New IRB refs panels

The International Rugby Board has announced its new panels of referees – 17 of them at the top, a development panel, a panel of specialised assistant referees and TMOs.

The selections were done at a meeting of the IRB Match Official Selection Committee Meeting in Dublin on 25-26 April, under the chairmanship of David Pickering.

In 2008 there were 19 on the top panel, but then Lyndon Bray and Paul Honiss retired, Steve Walsh was not refereeing and Joël Jutge was having serious problems with a knee injury.

Two new referees have come onto the panel – Romain Poite of France and Peter Fitzgibbon of Ireland who refereed his first Test last year.

The IRB International Referee Panel in 2009 is:

Wayne Barnes (England), Christophe Berdos (France), George Clancy (Ireland), Stuart Dickinson (Australia), Peter Fitzgibbon (Ireland), Matt Goddard (Australia), Craig Joubert (South Africa), Marius Jonker (South Africa), Jonathan Kaplan (South Africa), Alan Lewis (Ireland), Mark Lawrence (South Africa), Bryce Lawrence (New Zealand), Nigel Owens (Wales), Dave Pearson (England), Romain Poite (France), Alain Rolland (Ireland), Chris White (England).

All of these referees have been appointed to mid-year Tests.

The IRB has also named its International Referee Development Panel of 12 referees:

Peter Allan (Scotland), James Bolabiu (Fiji), Keith Brown (New Zealand), Carlo Damasco (Italy), Jérôme Garces (France), Pascal Gauzere (France), James Jones (Wales), James Leckie (Australia), Javier Mancuso (Argentina), Chris Pollock (New Zealand), Andrew Small (England), Ian Smith (Australia)

None of the Development referees has been appointed to referee mid-year Tests but they will go to Japan for the Junior World Cup  when they will be joined by Japan’s Taizo Hirabayashi.

The IRB has specialised panels of assistant referees and television match officials.

Vinny Munro has been selected as a specialist assistant referee while Taizo Hirabayashi (Japan), Paul Marks (Australia) and Federico Cuesta (Argentina) have dropped off the panel of specialised assistants. Jim Yuille has been selected a specialised television match official. Those on these two panels have all been appointed to mid-year Tests.

The IRB’s panel of specialised assistant referees:

David Changleng (Scotland), Rob Debney (England), Tim Hayes (Wales), Simon McDowell (Ireland), Vinny Munro (New Zealand), Stuart Terheege (England), Hugh Watkins (Wales), Cobus Wessels (South Africa)

The IRB’s panel of specialised television match officials:

George Ayoub (Australia), Giulio De Santis (Italy), Graham Hughes (England), Johann Meuwesen (South Africa), Shaun Veldsman (South Africa), Geoff Warren (England), Nigel Whitehouse (Wales), Jim Yuille (Scotland)