do you think the selection for the knock-out will include owens and barnes?
Should be pretty much nailed on IMO.
Agreed - they have both been excellent and would be there on merit. Despite some criticism of his handling of NZ v SA, I still expect Garces to feature too. As regards Southern Hemisphere refs Peyper, for reasons I fail to see, seems to be held in high regard so will surely be there, as will Angus Gardner.
What I am not sure about is whether a reduced pool of refs will control all 4 quarters, semis, 3rd/4th play off and final or if it will be more spread out. If the latter then the likes of O’Keefe and Poite will no doubt feature too but there may still be some surprises if appointments are purely on merit - Berry and Williams spring to mind who have both been very good.
We shall see!