SANZAAR has announced the referee appointment for the Super Rugby Final. In line with match official selections for the tournament the selection of the match referees for the Finals Series have been merit-based and have included input from the team head coaches.

Angus Gardner has been appointed to referee the Super Rugby Final on Saturday 4 August. It is his maiden Super Rugby Final appointment and is reward for his high quality performances throughout the season.

The 33-year-old Australian referee made his Super Rugby debut in 2012 when he refereed the Reds against the Rebels in Brisbane. He is now one of the most experienced Super Rugby referees. He has refereed 60 Super Rugby matches and in 2018 he has taken charge of 13 matches.
 
Gardner broke through at senior Test level in 2016 and during 2017 refereed in all the major Test match windows, including appointments in the 6 Nations and The Rugby Championship (TRC). He has refereed 13 Test matches and has been appointed to referee two TRC Tests this year - Argentina versus South Africa and South Africa versus New Zealand.

The assistant referees are Glen Jackson and Nic Berry the and television match official is Shane McDermott.
 

Match Crusaders [1] v Lions [42 @ AMI Stadium, Christchurch
Date  Saturday 4 August
Kick-off  19:35 local
Referee  Angus Gardner
AR1  Glen Jackson
AR2  Nic Berry
TMO  Shane McDermott

 

Angus Gardner in action during the Waratahs versus Highlanders quarter-final in Sydney