Rugby World Cup 2023: who is the referee, TMO for Ireland vs Romania?

Ireland will start their bid to lift the Rugby World Cup for the first time in Bordeaux.

The boys in green face a potentially tricky test against Romania as the action begins in Group B. Andy Farrell will have his captain Johnny Sexton back after he completed a three-game ban.

Romania are returning to the world cup for the first time since 2015. They had qualified for the 2019 tournament in Japan but were disqualified for fielding an ineligible player during the qualification process and missed it.

The game will take place at the Stade de Bordeaux, Bordeaux on Saturday, 9 September and will kick-off at 3.30pm. But who will be the match officials?

Here's all you need to know:

Who is the referee for Ireland vs Romania?

Georgian match official Nika Amashukeli will be the man with the whistle for Ireland's first game at the 2023 world cup. He played rugby as a young boy and played at U17, U18 and U19 levels for his country.

After multiple injuries and concussions he retired from rugby aged 20 before starting training to become a referee in 2013. He took charge of his first test in 2015 in the Montenegro v Estonia European Nations Cup Third Division match.

He made his tier one test debut in 2021 during Wales' summer tour game against Canada. Nika has refereed two Six Nations games in 2022 and 2023 - but Ireland vs Romania will be his first senior men's world cup game.

Who is the TMO and assistant referees?

Nika Amashukeli will be joined by a team of referees for the match in Bordeaux on Saturday. His assitants will be the experienced English referee Wayne Barnes and Italian ref Andrea Piardi.

New Zealand official Brendon Pickerill will be on TMO duties. He was an assistant referee at the 2019 world cup in Japan.

How can you watch Ireland vs Romania?

In the England and Wales, the game will be televised by ITV - with STV showing the game in Scotland. ITVX will also be streaming the game - but a TV licence is required.

For rugby fans in Ireland, the game will be broadcast on RTÉ. All 48 games at the world cup will be available to watch free-to-air after an agreement between RTÉ and Virgin Media Television.