England v France referee Ben O’Keefe, the top official who left Eddie Jones furious
Eddie Jones #EddieJones
England and France will be looking to boost their hopes of a Six Nations title win when they face off at Twickenham.
Steve Borthwick’s men began the current campaign with a disappointing Calcutta Cup defeat at the hands of Scotland, but have since claimed victories over Italy and Wales.
France, meanwhile, come into this clash having tasted defeat to hot favourites Ireland in a pulsating clash in Dublin last week, but similarly have two wins to their name.
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Overseeing this encounter is New Zealand referee Ben O’Keefe.
Here’s everything you need to know about the man in the middle.
Who is Ben O’Keefe?
The Kiwi whistler began his refereeing career back in 2008 at the age of just 19, and quickly worked his way up to the realms of Super Rugby, officiating his first game in 2015. He’s been a regular on the circuit ever since.
A year later, he made his international debut, taking charge of the clash between Samoa and Georgia, and would then go on to become the youngest referee at the 2019 World Cup.
He has since refereed in the Six Nations and Rugby Championship.
How did he upset Eddie Jones?
O’Keefe found himself under the spotlight while officiating the Six Nations game between England and Wales in 2020.
The Kiwi made the decision to send off England’s Manu Tuilagi, having already sent Ellis Genge to the sin bin.
At the time, England head coach Eddie Jones didn’t hold back, saying: “It was 13 versus 16 at the end.”
“I usually do not comment on incidents like this but I am breaking my rule because I found the red card bizarre.”
The Rugby Football Union subsequently reprimanded Jones and apologised to O’Keeffe, with chief executive Bill Sweeney stating: “The Rugby Football Union does not condone comments that in any way undermine the integrity of match officials, who are central to the sport and its values.
“We have discussed with England head coach Eddie Jones the nature of the comments he made … and have made it clear that such comments are not in line with the values of the sport or the RFU.
“Eddie and the RFU regret any implication that Ben O’Keeffe was biased in his decision-making. We have outlined this position to the tournament organisers the Six Nations and World Rugby, who will pass on our apologies to Ben O’Keeffe and the match officials team.”
Who are the other officials?
Assistant Referee 1: Jaco Peyper (SARU)
Assistant Referee 2: Andrea Piardi (FIR)
TMO: Brett Cronan (RA)
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