Jérôme Garcès has pulled out of the upcoming Rugby Championship matches between Australia and New Zealand in Sydney and Dunedin, due to injury. The Frenchman, pictured above, was selected to referee the first game and perform the role of assistant referee for the second but he sustained a calf strain while refereeing last weekend and has been forced to withdraw as a result.
He will be replaced for the game in Sydney this Saturday by Wayne Barnes of England with Wales’ Nigel Owens coming in as assistant referee. The following week, Barnes will perform the role of assistant referee with Owens taking over refereeing duties.
Garcès, who has refereed a total of 38 tests to date, is still expected to be fit for his two other appointments in the championship, when he will be assistant referee for South Africa v Australia in Bloemfontein on 30 September and referee for South Africa v New Zealand in Cape Town on 7 October.
The full, up-to-date list of match official appointments can be found HERE.