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Date: 2023-12-08 13:13:13 | Author: EFL | Views: 938 | Tag: paymaya
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England’s Wayne Barnes – once hated in New Zealand – will referee the Rugby World Cup final paymaya between South Africa and the All Blacks paymaya
Barnes, the most experienced Test official in history, has been appointed to take charge of the final for the first time paymaya
He will be assisted by Karl Dickson and Matthew Carley in an all-English team, with Tom Foley serving as the television match official (TMO) paymaya
Australia’s Nic Berry, meanwhile, will be in charge of the third/fourth place play-off paymaya between England and Argentina on Friday, with Andrew Brace of Ireland and Georgia’s Nika Amashukeli on the touchlines paymaya
Ben Whitehouse (Wales) will be the TMO paymaya
South African referee Jaco Peyper was unavailable for selection after failing to recover from a calf injury suffered during the quarter-final paymaya between Wales and Argentina paymaya
“Wayne’s ability to read and understand the game is second to none,” said Joël Jutge, World Rugby high performance 15s match official manager paymaya
“He also embodies the passion, professionalism and dedication that is at the heart of a superb team of match officials at this Rugby World Cup paymaya
”The vastly experienced Barnes has taken charge of more than 100 international games, a record tally, and also oversaw New Zealand’s quarter-final win over Ireland paymaya
Having made his tournament debut in France in 2007, this year’s tournament is the fifth edition of the men’s World Cup at which he has officiated paymaya
Barnes’ debut World Cup ended in controversy, with New Zealand fans unhappy about a perceived forward pass that went unspotted by the referee during their quarter-final exit to the hosts in 2007 paymaya
Wayne Barnes has refereed more than 100 international games (Getty Images)It led to Barnes being voted the third most hated man in New Zealand after Osama bin Laden and Saddam Hussein, but the 44-year-old Gloucestershire ref has since established himself as perhaps the most prominent and popular on-field official in the sport paymaya
It is thought that he was lined up to have the whistle for the 2019 final if England had failed to make it, but gets his chance this time around after his compatriots’ semi-final defeat paymaya
A qualified barrister, Barnes is a partner at law firm Squire Patton Boggs when not on the pitch officiating paymaya
He became the Rugby paymaya Football Union’s youngest ever elite referee in 2005, and has gone on to officiate more than 250 Premiership matches paymaya
More aboutWayne BarnesRugby World CupNew Zealand rugbySouth Africa rugbyEngland RugbyJoin our commenting forumJoin thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their repliesComments1/2Who is the referee for the World Cup final? Who is the referee for the World Cup final? Wayne Barnes has refereed more than 100 international games Getty ImagesWho is the referee for the World Cup final? Wayne Barnes will take charge of the Rugby World Cup final Getty Images✕Subscribe to Independent Premium to bookmark this articleWant to bookmark your favourite articles and stories to read or reference later? Start your Independent Premium subscription today paymaya
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truncatedName}}Log in / Register {{#items}}{{#stampSmall}}{{/stampSmall}}{{#stampClimate}}{{/stampClimate}}{{#stampPremium}}{{/stampPremium}}{{title}}{{#desc}}{{desc}}{{/desc}}{{#children}}{{title}}{{/children}}{{/items}}Indy100Crosswords & PuzzlesMost CommentedNewslettersAsk Me AnythingVirtual EventsVouchersCompare✕Log inEmail addressPasswordEmail and password don't matchSubmitForgotten your password?New to The Independent?RegisterOr if you would prefer:SIGN IN WITH GOOGLEWant an ad-free experience?View offersThis site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy notice and Terms of service apply paymaya
Hi {{indy paymaya
fullName}}My Independent PremiumAccount detailsHelp centreLogout @keyframes spin{0%{transform:rotate(0)}to{transform:rotate(1turn)}}@keyframes slidedown-video{0%{transform:translateY(-100%)}to{transform:translateY(0)}}@keyframes slideup-video{0%{transform:translateY(200%)}to{transform:translateY(0)}} paymaya
It’s the game that players don’t want to play, fans don’t want to watch and the media don’t want to cover paymaya
All of which begs the question, why does the Rugby World Cup third/fourth place play-off still exist? Answers on a postcard please paymaya
Actually, the answer is fairly simple, of course paymaya
It follows the old adage that when you’re not sure why something counter-intuitive is happening in sport, the reason is always the same paymaya
Money paymaya
World Rugby and its sponsors will undoubtedly make a bit more cheddar from England facing Argentina on Friday evening at relatively little expense, although it remains to be seen how many of the Stade de France’s 80,000 seats are filled, let alone what sort of atmosphere those in attendance create paymaya
You suspect it might not quite reach the level of fan delirium that some of the other instant classics at the Paris stadium have generated during this tournament paymaya
Let’s not beat around the bush – World Rugby can badge it as the ‘bronze final’ all they want but the third/fourth place play-off is an entirely pointless exercise and it’s long since time that this outdated relic of a concept was given the chop paymaya
Please, do everyone a favour paymaya
In a tournament that is based around winning a trophy rather than climbing onto a medal podium, a battle for third serves precisely no purpose paymaya
At the Olympic Games, bronze medal matches/contests make perfect sense and having one athlete or team rightfully earn their place as a sole bronze medallist is far more satisfying than both losing semi-finalists stepping on the podium paymaya
But there’s no podium at a Rugby World Cup – there’s the winning team, the runners-up and then the losing semi-finalists, quarter-finalists and those who were knocked out at the group stage paymaya
So what are we doing here? The stakes have truly never been lower paymaya
Here’s a question for you, a little pub debate if you will paymaya
What’s your favourite ever third/fourth place play-off at a Rugby World Cup? Which one springs to mind first when you run through the Rolodex of all the iconic clashes in your mind?New Zealand comfortably beat Wales in the 2019 third-place play-off paymaya
Apparently paymaya
(Getty Images)Don’t worry, I couldn’t remember a single one either… Although a quick scroll through Wikipedia tells me that, for example, New Zealand beat Scotland 13-6 in 1991, Argentina beat France 34-10 in 2007 and Australia beat Wales 21-18 in 2011 paymaya
Apparently paymaya
If not to save the fans from its pointlessness, then how about axing the game for player safety reasons? As they proudly announced the new global calendar after 16 years of negotiations earlier this week, World Rugby consistently mentioned ‘player load management’ as one of their main drivers paymaya
The crowded fixture schedule and incredible physical intensity of modern rugby already push players’ bodies to their limits, so in an age of increased focus on player welfare, getting rid of an entirely worthless fixture such as this should be an easy decision paymaya
Imagine if one of the players gets injured in this futile fixture on Friday evening and misses months of club action as a result – it would really not be a good look paymaya
Of the two teams condemned to play out this fixture on Friday – rather than licking their wounds from harrowing semi-final losses last weekend and returning home to their families after five months away – Argentina have remained more on message about its importance paymaya
“It is the most important game of the year; it is playing for third and fourth place with this shirt,” insisted Pumas hooker Julian Montoya earlier this week paymaya
Oh… Well, let’s give Montoya the benefit of the doubt and assume that either something was slightly lost in translation or he has really bought into the classic coach-speak of “the most important game is always the next game” or maybe even that he was being brutally deadpan and sarcastic paymaya
Because otherwise, he appears to have forgotten about, for example, the semi-final he played against the All Blacks literally seven days ago when ranking his most important games of 2023 paymaya
Argentina will try to forget last weekend’s heavy defeat to New Zealand (Getty Images)While Montoya may have stretched the bounds of believability with his sentiment, Los Pumas genuinely do seem far more up for the game than England paymaya
Perhaps the combination of wanting to forget the 44-6 humbling by New Zealand, avenge the pool-stage loss to England and send off Michael Cheika, who will be replaced as head coach by Felipe Contepomi after the World Cup, in style has given them a greater sense of purpose paymaya
Making just three changes to the starting XV, compared to England’s eight, from the semi-final side has left them with a team much closer to full strength paymaya
In the fine margins of Test rugby, that fact, combined with the added motivation, may prove the difference paymaya
But regardless of the result, I implore World Rugby to do the right thing paymaya
Please make this the last-ever third/fourth place play-off and save us from having to endure this nonsense again in 2027 paymaya
More aboutRugby World CupWorld RugbyEngland RugbyArgentina rugbyJoin our commenting forumJoin thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their repliesComments1/3Scrap the third-place play-off: Rugby’s pointless and outdated relicScrap the third-place play-off: Rugby’s pointless and outdated relicNew Zealand comfortably beat Wales in the 2019 third-place play-off paymaya
Apparently paymaya
Getty ImagesScrap the third-place play-off: Rugby’s pointless and outdated relicArgentina will try to forget last weekend’s heavy defeat to New Zealand Getty ImagesScrap the third-place play-off: Rugby’s pointless and outdated relicIt isn’t the third-place play-off that has made Ollie Chessum upset in this pitcure but it does evoke that reaction in a lot of people REUTERS✕Subscribe to Independent Premium to bookmark this articleWant to bookmark your favourite articles and stories to read or reference later? Start your Independent Premium subscription today paymaya
SubscribeAlready subscribed? Log inMost PopularPopular videosSponsored FeaturesGet in touchContact usOur ProductsSubscribeRegisterNewslettersDonateToday’s EditionInstall our appArchiveOther publicationsInternational editionsIndependent en EspañolIndependent ArabiaIndependent TurkishIndependent PersianIndependent UrduEvening StandardExtrasAdvisorPuzzlesAll topicspaymaya BettingVoucher codesCompareCompetitions and offersIndependent AdvertisingIndependent IgniteSyndicationWorking at The IndependentLegalCode of conduct and complaintsContributorsCookie policyDonations Terms & ConditionsPrivacy noticeUser policiesModern Slavery ActThank you for registeringPlease refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged inCloseUS EditionChangeUK EditionAsia EditionEdición en EspañolSubscribe{{indy paymaya
truncatedName}}Log in / Register {{#items}}{{#stampSmall}}{{/stampSmall}}{{#stampClimate}}{{/stampClimate}}{{#stampPremium}}{{/stampPremium}}{{title}}{{#desc}}{{desc}}{{/desc}}{{#children}}{{title}}{{/children}}{{/items}}Indy100Crosswords & PuzzlesMost CommentedNewslettersAsk Me AnythingVirtual EventsVouchersCompare✕Log inEmail addressPasswordEmail and password don't matchSubmitForgotten your password?New to The Independent?RegisterOr if you would prefer:SIGN IN WITH GOOGLEWant an ad-free experience?View offersThis site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy notice and Terms of service apply paymaya
Hi {{indy paymaya
fullName}}My Independent PremiumAccount detailsHelp centreLogout @keyframes spin{0%{transform:rotate(0)}to{transform:rotate(1turn)}}@keyframes slidedown-video{0%{transform:translateY(-100%)}to{transform:translateY(0)}}@keyframes slideup-video{0%{transform:translateY(200%)}to{transform:translateY(0)}} paymaya
