Popular Welsh referee Nigel Owens was on form as he took charge of Racing 92’s Champions Cup semi-final triumph against Saracens in Paris.
Fans and pundits could not delight that the Welshman turned over possession when the scrum-half failed to ‘use it’ when instructed.
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Nigel Owens facts:
1. How he started refereeing
Playing rugby at school, his team hadn’t won a game all year, and needed to kick a conversion for victory. It was Nigel’s moment of glory. But it didn’t go to plan. The ball “went closer to the corner flag than it did to the uprights. I was a laughing stock in the school.” His coach suggested, rather forcefully, that it might make more sense for him to oversee the games rather than play in them.
2. Business
Before becoming a professional rugby union referee, Nigel worked on a dairy farm in west Wales and was also a youth worker. More recently he kicked off his own farming venture at home with a pedigree herd of Hereford cattle in Llanelli.
3. Full name
According to Wikipedia, his birth name was Nigel Farrell…
We’re not completely sure this is true.
4. Family
Scarlets and Wales U20 centre Ioan Nicholas is the cousin of the top referee.