWC panel, and he’s been appointed to two important fixtures, the England-Wales clash at Twickenham on August 6, and the France-Ireland international at Bordeaux on August 13.
The full list of 2011 RWC referees, totalling 287 Tests between them:
* Jonathan Kaplan (aged 44) is far and away the most experienced international rugby ref with 63.
* Alain Rolland (44) – 48 internationals.
* Steve Walsh (37) – 37.
* Wayne Barnes (32) – 27.
* Nigel Owens (40) – 27.
* Craig Joubert (33) – 22.
* Dave Pearson (44) from England – 19.
* Bryce Lawrence (40) – 18.
* George Clancy (34) – 14.
* And Romain Poite (35) – 12.
Walsh and Kaplan will be fronting up for their fourth ‘Cup, a tournament record, while Clancy, Pearson, Poite, Lawrence, and Joubert are on debut.
Australian Stu Dickinson, 43 next Sunday, missed selection after three RWCs, and 43 internationals, and has failed to make it as a stand-by referee.
Yet, Dickinson has been appointed to control the All Blacks-Fiji international at Dunedin on July 22.
How Owens, Pearson, Clancy, and Poite were selected ahead of Dickinson is one of rugby’s major mysteries.
Especially Pearson who has refereed only 19 internationals since he debuted eight years ago, compared to Dickinson’s 43 in 14.
Hardly a riveting career path for Pearson to make his RWC debut at 45 by Cup time.
Behind the scenes, the one millionth ticket has been sold for RWC 2011, with over 85,000 visitors from 100 countries stretching the New Zealand accommodation limits.
And the strapped organisers are loving the problem as they face a massive $40 million deficit, thanks to IRB greed in taking all television rights, all sponsors, all corporate boxes, and all advertising, leaving the NZRU with just the gate.
So buy up big rugby fans, our cousins from across the ditch desperately need your support.