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Referees confirmed for World Cup semi-finals
By Josh Raisey
Referees Angus Gardner and Ben O'Keeffe are set to referee the World Cup semi-finals this weekend as the All Blacks face Argentina and the reigning champions South Africa play England.
The Australian Gardner will be taking charge of his first World Cup knockout match on Friday at the Stade de France between the All Blacks and Los Pumas and will be joined by compatriot Nic Berry and England's Karl Dickson as his assistants, and Wales' Ben Whitehouse as the television match official.
New Zealand's O'Keeffe will take charge of the second semi-final the following day in Paris a week after officiating South Africa's quarter-final victory over hosts France. He will be joined by Ireland's Andrew Brace and New Zealand's Paul Williams as his assistants, while fellow Kiwi Brendon Pickerill will be the TMO.
It will be the second time that O'Keeffe has officiated a match between the Springboks and England but the fifth time Gardner has taken charge of a fixture between the All Blacks and Argentina, most famously being the man with the whistle when the Pumas won in 2020.
World Rugby Chairman Sir Bill Beaumont said: “I would like to congratulate Angus and Ben, the assistant referees and TMOs on their selection for the semi-finals.
“The match official group as a whole have played a full and positive role in an exceptional Rugby World Cup, including a compelling set of quarter-finals.”
World Rugby High Performance 15s Match Officials Manager Joël Jutge added: “Congratulations to all selected. This is a team effort, and the selection reflects the hard work of the group as a whole, and the encouragement and support they give each other.
“I would also like to pay tribute to Jaco Peyper, who has been ruled out through injury. He would have been in contention. We wish him a speedy recovery.”
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Latest Comments
I think this debate is avoiding the elephant in the room. Money. According to the URC chief executive Martin Anayi, the inclusion of SA teams has doubled the income of the URC. There is no doubt that the SA teams benefit from the URC but so do the other countries' teams. Perhaps it doesn't affect a club like Leinster but the less well off clubs benefit hugely from South African games' TV income. I don't think SA continued inclusion in the URC is a slam dunk. They don't hold all the cards by a long way - but they do have an ace in the hole. The Ace of Diamonds.
Go to commentsDon't think you've watched enough. I'll take him over anything I's seen so far. But let's see how the future pans out. I'm quietly confident we have a row of 10's lined uo who would each start in many really good teams.
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