Six Nations ref showed true colours in England row and got flattened by player | Rugby | Sport

The Six Nations Triple Crown, and potentially the Championship, hangs in the balance when Ireland welcome Scotland to Dublin today. Both nations have an opportunity at the title should they triumph and France fall short against England, but at minimum one of them will depart with silverware, regardless, with Scotland and Ireland having already defeated England and Wales to place them on the cusp of the Triple Crown.

Overseeing the encounter is one of the most seasoned and highly regarded officials in the sport, Luke Pearce. Whilst he represents the English Rugby Football Union, Pearce was in fact born in Pontypool, Wales. After being raised in Exeter, Pearce joined the Devon Referee Society in 2005 aged merely 16, officiating his first match that September. He has since climbed rapidly through the ranks, presiding over RFU Championship fixtures at 21, before becoming the youngest referee promoted to the RFU National panel in 2009.

Pearce made his Premiership debut in 2011 and later took charge of his first European fixture.

He made his debut appearance on the international stage when he officiated the European Nations Cup clash between Romania and Russia in 2013.

A Six Nations debut followed the following year, with Pearce serving as Steve Walsh’s assistant referee for the match between Italy and Scotland.

He played a similar role during Ireland’s historic first victory over New Zealand, and he officiated at his second World Cup in 2023 after being part of the refereeing panel in Japan in 2019.

In 2021, Pearce became an internet sensation after marching Billy Vunipola backwards on two occasions for answering back, having penalised the Saracens forward.

Whilst the incident garnered widespread approval online, Pearce later disclosed that he had apologised to the England star.

“He got me, I bit,” he confessed to the Rugby Pod. “I came off that pitch and I thought, ‘Luke, that is not your style. That is not your personality’.

“You’re there to be the ref. Of course you’re there to not take the s**t if someone is abusive. But there’s a fine balance between how you deal with people and making them look stupid and coming out of your style.

“I went into Sarries a couple of months ago for a training session. I spent the day there – just a couple of scrums, couple of lineouts, a bit of game stuff and I just apologised.

“Not to apologise for my behaviour, because Billy was a little bit rude to me. But I said ‘mate, that’s not my style, I’m sorry if it came across that way, that’s not how I operate’.”

Pearce usually steers clear of such incidents, but found himself on the wrong end when he crashed into towering South African lock Irne Herbst during a Premiership clash between Harlequins and Saracens earlier this season.

The official was knocked to the turf after running directly into the shoulder of the 19st 3lb second-row, drawing audible gasps from supporters around the ground.

Whilst he looked briefly stunned upon hitting the deck, instantly blowing his whistle to halt play as a concerned Herbst hurried to check on him, Pearce swiftly regained his composure, sharing light-hearted exchanges with Joe Marler before shaking hands with the Springbok forward.

Following the match, Pearce took to Twitter, posting: “Haven’t taken a hit like this since my Exeter Saracens days. Fair play to @irneherbst4for making sure I was ok. On to next week.”