Rolland to referee Final
Alain Rolland of Ireland becomes the fifth referee in the history of the World Cup to be appointed to referee the Final.
The referees before him who have refereed finals are Kerry Fitzgerald of Australia, Derek Bevan of Wales, Ed Morrison of England and Andre Watson of South Africa who did two.
The International Rugby Board (IRB) made the referees for the last four matches known in Paris on Monday. Appointing the referee to the final will probably reduce the tension of the last week and leave Rolland free to make his preparations.
The early departures of Ireland and New Zealand has made the appointments easier as their referees are free for appointment to the last two matches.
Paul Honiss, the most-capped referee in the history of the game will referee the third/fourth play-off. The teams are, of course, not known but New Zealand will not be involved.
The referees for the semi-finals are Jonathan Kaplan of South Africa for France v England and Steve Walsh of New Zealand for Argentina v South Africa.
The touch judges and TMOs for the last two matches will be appointed after the semi-finals.
The full appointments available are:
Semi-finals
France v England at Stade de France, Paris
Referee: Jonathan Kaplan (South Africa)
Touch judges: Paul Honiss (New Zealand), Marius Jonker (South Africa)
Television match official: Stuart Dickinson (Australia)
Touch judges 3 & 4: Nigel Owens (Wales), Alain Rolland (Ireland)
Assessor: Bob Francis (New Zealand)
South Africa v Argentina at Stade de France, Paris
Referee: Steve Walsh (New Zealand)
Touch judges: Alain Lewis (Ireland), Chris White (England)
Television match official: Tony Spreadbury (England)
Touch judges 3 & 4: Joel Jutge (France), Wayne Barnes (England)
Assessor: Steve Hilditch (Ireland)
3rd/4th place
Bronze Medal Match at Parc des Princes, Paris
Referee: Paul Honiss (New Zealand)
Assessor: Tappe Henning (South Africa)
Final
Winning Semi-Finalists at Stade de France, Paris
Referee: Alain Rolland (Ireland)
Assessor: Michel Lamoulie (France)
