Barnes has historical past with New Zealand having infamously been voted the third most hated individual within the nation after a controversial 2007 Rugby World Cup quarter-final. His failure to identify a ahead go noticed New Zealand dumped out of the match.
Talking concerning the incident to Radio Sport a number of years on, Barnes mentioned: “Everybody improves over time. I went into the 2007 World Cup most likely solely refereeing three or 4 check matches, and I’ve now refereed about 90, so that you be taught from these video games – like New Zealand v France, and naturally I’ve realized from my errors in that recreation.
“You’re 28 years outdated, in the beginning of your profession – I suppose it was a little bit of a motivator to do a bit higher. That’s how I positively noticed it, and this World Cup for me, no person was speaking about Wayne Barnes’ efficiency, so possibly 12 years of expertise has helped do this.”
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