Currie Cup Final referees
Mark Lawrence will referee his first Currie Cup Final in Bloemfontein on Saturday, the 23rd referee to referee a Currie Cup Final. But then there have been only 46 finals.
Lawrence is the first referee from Mpumalanga , once called South Eastern Transvaal, to referee a final.
James Dalton once said that playing in a Currie Cup final was a greater thrill than playing a Test match. There was just one Currie Cup final a year, after all.
Eddie Hofmeyr, Ralph Burmeister, Steve Strydom, Freek Burger refereed more Tests than Currie Cup Finals. Andre Watson is the only referee in South Africa to be appointed to referee seven Currie Cup Finals. He refereed 27 tests, only seven finals. Tappe Henning refereed 20 tests, one final. Jonathan Kaplan has refereed more Tests than any other South African, but only three finals.
On the other hand Jimmy Smith-Belton refereed no Tests but three Currie Cup finals while his contemporary and Eastern Province colleague, Frans Muller, refereed three Tests and no Currie Cup finals.
Test Referees appointed to the final: Eddie Hofmeyr, Chris Ackermann, Ralph Burmeister, Bertie Strasheim, Gert Bezuidenhout, Piet Robbertse, Steve Strydom, Justus Moolman, Johan Gouws, Freek Burger, Stef Neethling, Tappe Henning, Andre Watson, Jonathan Kaplan, Shaun Veldsman and now Mark Lawrence.
Referees who refereed the final but never a Test: Jimmy Smith-Belton, Boy Louw, Carl Basson, Albie Henkes, Bowden Coombe, Fonnie van der Vyver, Ben Calitz, Cassie Carstens
It is no wonder that refereeing a final is so special for a referee, as indeed it is for players.
When there were first finals, the visiting team was given a panel of three referees from whom to choose the referee for the match.
The first final was played at Newlands in 1939, Western Province vs Transvaal. The referee was Boy Louw, a famous Western Province Springbok turned referee. It was the year after he had retired from rugby. Transvaal was captained by his brother and fellow-Springbok Fanie. Transvaal won, and there were no complaints about the referee.
Piet Robbertse of Eastern Transvaal was the first unattached referee to referee a Currie Cup Final. That was in 1973 when Northern Transvaal played Transvaal at Loftus Versfeld – to retain the names of those times.
The referees of Eastern Transvaal (a.k.a. Gauteng Falcons, now Valke) have refereed more Currie Cup Finals than the referees of any other province.
The following is the list of referees in Currie Cup Finals, (home teams first):
1939: Western Province vs Transvaal: Boy Louw (Western Province)
1946: Northern Transvaal vs Western Province: Carl Basson (Northern Transvaal)
1947: Western Province vs Transvaal: Albie Henkes (Western Province)
1950: Transvaal vs Western Province: Eddie Hofmeyr (Transvaal)
1952: Boland vs Transvaal: Chris Ackermann (Boland)
1954: Western Province vs Northern Transvaal: Ralph Burmeister (Western Province)
1956: Natal vs Northern Transvaal: Bowden Coombe (Natal)
1968: Northern Transvaal vs Transvaal: Bertie Strasheim (Northern Transvaal)
1969: Northern Transvaal vs Western Province: Fonnie van der Vyver (Northern Transvaal)
1970: Griqualand West vs Northern Transvaal: Ben Calitz (Griqualand West)
1971: Transvaal vs Northern Transvaal: Gert Bezuidenhout (Transvaal)
1972: Eastern Transvaal vs Transvaal: Piet Robbertse (Eastern Transvaal)
1973: Northern Transvaal vs Transvaal: Piet Robbertse (Eastern Transvaal)
1974: Northern Transvaal vs Transvaal: Steve Strydom (Orange Free State)
1975: Orange Free State vs Northern Transvaal : Justus Moolman (Eastern Province)
1976: Orange Free State vs Western Province: Gert Bezuidenhout (Transvaal)
1977: Northern Transvaal vs Orange Free State: Jimmy Smith-Belton (Eastern Province)
1978: Orange Free State vs Northern Transvaal: Gert Bezuidenhout (Transvaal)
1979: Western Province vs Northern Transvaal: Steve Strydom (Orange Free State)
1980: Northern Transvaal vs Western Province: Steve Strydom (Orange Free State)
1981: Northern Transvaal vs Orange Free State: Johan Gouws (Eastern Transvaal)
1982: Western Province vs Northern Transvaal: Steve Strydom (Orange Free State)
1983: Northern Transvaal vs Western Province: Johan Gouws (Eastern Transvaal)
1984: Western Province vs Natal: Cassie Carstens (Northern Transvaal)
1985: Western Province vs Northern Transvaal: Steve Strydom (Orange Free State)
1986: Western Province vs Transvaal: Steve Strydom (Orange Free State)
1987: Transvaal vs Northern Transvaal: Freek Burger (Western Province)
1988: Northern Transvaal vs Western Province: Jimmy Smith-Belton (Eastern Province)
1989: Western Province vs Northern Transvaal: Jimmy Smith-Belton (Eastern Province)
1990: Northern Transvaal vs Natal: Freek Burger (Western Province)
1991: Northern Transvaal vs Transvaal: Freek Burger (Western Province)
1992: Transvaal vs Natal: Freek Burger (Western Province)
1993: Natal vs Transvaal: Freek Burger (Western Province)
1994: Orange Free State vs Transvaal: Stef Neethling (Boland)
1995: Natal vs Western Province: Tappe Henning (Northern Transvaal)
1996: Transvaal vs Natal: Andre Watson (Eastern Transvaal)
1997: Western Province vs Free State: Andre Watson (Gauteng Falcons)
1998: Blue Bulls vs Western Province: Andre Watson (Gauteng Falcons)
1999: Natal vs Lions: Andre Watson (Gauteng Falcons)
2000: Natal vs Western Province: Andre Watson (Falcons)
2001: Western Province vs Natal: Andre Watson (Falcons)
2002: Lions vs Blue Bulls: Jonathan Kaplan (Boland)
2003: Blue Bulls vs Sharks: Shaun Veldsman (Boland)
2004: Blue Bulls vs Cheetahs: Andre Watson (Falcons)
2005: Blue Bulls vs Cheetahs: Jonathan Kaplan (Boland)
2006: Blue Bulls vs Cheetahs: Jonathan Kaplan (Boland)
2007: Mark Lawrence (Mpumalanga)
Currie Cup Finals refereed:
7. Andre Watson
5. Steve Strydom
4. Freek Burger
3. Jimmy Smith-Belton, Jonathan Kaplan
2. Piet Robbertse, Gert Bezuidenhout, Johan Gouws
1. Boy Louw, Carl Basson, Albie Henkes, Eddie Hofmeyr, Chris Ackermann, Ralph Burmeister, Bowden Coombe, Bertie Strasheim, Fonnie van der Vyver, Ben Calitz, Justus Moolman, Cassie Carstens, Stef Neethling, Tappe Henning, Shaun Veldsman
NB: Transvaal became the Gauteng Lions, later the Golden Lions, then the Lions and then again the Golden Lions
Northern Transvaal became the Blue Bulls
Eastern Transvaal became the Gauteng Falcons, then Falcons/Valke, now Valke
Orange Free State became Free State
First Final: Boy Louw
First Unattached Final: Piet Robbertse
Most Finals: Andre Watson
Number of Finals:
7 Andre Watson
6 Steve Strydom
5 Freek Burger
3 Gert Bezuidenhout, Jimmy Smith-Belton
2 Piet Robbertse, Johan Gouws
1 Boy Louw, Carl Basson, Albie Henkes, Eddie Hofmeyr, Chris Ackermann, Ralph Burmeister, Bertie Strasheim, Bowden Coombe, Fonnie van der Vyver, Ben Calitz, Justus Moolman, Cassie Carstens, Stef Neethling, Tappe Henning, Jonathan Kaplan, Shaun Veldsman
Ex-Springboks who refereed the Final: Boy Louw
Number of Finals refereed by each province:
11 – Eastern Transvaal
8 – Western Province
6 – Orange Free State
5 – Northern Transvaal
4 – Eastern Province, Transvaal
4 – Boland
1 – Natal, Griqualand West, Mpumalanga
Number of final referees per province:
5 Northern Transvaal
4 Western Province, Boland
3 Eastern Transvaal
2 Eastern Province, Transvaal
1 Natal, Griqualand West, Mpumalanga
