French referee Jerome Garces has been appointed to the plum opening round Rugby World Cup showdown between the Springboks and the All Blacks.
World Rugby unveiled the match officials on Friday for the pool stage of the 2019 edition in Japan, with Garces taking charge of the Bok opener at the Yokohama International Stadium on Saturday, 21 September.
Garces’ countryman, Romain Poite, will be one of the assistant referees, and he will be joined by England’s Karl Dickson.
Garces was also the referee in the last Bok World Cup match against the All Blacks, the 2015 semi-final, which the Kiwis won 20-18.
Another Frenchman, Mathieu Raynal, will blow the whistle for the Boks’ second World Cup match against Namibia at the City of Toyota Stadium on 28 September, while England’s Wayne Barnes was appointed for the next game against Italy at Shizuoka Stadium on 4 October.