Matt Cecchin will referee title decider of Gillette Four Nations 2011 - Rugby
The Gillette Four Nations 2011 organisers have confirmed on Tuesday, November 15, the appointment of Australian referee, Matt Cecchin, for the final showdown of the Series, where Kangaroos will lock horns with Red Roses, at Elland Road, Leeds, this coming
Saturday.
This was shocking because the decision was not changed despite the fact that one of the teams featuring for the final encounter was Australia. The first this happened was during last year’s final clash of the Series in Brisbane between New Zealand and Australia
that ended in a 16-12 victory.
It may appear biased that an Australian will be refereeing while the Roos will be playing the game but nobody could potentially raise fingers at the choice because officials had already decided that neutral referees will be picked for the group matches only.
It was decided that the pick for the final showdown would be the best in the field. Both contending nations had their preferences for referee of the match. England's clear inclination was for Warrington referee Bentham but after his negligence during Australian
side's win over New Zealand in the opening match of the tournament, the Australian coach, Tim Sheens, lost support for the English referee. Cecchin’s name surfaced during the discussions held amongst the representatives of Australia, England and New Zealand.
The final showdown of Four Nations Campaign is expected to be a full-house as the series will be on hold until 2014. The break has been introduced because the World Cup of Rugby League is lined up for 2013, which will keep all the teams busy preparing.
Expressing his views about the net ticket sales made for the Four Nations’ title decider, the Rugby Football League (RFL) chief operating officer, Ralph Rimmer, said, "Ticket sales for the final have been strong for some time but the demand has been phenomenal
since the weekend and sales currently stand at close to 30,000.This match really is firing up the imagination of the rugby league public and the atmosphere on Saturday is going to be really special. It goes without saying that we would love to post the 'house
full' and the way things are going that looks likely to be the case."
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