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Rugby union football, commonly known simply as rugby union or more often just rugby, is a close-contact team sport that originated at Rugby School in England in the first half of the 19th century. Rugby is simply based on running with the ball in hand. In its most common form, a game is played between two teams of 15 players each, using an oval-shaped ball on a rectangular field called a pitch. The field has H-shaped goalposts at both ends.
New Zealand Rugby (NZR) is the governing body of rugby union in New Zealand. It was founded in 1892 as the New Zealand Rugby Football Union (NZRFU), 12 years after the first provincial unions in New Zealand. In 1949 it became an affiliate to the International Rugby Football Board, now known as World Rugby, the governing body of rugby union for the world. It dropped the word "Football" from its name in 2006. The brand name New Zealand Rugby was adopted in 2013. Officially, it is an incorporated society with the name New Zealand Rugby Union Incorporated.
Sir Graham William Henry is a New Zealand rugby union coach, and former head coach of the country's national team, the All Blacks. Nicknamed 'Ted', he led New Zealand to win the 2011 World Cup.
Steve Walsh is a retired professional rugby union referee from New Zealand. He officiated at international level from 1998 to 2014, and at three Rugby World Cups, including refereeing the semi-final between South Africa and Argentina in 2007. Walsh became the most experienced Super Rugby referee in 2014, passing Jonathan Kaplan's record before retiring from the game in 2015.
Rugby union has been played in New Zealand since 1870 and is the most popular sport in the country as well as being its national sport.
Wayne Barnes is a retired English international rugby union referee. He was a frequent referee in the English Premiership, and refereed games in the Heineken Cup and the European Challenge Cup. At international level, Barnes refereed matches at the Rugby World Cup, the Six Nations, the Rugby Championship and the Pacific Nations Cup competitions.
Romain Poite is a French former rugby union international referee. Poite retired in November 2021 after refereeing 72 tests, refereeing the third-most international tests in international rugby behind Nigel Owens (Wales) and Wayne Barnes (England). He made his debut in 2006, and has been a referee at three World Cups, including the 2019 Final.
Craig Paul Joubert is a South African professional rugby union referee and a Referee Talent Development Coach at World Rugby.
Jaco Peyper is a former South African Rugby Union referee.
Chris Pollock is a former rugby union referee who represented the New Zealand Rugby Union. In 2008, he was part of the IRB's touch judge panel. He made his international referee debut in 2005, when he refereed Niue vs Tahiti, while his first IRB appointment was in 2006, taking charge of Hong Kong vs Japan.
Francisco Pastrana is a Rugby Union referee who represents the Argentine Rugby Union. Until 2003, he played Fly Half for the famous Hindu Club in Buenos Aires till injuries took their toll and forced him to stop playing in 2003.
Fhatuwani 'Rasta' Rasivhenge is a South African rugby union referee who is a member of the South African Rugby Union (SARU) Premier Panel. He was appointed to referee the final of the rugby sevens tournament at the 2016 Summer Olympics.
Matt O'Brien is a New Zealand-born Australian professional rugby union referee. He has officiated on the IRB Sevens World Series circuit since 2011 and was appointed to the Super Rugby referees panel for 2014 and 2015.
Angus Gardner is an Australian rugby union professional referee who was appointed to the Super Rugby referees panel in 2012. His first match in Super Rugby was between the Queensland Reds and Melbourne Rebels at Suncorp Stadium in March of that year.
Andrew Lees is an Australian professional rugby union referee. He has been a member of the Super Rugby referees panel from the 2012 season and onwards.
Marius van der Westhuizen is a South African professional rugby union referee, currently on the Premier Panel of the South African Rugby Referees' Association.
Federico Anselmi is a rugby union referee who represents the Argentine Rugby Union (UAR). He also is a referee for Major League Rugby in North America.
Shuhei Kubo is a Japanese rugby union referee, who is an A class referee in the Japan Rugby Football Union.
Benjamin Dennis O'Keeffe is a rugby union referee from New Zealand. He currently referees at domestic, Super Rugby and test match level.
Luke Pearce is a Welsh rugby union referee representing the Rugby Football Union. He is a regular referee in the English Premiership and has refereed games at European level and at the 2019 Rugby World Cup.
References
- ↑ "All Blacks referees". Archived from the original on 12 November 2016. Retrieved 4 August 2015.
- ↑ IRB International Referee Panel 2013
- ↑ SUPER RUGBY MEDIA GUIDE - referees
- ↑ "Match officials announced for Rugby World Cup 2015". worldrugby.com. World Rugby. 7 April 2015. Retrieved 7 April 2015.