THE 33-year-old South African referee Craig Joubert will take charge of Saturday’s World Cup quarter-final between Ireland and Wales in Wellington.
This will not be Joubert’s first time overseeing this fixture as he was the whistle blower at Croke Park in 2010.
That 27-12 victory was not assisted by his interpretation of Irish tackling and rucking technique. Granted, this was during a campaign when Declan Kidney’s team found themselves at odds with IRB interpretations of the breakdown so a repeat of the multiple penalties Wales were awarded that day is not expected from the former corporate banker, who in fairness brings a refreshing approach to adjudicating.
“The referee is a facilitator,” Joubert told the Daily Telegraph. “The players do the entertaining, and I allow them to entertain. The ultimate accolade that any of us can have is to meet a guy in the bar after a match and for him not to have realised that you were the ref.
“What people need to understand is that for every decision a referee does make, there are probably five or six that he doesn’t,” Joubert continued.
“The best referees are the ones that don’t blow the whistle when they don’t have to. At the same time, though, the responsibility rests with the players to understand the latitude I’m giving them, and not spoil things.”
No referee will ever avoid pointed criticism from defeated teams and Joubert is no different. The Wallabies were particularly disgusted with their treatment at scrum time against the All Blacks in the 2009 Tri-Nations.
It can be perceived as beneficial that the Durban native has not refereed the Welsh at this World Cup yet he was on-field for Ireland’s wins over the USA and Russia.
Both Irish referees, George Clancy and Alain Rolland, have been retained for the knock-out stages but neither will take charge of a game this weekend.
However, Clancy, from Bruff RFC in Limerick, will be the busiest of the officials as he runs the line for England versus France on Saturday and New Zealand against Argentina on Sunday. Both of these quarter-finals are at Eden Park in Auckland.
Quarter-finals – referee appointments: Oct 8th:Ireland v Wales, Wellington (6am), referee: Craig Joubert (SA). England v France, Auckland (8.30am), referee: Steve Walsh (Aus). Oct 9th: South Africa v Australia, Wellington (6am), referee: Bryce Lawrence (NZ). New Zealand v Argentina, Auckland (8.30am), referee: Nigel Owens (Wal).
