Whistleblower Wayne Barnes prepares to call time on refereeing career

The English referee begins his last full Premiership season at Exeter this weekend, wishing there was more TMO assistanceThe start of a new rugby union season is not just about players and coaches. Rarely have top-level referees been under more scrutiny, increasingly caught between a congested ruck and a hard place. Decisions in the modern game grow more hairline, the demands on its leading officials more intense. Without a capable whistle-blower to make sense of it all, the road to hell can be rapid.How blessed the sport has been to attract individuals of the calibre of Wayne Barnes and Nigel…