Luke Pearce will be heading to the Murrayfield Stadium in Edinburgh on 12th March to officiate the penultimate round of the 2023 Guinness Six Nations when Scotland takes on Ireland.
Along with our partners at ACME whistles, we caught up with Luke to find out a little more about the upcoming Scotland v Ireland game that he will be refereeing.
“It’s undoubtedly going to be a huge game anyway now because of recent results but it helps having Wayne because he’s been around since I was a boy, and Christophe and I have been touring together for the last couple of years – so just having that closeness and understanding with my colleagues makes things a lot easier.
“Regardless of what happens in the game, these people know me inside out so it’s not just about how I say something or what I say and do – we know each other so well that they can even read my body language.”
Luke explains what the few days before the game at Murrayfield will be like, saying: “We’re in Twickenham on the Monday and Tuesday having European Cup meetings and then World Rugby meetings.
“We’ll arrive in Edinburgh on the Friday and the game’s on the Sunday. Friday will very much be a time to relax and have a formal dinner.
“Like I say – it’s easy preparing for stuff when you’re with a team you know really well because you can ‘chew the fat’ over a pint or over dinner. Quite often you’ve covered everything before an official preparation meeting.
“What’s nice about a Sunday game is that you get to see the games on a Saturday as well. We’ll look at anything that comes out from the other games, that we need to make sure we do the same on the Sunday to make it consistent for the three matches. That’s the one big thing that we’re trying to strive for ahead of the World Cup is consistency.”
Regarding consistency, Luke says it is something they strive for, but that isn’t easy and requires teamwork, adding: “In rugby you never get two identical scenarios – it’s very rare that something would happen exactly the same. But, if we can try and align our decision making, the not only the players, but the public, TV viewers and commentators can all follow what we’re doing.
“It’s a challenge, but it’s something that we’re always working towards.”
You can catch Luke at Murrayfield on Sunday 12th March at 3pm when he will be refereeing Scotland v Ireland.
For more information on refereeing and to get started, visit www.acmewhistles.co.uk