Ben O'Keeffe (left) will referee England's Rugby World Cup semi-final against South Africa on Sunday. Credit: FRANCK FIFE/AFP
England's Rugby World Cup semi-final against South Africa will be officiated by New Zealander Ben O'Keeffe, the official accused by France captain Antoine Dupont of «failing to cope with the task».< /p
The New Zealander was a surprise choice for Saturday's match and was also at the center of controversy back in 2020 when he received a public apology from the Rugby Football Union for being called biased.
After the defeat France suffered an uncharacteristic volley from Dupont against the Springboks in Paris last Sunday and the French talisman could not contain his disappointment at O'Keeffe's breakdown at crucial moments.
However, this criticism was not shared at World Rugby headquarters, where Joël Joutge, High Performance 15s official match manager and former international referee, handed O'Keefe the whistle for England's last four match against the defending champion Springboks.
O'Keeffe also refereed England's defeat to Scotland in the Six Nations at Twickenham earlier this year, and in 2020 then head coach Eddie Jones was reprimanded by the Rugby Football Union and warned about his future behavior after harsh criticism of the New Zealanders.
O'Keeffe sent off Manu Tuilagi in the closing stages of England's 33-30 win over Wales and also sent Ellis Genge into the bin, prompting Jones to declare: «It was 13 to 16 at the end.
The following week, RFU chief executive Bill Sweeney apologized to O'Keefe and said: “The Rugby Football Union does not condone comments that in any way undermine the integrity of match officials who play a central role in sport and its values.
«We have discussed with England manager Eddie Jones the nature of the comments he made… and have made it clear that such comments are not consistent with the values of the sport or the RFU.
«Eddie and the RFU regret any suggestion that Ben O& #39;Keefe was biased in his decision making. We have expressed this position to the Six Nations and World Rugby, who will convey our apologies to Ben O'Keeffe and the team of match officials.»
This will be O'Keeffe's third time in charge of the Springboks in this tournament, and will also take charge of the clash between Ireland and South Africa, which went in favor of the northern hemisphere team.
Angus Gardner, Australian official , will oversee New Zealand's semi-final against Argentina on Friday night at the Stade de France, becoming the first since Alain Rolland in 2011 to referee a World Cup semi-final without missing out on the quarter-finals.
O'Keefe will be assisted by Ireland's Andrew Brace and compatriots Paul Williams and Brendon Pickerill (TMO) on Saturday night in Paris, along with England and South Africa hoping to reach a second successive World Cup final.
Carl Dixon will also be on the sidelines on Friday night, with the Englishman assisting Gardner along with Australia's Nick Berry and Welshman Ben Whitehouse (TMO).
This weekend will see the first men's World Cup semi-final for all officials . This participation and World Rugby confirmed that Jaco Paper, the experienced South African, was not considered for selection due to a calf injury suffered during Wales' quarter-final defeat to Argentina last Saturday in Marseille.
A World Rugby. Rugby's statement added that «selection is based on merit and the wider squad will continue to compete for bronze in the 2023 Rugby World Cup grand final and grand final.» Regardless, given his omission this weekend, if England fail to reach the final Wayne Barnes will be widely seen as favorite for the appointment.
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