World Rugby has announced Emirates officials for the Rugby World Cup semi-final match at the Stade de France this weekend. Angus Gardner will referee the Argentina v New Zealand match in Saint Denis on Friday 20 October. He will be joined by assistant referees Nick Berry and Carl Dixon, while Ben Whitehouse will be the TV match official.
Rugby World Cup fans worldwide are called to book RWC 2023 tickets from our online platform eticketing.co Rugby fans can book Rugby World Cup Tickets on our website at exclusively discounted prices.
Ben O’Keeffe will take charge of the England v South Africa match in Saint Denis on Saturday 21 October (21:00 CET). He will be joined by assistant referees Andrew Brace and Paul Williams, as well as TMO Brendon Pickerill.
This will be Angus Gardner and Ben O’Keefe’s first Rugby World Cup semi-final. Gardner will referee Argentina’s match against New Zealand for the fifth time in his first Rugby World Cup knockout match as a referee.
The Australian official was at the center of Argentina’s historic 25–15 win in November 2020. He also refereed their last meeting, won 41–12 by New Zealand in July, at the Rugby Championship. This will be Gardner’s fourth mid-tournament match at the 2023 RWC and O’Keefe’s fifth in the tournament.
Rugby World Cup Semi-Finals: Referees and Officials Announced
The New Zealand official will referee England’s match against South Africa for the second time, having been at the center of South Africa’s 42–39 win in June 2018. This will be the first Men’s Rugby World Cup semi-final for all assistant referees and TMOs.
However, Ben Whitehouse was the technical director for the RWC 2021 women’s semi-final between England and Canada last November. Selection is based on merit and the wider squad will go on to compete for bronze in the 2023 Rugby World Cup final and grand final.
World Rugby can confirm that Jaco Paper has not been considered due to a calf injury suffered during the Wales v Argentina quarter-final in Marseille. Rugby Chairman Sir Bill Beaumont said: “I would like to congratulate Angus and Ben, the assistant referees and the TMO on their selection for the semi-final.
“The match official team as a whole played a full and positive role in an exceptional Rugby World Cup, including a compelling quarter-final run.”
Rugby High Performance 15 Official Match Manager Joël Jutge added: Congratulations to all those selected. This is a team effort and the choices reflect the hard work of the group as a whole and the support and encouragement they give each other. I’d also like to pay tribute to Jaco Peiper, who was out through injury. He would be in a quarrel. We wish him a speedy recovery.
How Rugby World Cup quarter-final drama turned the key to rugby heaven
The biggest misconception in sports is that winning is all that matters. This is like saying that all relationships are built solely on sex or that the caloric content of family dinners depends entirely on them. He completely ignores the range of contrasting emotions that, like last weekend, can give something truly memorable and life-affirming.
Congratulations are, of course, due to New Zealand, South Africa, England and Argentina, the feisty quartet still competing in the men’s Rugby World Cup. And yet, in many ways, it was France, Ireland, Wales and Fiji that made this a truly memorable couple of days. They all finished second, but this dismal result does not reflect their wider contributions.
How diminished would the event be without the tens of thousands of boisterous Irish fans, the returning bravery and brilliance of Antoine Dupont, the stunning athleticism of Fiji or Wales’ commitment to ‘bodies on the line? Did you see Johnny Sexton’s son console his father on Saturday night? None of this ultimately helped in terms of qualifying for the semi-finals, but those who insist that none of this now means anything are missing the point.
Because tournaments – and this one in particular – shaped by both the devastated losers and the glowing winners. How anyone not feel for the host nation and former world number one team when both were suddenly ousted? How close they were to achieving a different result and how narrow their difference becomes.
A Weekend of Thrilling Rugby
Drop the charge against Cheslyn Kolbe of trying to convert Tomas Ramos to Christianity. Did he really get out of the blocks a millisecond faster? Was the final pass of the All Blacks’ first try a forward touch? Could several important refereeing decisions have gone the other way? A similar story happened in Marseille. Rugby fans can book Rugby World Cup Tickets on our website at exclusively discounted prices.
What if Fiji’s performance had been a little better too? Or if Nicolas Sanchez hadn’t intercepted Sam Costelow’s pass with three minutes remaining? Heaping praise on the All Blacks, Springboks, English and Pumas for being ahead when the music stopped ignores the fact that on another day none of them might have been able to do it.
It was the most exciting non-final weekend in the history of the men’s Rugby World Cup. So far there have been three main contenders, none of them particularly recent. The 1999 semi-finals – France shocking New Zealand, Australia beating South Africa – were something else, as were the thrilling 1991 quarter-finals in Dublin and Paris. So was that unforgettable day in 2007 when France beat the All Blacks in Cardiff hours after England’s upset victory over the Wallabies in sunny Marseille.
However, in terms of consistent quality, the two weekend games in Paris eclipsed all of the above. Sometimes it was necessary to distinguish between an equal game, an exciting spectacle and a serious competition of the highest class. Completing all three stages, as happened in the Ireland-New Zealand and France-South Africa matches, is the key to rugby heaven.
Rugby’s Tale of the Northern and Southern Hemispheres
Could there be a subliminal message in there somewhere that three Rugby Championship teams are now in the last four and only one of the Six Nations? If the shoe were ever on the other foot, there would clearly be a temptation to rush to a certain conclusion. In truth, it seems a little simplistic now.
Take three victories in the southern hemisphere; all of which backed up by clever coaching and detailed input from well-travelled rugby brains with experience from both hemispheres in Joe Schmidt, Rassie Erasmus and Michael Cheika.
There was another recurring theme. Everyone in Ireland wanted to see Sexton executed on his shield. There is a similar reverence for Dupont in France, with Dan Biggar and Liam Williams in the final laps of the Rugby World Cup for Wales.
The hour has come and what happened? Sexton, 38, looked tired in the final quarter but Ireland didn’t seem to have the heart to take him off. The same goes for Dupont, still on the road after undergoing facial surgery. A battered Biggar and Williams also failed to sustain promising starts. The squad’s relentlessness, depth, and desire ultimately exceeded individual hopes, prayers, and dreams.
We are offering Rugby World Cup Semi Final Tickets. Rugby admirers can get RWC 2023 Tickets through our trusted online ticketing marketplace. Eticketing.co is the most reliable source to book Rugby World Cup Final Tickets.