SANZAR and Game Manager, Lyndon Bray, have confirmed the appointments for Week Seven (5th April to 7th April) through to Week Ten (27th April to 29th April).
Bryce Lawrence will control the opening match of the Easter break and Week Seven on Thursday 5th April, with the first of three Australian Conference matches over the round, when the Rebels host the Blues at AAMI Park (KO: 19h40 local).
Glen Jackson will referee this week’s first New Zealand Conference match on Friday 6th April, with the Hurricanes returning to New Plymouth for the first time since 7th March 2009 when hosting the Sharks (KO: 19h35 local).
The South African Conference commences with the first of two matches, on Saturday 8th April, with a derby between the Cheetahs and Lions at Northern Free State Stadium in Welkom (KO: 15h00 local) just the second match at the ground.
Bray said the appointments were based on thorough analysis and reviews held weekly over the first month and a half of Super Rugby.
“These appointments largely affect the form of referees over the first six weeks,” Bray said.
“The Super Rugby referees undergo weekly reviews and we track the outcomes that every referee achieves on the field, which is primarily measured through the ‘Big 5’ priorities.”
“So far we are happy that the key performance indicators are improving week to week, with consistent improvements, especially with the first hit for scrum engagements.”
The Big 5 Priorities are:
Tackle: aim - 70% ball available within 3 seconds
Scrum: aim - 70% of scrums completed on the first hit
Ball in Play: aim - 35-40 minutes per game
Offside at Ruck: aim - less than 5 per game
Turnovers at Tackle: aim - 90% accuracy by player & referee
Super Rugby Referees for Week Seven
Rebels v Blues
Date Thursday 5 April
Venue : Melbourne
Kick Off local: 19:40
R Bryce Lawrence
AR Andrew Lees
AR James Leckie
TMO Matt Goddard
Hurricanes v Sharks
Date Friday 6 April
Venue : New Plymouth
Kick Off local: 19:35
R Glen Jackson
AR Garratt Williamson
AR Mike Fraser
TMO Richard Kelly
Reds v Brumbies
Date Friday 6 April
Venue : Brisbane
Kick Off local: 19:40
R Steve Walsh
AR Angus Gardner
AR Rohan Hoffman
TMO Steve Leszczynski
Force v Chiefs
Date Friday 6 April
Venue : Perth
Kick Off local: 19:40
R Jonathon White
AR Ian Smith
AR Julian Pritchard
TMO George Ayoub
Highlanders v Stormers
Date Saturday 7 April
Venue : Dunedin
Kick Off local: 19:35
R Chris Pollock
AR Keith Brown
AR Kane McBride
TMO Vinny Munro
Cheetahs v Lions
Date Saturday 7 April
Venue : Welkom
Kick Off local: 15:00
R Mark Lawrence
AR Joey Salmans
AR Reuben Roussouw
TMO Johann Meuwesen
Bulls v Crusaders
Date Saturday 7 April
Venue : Pretoria
Kick Off local: 17:05
R Jaco Peyper
AR Pro Legoete
AR Tiaan Jonker
TMO Gerrie Coetzee