Refs for Six Nations 2014
The International Rugby Board has announced the referees appointed to Six Nations matches in 2014, starting on 1 February and ending on 15 March. Eleven referees have been appointed to the 15 matches.
Of the 11 Craig Joubert, Jérôme Graces, Nigel Owens and Steve Walsh each have two matches.
The 11 referees are: Wayne Barnes (England), Jérôme Garcès (France), Pascal Gauzère (France), Craig Joubert (South Africa), John Lacey (Ireland), Nigel Owens (Wales) , Jaco Peyper (South Africa), Romain Poite (France), Chris Pollock (New Zealand), Alain Rolland (Ireland), Steve Walsh (Australia).
New to the Six Nations are Pascal Gauzère and Johnny Lacey who in his playing days played for Munster and Ireland A. Lacey has been performing excellently in the Heineken Cup. Off the panel from last year's is George Clancy of Ireland.
Also new in supporting roles are Stuart Berry, Mike Fraser, Luke Pearce, JP Doyle, who is really an Irishman, Carlo Damasco and Simon McDowell.
There is also a change in the selection panel now that Tappe Henning has moved to the Northern Hemisphere to run Scottish referees. His place has been taken by Andrew Cole, the Brisbane dentist who ha been playing an increasing role in Australian refereeing since his retirement from Test refereeing. The IRB match official selection committee, which met in Dublin with John Jeffrey as chairman, comprised former Test referees Lyndon Bray (SANZAR), Andrew Cole (SANZAR), Donal Courtney (European Rugby Cup), Clayton Thomas (Six Nations) and IRB high performance match officials manager Joël Jutge. The committee meets four times a year.
All coaches are consulted as part of the referee performance review process.
IRB Match Official Selection Committee Chairman John Jeffrey said: “Before making these appointments, careful consideration has been given to every performance during what was an extremely busy November window. Our policy is to apply the best-for-best principle while also keeping one eye on the future to ensure the best-possible panel for Rugby World Cup 2015.
“We continue to consult with coaches and teams in making our selection decisions. I'd like to thank the Unions for their commitment and full support to this official channel of feedback”
“The IRB is committed to promoting the very best refereeing standards at the elite level of the Game. The continued priority is the promotion of consistency and performance.”
Appointments of Match Officials for Six Nations 2014
Saturday, 1 February 2014
Wales vs Italy at Millennium Stadium, Cardiff
Referee: John Lacey (Ireland)
Assistant referees: Glen Jackson (New Zealand), Francisco Pastrana (Argentina)
Television match official: Iain Ramage (Scotland)
France vs England at Stade de France, Paris
Referee: Nigel Owens (Wales)
Assistant referees: Alain Rolland (Ireland), Stuart Berry (South Africa)
Television match official: Jim Yuille (Scotland)
Sunday, 2 February 2014
Ireland vs Scotland at Aviva Stadium, Dublin
Referee: Craig Joubert (South Africa)
Assistant referees: Jaco Peyper (South Africa), Mike Fraser (New Zealand)
Television match official: Carlo Damasco (Italy)
Saturday, 8 February 2014
Ireland vs Wales at Aviva Stadium, Dublin
Referee: Wayne Barnes (England)
Assistant referees: Glen Jackson (New Zealand), JP Doyle (England)
Television match official: Graham Hughes (England)
Scotland vs England at Murrayfield, Edinburgh
Referee: Jérôme Garcès (France)
Assistant referees: George Clancy (Ireland), Mike Fraser (New Zealand)
Television match official: Eric Gauzins (France)
Sunday, 9 February 2014
France vs Italy at Stade de France, Paris
Referee: Jaco Peyper (South Africa)
Assistant referees: Craig Joubert (South Africa), Francisco Pastrana (Argentina)
Television match official: Gareth Simmonds (Wales)
Friday, 21 February 2014
Wales vs France at Millennium Stadium, Cardiff
Referee: Alain Rolland (Ireland)
Assistant referees: John Lacey (Ireland), Dudley Phillips (Ireland)
Television match official: Graham Hughes (England)
Saturday, 22 February 2014
Italy vs Scotland at Stadio Olimpico, Rome
Referee: Steve Walsh (Australia)
Assistant referees: Jérôme Garcès (France), Luke Pearce (England)
Television match official: Geoff Warren (England)
England vs Ireland at Twickenham, London
Referee: Craig Joubert (South Africa)
Assistant referees: Romain Poite (France), Leighton Hodges (Wales)
Television match official: Jim Yuille (Scotland)
Saturday, 8 March 2014
Ireland vs Italy at Aviva Stadium, Dublin
Referee: Nigel Owens (Wales)
Assistant referees: Pascal Gauzère (France), Greg Garner (England)
Television match official: Geoff Warren (England)
Scotland vs France at Murrayfield, Edinburgh
Referee: Chris Pollock (New Zealand)
Assistant referees: George Clancy (Ireland), JP Doyle (England)
Television match official: Gareth Simmonds (Wales)
Sunday, 9 March 2014
England vs Wales at Twickenham, London
Referee: Romain Poite (France)
Assistant referees: Steve Walsh (Australia), Lourens van der Merwe (South Africa)
Television match official: Simon McDowell (Ireland)
Saturday, 15 March 2014
Italy vs England at Stadio Olimpico, Rome
Referee: Pascal Gauzère (France)
Assistant referees: Nigel Owens (Wales), Leighton Hodges (Wales)
Television match official: Simon McDowell (Ireland)
Wales vs Scotland at Millennium Stadium, Cardiff
Referee: Jérôme Garcès (France)
Assistant referees: Chris Pollock (New Zealand), Greg Garner (England)
Television match official: Graham Hughes (England)
France vs Ireland at Stade de France, Paris
Referee: Steve Walsh (Australia)
Assistant referees: Wayne Barnes (England), Marius Mitrea (Italy)
Television match official: Gareth Simmonds (Wales)
