Wayne Barnes favourite to referee Rugby World Cup final

The referee for the Rugby World Cup final has not been appointed yet but all signs point to Wayne Barnes getting the job.

Barnes is widely considered to be the best referee in the world right now and is odds on to referee the RWC final for the first time.

Barnes is set to be aided by compatriot Tom Foley in the TMO booth say reports.

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WHAT WILL BE ON THE LINE WHEN WAYNE BARNES TAKES THE WHISTLE

There doesn’t appear to be a better candidate than Barnes although many have questioned why highly-rated Georgian referee Nika Amashukeli has not had any assignments in the knockout stages.

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Springboks skipper Siya Kolisi could become only the second player ever to win the RWC twice as a captain. Kolisi was the captain in 2019 when South Africa won and he was announced to be the captain again in 2023 . The only player to ever win twice is Richie McCaw (New Zealand) who was winning captain in 2011 and 2015.

Richie Mo’Unga (New Zealand) could climb up higher in the rankings of the players with the most overall conversions across World Cups – he is currently in 5th place with 34 overall conversions with a potential to increase this number in the upcoming matches.

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ALL BLACKS AND SPRINGBOKS TO MAKE HISTORY

New Zealand, could join South Africa as the only nation to have won the World Cup after previously losing a match in the Pool stages; South Africa could also become the only country to do so twice since they lost a Pool match against Ireland. 

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South Africa could break its tie with New Zealand (3 titles) and become the sole holder of the record for the most titles won since RWC’s inception in 1987 if they win their 4th title – they previously won in 1995, 2007 and 2019.