SA ref Peyper gets Six Nations gig
SIX NATIONS SPOTLIGHT: South Africa's leading referee Jaco Peyer has been appointed to officiate in the Six Nations Championship that kicks off on February 5.
Peyper is one of 13 match officials from eight World Rugby Member Unions who will take charge of the Championship’s 15 matches.
The South African and New Zealand’s Ben O’Keeffe take charge of first Championship matches since 2020 as travel restrictions ease.
Peyper and Scotland’s Mike Adamson are the only referees to have two matches each with Peyper taking charge of the opening and final matches of the Championship.
Meanwhile, Australia’s Angus Gardner and Nic Berry will referee their first Six Nations matches since 2019.
Another noticeable feat will see England’s Wayne Barnes edges closer to a century of international referee appointments. Barnes will take charge of Ireland versus Scotland in his 98th test in his 16th Championship.
On the other side of the spectrum, Georgia’s Nika Amashukeli is one of three Six Nations referee debutants and is the first Georgian to take charge of a Championship game after refereeing Ireland v Japan in November.
Australia’s Damon Murphy and England’s Karl Dickson are the other Six Nations referee debutants.
Assistant referees Pierre Brousset, Tual Trainini (both France) and Chris Busby (Ireland) make their Championship debut
Chairman of the World Rugby Match Officials Selection Committee Graham Mourie said: “The 2022 Six Nations represents an important milestone for our match officials on the road to Rugby World Cup 2023 in France.
“Being able to select from the largest pool of match officials since the last Rugby World Cup is exciting and also means that we will be able to optimise preparation on the ground prior to and during the Championship. I would like to extend my congratulations to Nika, Damon and Karl, who will be refereeing their first Six Nations matches, and wish all the best to all the match officials selected for the Championship.”
*List of appointments CLICK HERE!!!