
Watch out Springboks, Romain Poite is heading your way once more!
It is highly likely that the Boks will get one of the four French referees at the Rugby World Cup, so in a roundabout way, they may be quietly pleased that they will encounter Poite during this year’s shortened Rugby Championship, as it gives them a chance to familiarise themselves with his style of officiating.
World Rugby announced their match official appointments on Wednesday for 63 Tests ahead of the World Cup in Japan, which starts on Friday 20 September.
The South Africans will open their tournament with the blockbuster clash against the All Blacks in Yokohama on Saturday, 21 September.
But in terms of the Rugby Championship, a reduced schedule will see the Boks take on the Wallabies at Ellis Park on 20 July, the All Blacks in Wellington a week later and Argentina in Salta on 10 August.