FRENCH MATCH OFFICIAL Jérôme Garcès has been appointed to referee the 2019 Rugby World Cup final between England and South Africa on Saturday in Yokohama.
Garcès will be the first Frenchman to take charge of a World Cup final, having built up 55 Tests worth of experience.
Fellow France native Romain Poite and Ben O’Keeffe of New Zealand will be the assistant referees for the final, with New Zealander Ben Skeen acting as the TMO.
“I am honoured and delighted to be appointed to referee the final,” said Garcès. “It’s a dream as a referee, but this is a team sport and as a team of four we will be out there to do the best for the teams, the fans, the sport, but also the entire match officials team, selectors and support team, who have worked so hard over the last four years, culminating in Rugby World Cup 2019.”
Meanwhile, England’s Wayne Barnes will referee Friday night’s third-place play-off between New Zealand and Wales in Tokyo.
He will be assisted by South Africa’s Jaco Peyper and Frenchman Pascal Gaüzère, with Marius Jonker of South Africa on TMO duty.
“Our match officials have played their full role in this special tournament and I would like to congratulate Jérôme and the team on their appointments, which are thoroughly deserved,” said World Rugby chairman Bill Beaumont.
“I would like to wish them all the best for what promises to be a very exciting finale to Rugby World Cup 2019.”