Craig Joubert gets Lions Test

Dublin - New Zealand's Chris Pollock, South African Craig Joubert and France's Romain Poite will referee the three Test matches between Australia and the touring British and Irish Lions, the IRB announced on Tuesday.

"Appointments were made by the IRB Match Official Selection Committee following a comprehensive review of performances during the recent Six Nations and other fixtures," world rugby's governing body said.

Pollock will take charge of the first Test in Brisbane on June 22, with Joubert refereeing the second Test in Melbourne on June 29 and Poite the final Test in Sydney on July 6.

Other referees who will take charge of matches during the tour include New Zealand-born Australian Steve Walsh, who has been appointed to the tour opener between the Lions and the Barbarians in Hong Kong, Glen Jackson (NZ), Jaco Peyper (RSA) and Jerome Garces (France).

"The British and Irish Lions tour will be one of the highlights of 2013 as far as international rugby is concerned and looks set to be another hard-fought and compelling series," said John Jeffery, IRB Match Official Selection Committee chairperson, IRB council member and former Scotland and British and Irish Lions flanker.

"The IRB is committed to promoting the very best refereeing standards at the elite level of the game.

"The continued priority is the promotion of consistency and performance and following a comprehensive selection process, the committee has appointed three highly experienced match referees for the Test series."