George Clancy is an

Irish Irish may refer to: Common meanings * Someone or something of, from, or related to: ** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe ***Éire, Irish language name for the isle ** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...

rugby union referee Rugby union match officials are responsible for enforcing the rugby union laws of the game during a match and imposing sanctions on individuals who do not follow the rules. "Every match is under the control of match officials who consist of the r ...

. Clancy refereed at the

2011 File:2011 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: a protester partaking in Occupy Wall Street heralds the beginning of the Occupy movement; protests against Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi, who was killed that October; a young man celebrate ...

and

2015 Rugby World Cup The 2015 Rugby World Cup was the eighth Rugby World Cup, the quadrennial rugby union world championship. The tournament was hosted by England from 18 September to 31 October. Of the 20 countries competing in the World Cup in 2011, there was onl ...

s. He has also refereed in the

Pro14 The United Rugby Championship (URC) is an annual rugby union competition involving professional teams from Ireland, Italy, Scotland, South Africa, and Wales. The current name was adopted in 2021 when the league expanded to include four South Afr ...

, the

European Rugby Champions Cup The European Rugby Champions Cup (known as the Heineken Champions Cup for sponsorship reasons) is an annual rugby union tournament organised by European Professional Club Rugby (EPCR). It is the top-tier competition for clubs who compete in a pre ...

, the

Six Nations Championship The Six Nations Championship (known as the Guinness Six Nations for sponsorship reasons) is an annual international men's rugby union competition between the teams of England, France, Ireland, Italy, Scotland and Wales. The current champions ar ...

and the Rugby Championship. Clancy refereed the

2007 Churchill Cup The 2007 Churchill Cup was held from May 18 to June 2, 2007. It was the fifth year of the Churchill Cup. Six rugby union teams took part: Canada, England Saxons, Ireland A, New Zealand Māori, Scotland A, and the USA. Format The teams were s ...

final and the

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and 2011 European Challenge Cup finals. Between

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and

2017 File:2017 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The War Against ISIS at the Battle of Mosul (2016-2017); aftermath of the Manchester Arena bombing; The Solar eclipse of August 21, 2017 ("Great American Eclipse"); North Korea tests a ser ...

Clancy also served as a touch judge/assistant referee at five consecutive

European Rugby Champions Cup finals European, or Europeans, or Europeneans, may refer to: In general * ''European'', an adjective referring to something of, from, or related to Europe ** Ethnic groups in Europe ** Demographics of Europe ** European cuisine, the cuisines of Europe a ...

Early life

George Clancy is the son of Seoirse and Helen Clancy. He was raised in

Bruff Bruff () is a town in east County Limerick, in the midwest of Ireland, located on the old Limerick–Cork road ( R512). The town lies on the Morning Star river, with two bridges in the town itself. The horseshoe lake of Lough Gur is nearby ...

and he is the great grandnephew of George Clancy, a former

Mayor of Limerick The office of Mayor of the City and County of Limerick is currently the title used by the chairperson of Limerick City and County Council. Prior to the establishment of the council, the Mayor of Limerick was the chairperson of Limerick City Counc ...

killed during the

Irish War of Independence The Irish War of Independence () or Anglo-Irish War was a guerrilla war fought in Ireland from 1919 to 1921 between the Irish Republican Army (IRA, the army of the Irish Republic) and British forces: the British Army, along with the quasi-mil ...

. Clancy was educated at

St Munchin's College St. Munchin's College is a second-level education college located in Corbally, Limerick, Ireland. The school was founded in 1796. It is a Diocesan CollegeDiocese of Limerick > Education > Post Primary or minor seminary. College Crest The colle ...

, where his fellow pupils included

Marcus Horan Marcus Horan (born 7 September 1977) is a retired Irish rugby union player who played prop for Munster and Ireland. Early life Horan was educated at Scoil Seanain Naofa (Clonlara National School), St. Munchin's College and Limerick Institute ...

and

Jerry Flannery Jeremiah Paul Flannery (born 17 October 1978) is a former Irish rugby union player and current coach. During his playing career, Flannery, a hooker, played for Munster and Ireland, before being forced to retire in March 2012 due to injury prob ...

. He played

rugby union Rugby union, commonly known simply as rugby, is a close-contact team sport that originated at Rugby School in the first half of the 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand. In its m ...

for both St Munchin's and Bruff R.F.C. He also played both

gaelic football Gaelic football ( ga, Peil Ghaelach; short name '), commonly known as simply Gaelic, GAA or Football is an Irish team sport. It is played between two teams of 15 players on a rectangular grass pitch. The objective of the sport is to score by kic ...

and

hurling Hurling ( ga, iománaíocht, ') is an outdoor team game of ancient Gaelic Irish origin, played by men. One of Ireland's native Gaelic games, it shares a number of features with Gaelic football, such as the field and goals, the number of p ...

for

Bruff GAA Bruff is a Gaelic Athletic Association club based in Bruff, County Limerick, Ireland. The club was founded in 1887 and fields teams in both hurling and Gaelic football. Overview Honours * Limerick Premier Intermediate Hurling Championship: ...

. Clancy also represented

Limerick Limerick ( ; ga, Luimneach ) is a western city in Ireland situated within County Limerick. It is in the province of Munster and is located in the Mid-West which comprises part of the Southern Region. With a population of 94,192 at the 2016 ...

at hurling. Clancy only gave up playing hurling when he was offered an IRFU refereeing contract which prohibited him playing sports that might result in an injury. He remains a hurling fan and he was attending a match between Bruff GAA and

Ballybrown GAA Ballybrown GAA club is a Gaelic Athletic Association club located in Ballybrown, County Limerick, Ireland. The club fields teams in both hurling and Gaelic football. In 2018, Ballybrown fielded teams at Senior, Junior A and Junior B in hurlin ...

when he received a phone call from Paddy O'Brien inviting him to referee the opening match of the

2011 Rugby World Cup The 2011 Rugby World Cup was the seventh Rugby World Cup, a quadrennial international rugby union competition inaugurated in 1987. The International Rugby Board (IRB) selected New Zealand as the host country in preference to Japan and South Af ...

. Clancy has a master's degree in international relations and worked as a tax official with the

Revenue Commissioners The Revenue Commissioners ( ga, Na Coimisinéirí Ioncaim), commonly called Revenue, is the Irish Government agency responsible for customs, excise, taxation and related matters. Though Revenue can trace itself back to predecessors (with the A ...

before becoming a full-time referee. Clancy has also lived with

type 1 diabetes Type 1 diabetes (T1D), formerly known as juvenile diabetes, is an autoimmune disease that originates when cells that make insulin (beta cells) are destroyed by the immune system. Insulin is a hormone required for the cells to use blood sugar for ...

for over twenty years.

Refereeing career

Early years

Clancy was encouraged to become a

by his father. Seoirse Clancy was involved with Bruff R.F.C. and had refereed at a local level. He encouraged his son to take up refereeing after injuries, including a broken leg, prevented him from playing

at a top level. In October 2000 Clancy refereed his first match, an U15s league match between Richmond and Garryowen which ended in a 0–0 draw. He subsequently began refereeing games in the All-Ireland League before making his

Celtic League The Celtic League is a pan-Celtic organisation, founded in 1961, that aims to promote modern Celtic identity and culture in Ireland, Scotland, Wales, Brittany, Cornwall and the Isle of Man – referred to as the Celtic nations; it places part ...

debut on 15 October 2004 when he took charge of a match between

Borders A border is a geographical boundary. Border, borders, The Border or The Borders may also refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Film and television * ''Border'' (1997 film), an Indian Hindi-language war film * ''Border'' (2018 Swedish film), ...

and Gwent Dragons.

European competitions

On 15 January 2005 Clancy made his

Heineken Cup The European Rugby Champions Cup (known as the Heineken Champions Cup for sponsorship reasons) is an annual rugby union tournament organised by European Professional Club Rugby (EPCR). It is the top-tier competition for clubs who compete in a pre ...

debut when he took charge of a 2004–05 pool stage match between

Bourgoin Bourgoin-Jallieu (; frp, Brégon) is a commune in the Isère department in the region of Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes in France. The city had 28,834 inhabitants in 2019 and lies 35 kilometres east-southeast of Lyon. It was formed by the merger of th ...

and

Bath Bath may refer to: * Bathing, immersion in a fluid ** Bathtub, a large open container for water, in which a person may wash their body ** Public bathing, a public place where people bathe * Thermae, ancient Roman public bathing facilities Plac ...

. He was originally supposed to be the touch judge for this match but after the original referee went sick, Clancy was called upon to replace him. On 22 May 2009 Clancy refereed the

2008–09 European Challenge Cup The 2008–09 European Challenge Cup was the 13th season of the European Challenge Cup, the annual rugby union European club competition for clubs from six nations in European rugby. It started in October 2008 and ended with the final at the Twick ...

final between

Northampton Saints Northampton Saints (officially Northampton Rugby Football Club) is a professional rugby union club from Northampton, England. They play in Premiership Rugby, England's top division of rugby. They were formed in 1880 as "Northampton St. James", ...

and Bourgoin. He also refereed the 2010–11 European Challenge Cup final between Harlequins and

Stade Français Stade Français Paris Rugby () is a French professional rugby union club based in the 16th arrondissement of Paris. The club plays in the Top 14 domestic league in France and is one of the most successful French clubs of the modern era. The ...

. Between

and

Clancy also served as a touch judge/assistant referee at five consecutive

Early internationals

Clancy refereed at the

2004 FIRA Women's European Championship The 2004 FIRA Women's European Championship took place at grounds in and around the Midi-Pyrénées region of France (near Toulouse) between 30 April to 9 May. Pool A reverted to a single eight nation knockout, while Pool B was a round-robin. Franc ...

and at the

2005 File:2005 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: Hurricane Katrina in the Gulf of Mexico; the Funeral of Pope John Paul II is held in Vatican City; "Me at the zoo", the first video ever to be uploaded to YouTube; Eris was discovered in ...

and

2006 Under 21 Rugby World Championship The 2006 Under 21 Rugby World Championship was played in the Auvergne region of France throughout June 2006. The final was played between South Africa and France at the Stade Marcel-Michelin in Clermont-Ferrand, which saw France win 24–13. Parti ...

s. He made his senior international debut on 30 September 2006 when he took charge of a 2007 Rugby World Cup qualifier between

Uruguay Uruguay (; ), officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay ( es, República Oriental del Uruguay), is a country in South America. It shares borders with Argentina to its west and southwest and Brazil to its north and northeast; while bordering ...

and the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

. He also refereed the

final. In

2008 File:2008 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Lehman Brothers went bankrupt following the Subprime mortgage crisis; Cyclone Nargis killed more than 138,000 in Myanmar; A scene from the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing; ...

Clancy refereed his first top level internationals. On 1 June he took charge of a match between

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

and the

Barbarians A barbarian (or savage) is someone who is perceived to be either uncivilized or primitive. The designation is usually applied as a generalization based on a popular stereotype; barbarians can be members of any nation judged by some to be less c ...

and on 21 June he refereed a match between

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...

and

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

. Clancy made his

debut on 14 February

when he took charge of a match between

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

and the

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

. Clancy made his Rugby Championship debut on 24 July

2010 File:2010 Events Collage New.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2010 Chile earthquake was one of the strongest recorded in history; The Eruption of Eyjafjallajökull in Iceland disrupts air travel in Europe; A scene from the opening ceremony of ...

when he took charge of a match between

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

and South Africa.

Rugby World Cup

Clancy refereed the opening game of the

, a pool stage game between

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

and

Tonga Tonga (, ; ), officially the Kingdom of Tonga ( to, Puleʻanga Fakatuʻi ʻo Tonga), is a Polynesian country and archipelago. The country has 171 islands – of which 45 are inhabited. Its total surface area is about , scattered over in ...

. Clancy subsequently refereed three more pool stage matches during the tournament. Clancy was also selected to referee at the

. Clancy refereed three pool stage matches at the 2015 tournament.

Controversies and incidents

During his refereeing career Clancy has been involved in several controversies and incidents. On his

debut on 14 February

, Clancy awarded a try to

's Fulgence Ouedraogo against

. Replays showed the final pass from

Maxime Médard Maxime Médard (born 16 November 1986) is a former French rugby union player who plays his club rugby for French club Stade Toulousain in Top 14 and France national rugby union team, France internationally. He can play as both a Rugby union posi ...

was forward. However, Clancy had been knocked to the ground in the move building up to the score. He consulted with his assistant before confirming the try. On 5 December 2009, after refereeing an All-Ireland League match between Shannon and

Cork Constitution The Cork Constitution (CC) is a rugby union club based in Cork (city), Cork, playing in Division 1A of the All-Ireland League (rugby union), All-Ireland League. It was founded by staff of the ''Cork Constitution (newspaper), Cork Constitution'' ...

, Clancy was verbally abused by Shannon supporters and club officials. Among the alleged abusers was

Gerry McLoughlin Gerard Anthony Joseph McLoughlin (born 11 June 1952) in Limerick is a former international rugby union player. Rugby career McLoughlin played club rugby for Shannon and Munster. He was part of the Munster team that beat the All Blacks 12 to ...

. After the match had finished Martin Clancy, the Shannon president, entered the referees dressing room and continued to verbally abuse the referee. He was eventually removed by the two touch judges. Shannon were subsequently fined €25,000. On 13 February

during a match between

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...

and Scotland, Clancy sin-binned Scotland's

Phil Godman Phil Godman (born 20 May 1982) is an ex rugby union player, who played for Edinburgh Rugby and Newcastle Falcons as well as representing Scottish rugby union side. Early life He was educated at Merchiston Castle School, where he played for the ...

for an alleged off-the-ball trip on

Lee Byrne Lee Byrne (born 1 June 1980) is a Welsh former professional rugby union and rugby league footballer who played in the 2000s and 2010s. Club career Byrne started his career playing rugby union for Bridgend Athletic RFC; and Tondu RFC, as a full ...

. Byrne was later accused of deliberately diving to help Wales win. On 10 April 2010, during a

2009–10 Heineken Cup The 2009–10 Heineken Cup was the 15th season of the Heineken Cup, the annual rugby union European club competition for clubs from the top six nations in European rugby. It started in October 2009 and ended on 22 May 2010 with the final at Stade ...

quarter-final, between

Biarritz Biarritz ( , , , ; Basque also ; oc, Biàrritz ) is a city on the Bay of Biscay, on the Atlantic coast in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques department in the French Basque Country in southwestern France. It is located from the border with Spain. ...

and Ospreys, Clancy refused to award Ospreys a penalty towards the end of the match after an alleged knock-on by Biarritz's scrum-half,

Dimitri Yachvili Dimitri Yachvili Markarian (born 19 September 1980, in Brive-la-Gaillarde, Corrèze) is a French former rugby union footballer who played as a scrum-half for Biarritz and France. He played for France from 2002 to 2012, earning 61 caps and scori ...

. The decision denied Ospreys a potential victory. On 6 September

2014 File:2014 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Stocking up supplies and personal protective equipment (PPE) for the Western African Ebola virus epidemic; Citizens examining the ruins after the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping; Bundles of wat ...

Clancy refereed a match between

and

. Clancy yellow carded South Africa's

Bryan Habana Bryan Gary Habana OIS (born 12 June 1983) is a South African former professional rugby union player who initially played as an outside centre but later on, he shifted to the wing. He most recently played for Toulon in the French Top 14 competit ...

for a high tackle on

Adam Ashley-Cooper Adam Ashley-Cooper (born 27 March 1984) is a former Australian people, Australian rugby union player who last played for the LA Giltinis of Major League Rugby (MLR). He has won 121 caps for Australia national rugby union team, Australia, the th ...

in the 65th minute. According to Paul Cully of ''

The Sydney Morning Herald ''The Sydney Morning Herald'' (''SMH'') is a daily compact newspaper published in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, and owned by Nine. Founded in 1831 as the ''Sydney Herald'', the ''Herald'' is the oldest continuously published newspaper ...

'' the decision was incorrect and was "the defining moment" of the match, costing South Africa a potential victory. On 16 September 2017 Clancy was serving as a touch judge during a

2017–18 Pro14 The 2017–18 PRO14 (also known as the ''Guinness PRO14'' for sponsorship reasons) was the seventeenth season of the professional rugby union competition originally known as the Pro14, Celtic League. It is the first season to be referred to as th ...

match between

Cardiff Blues Cardiff Rugby ( cy, Rygbi Caerdydd) are one of the four professional Welsh rugby union teams. They compete in the United Rugby Championship and in European Professional Club Rugby competitions. Based in Cardiff, the team play at Cardiff Arms ...

and

Glasgow Warriors Glasgow Warriors are a professional rugby union side from Scotland. The team plays in the United Rugby Championship league and in the European Professional Club Rugby tournaments. In the 2014–15 season they won the Pro12 title and became t ...

. A disgruntled Cardiff Blues fan threw his pint of beer at Clancy because he allegedly was unhappy with a decision made by the officials. The act was caught on camera and the fan was quickly escorted from the ground.

Honours

;Individual *

Munster Rugby Munster Rugby ( ga, Rugbaí Mumhan) is one of the four professional provincial rugby teams from the island of Ireland. They compete in the United Rugby Championship and the European Rugby Champions Cup. The team represents the IRFU's Munster B ...

Referee of the Year ** 2007

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Clancy, George Living people 1977 births Irish rugby union players Rugby union players from County Limerick Irish rugby union referees IRFU referees Rugby World Cup referees Six Nations Championship referees The Rugby Championship referees European Rugby Champions Cup referees EPCR Challenge Cup referees United Rugby Championship referees Bruff hurlers Limerick inter-county hurlers Limerick Gaelic footballers People educated at St Munchin's College 1872 Cup referees