WAYNE BARNES has revealed that he had his heart restarted just weeks before refereeing last year’s Rugby World Cup final.
The Englishman, 45, hung up his whistle after officiating South Africa’s 12-11 win over New Zealand at the Stade de France.
During the tournament, however, Barnes had suffered a major health scare.
Having taken charge of Ireland’s pool match against Tonga, the acclaimed official went out for what he expected to be a routine jog around Paris.
Around 15 minutes into his run, Barnes’ legs felt like “wet spaghetti” – with his heart rate reaching 230 beats per minute.
Barnes, who had an ablation operation after being diagnosed with atrial fibrillation in 2009, decided not to tell rugby officials, or even his wife Polly, about what had happened during his job.
And after resting the following day, he found himself officiating Wales’ clash with Australia that weekend.
“Three minutes into the game, Wales executed a move off a lineout and scrum-half Gareth Davies went flying over for a try,” Barnes recounted in his book, revealed in an excerpt in the Telegraph. “It was a start I could have done without, seeing as it required me to run about 50 metres.
“I thought, ‘Oh s***, I’m in trouble here’. I limited my running as much as possible for the rest of the first half, which both teams made easier for me by giving loads of penalties away, but I knew I had to tell my fellow referees during the break.”
Having skipped his usual post-match debrief beer, Barnes admitted on the phone to wife Polly that he was not feeling okay.
The following morning he feared that his career may be over, having already decided to hang up his whistle upon the tournament’s conclusion.
But in one last bid to prolong his decorated career by just a few extra weeks, Barnes got in contact with his cardiologist back in London.
After sending over an ECG reading, Barnes’ cardiologist told him that his heart had gone into tachycardia again, and that he could see him the following day to get it sorted.
So without telling rugby officials, he used his day off that week to fly back to London for a secret operation.
Barnes has since revealed: “While I was out for the count, Richard (his cardiologist) restarted my heart, and when I saw him again, he told me it had all gone to plan.
“Richard told me my left ventricle was still enlarged, that he might have to perform another ablation somewhere down the line, but that I’d be OK for the rest of the tournament.”
Just days later Barnes returned to the field, taking charge of Scotland’s thumping of Romania.
Despite his health scare, Barnes’ performances did not dip, impressing rugby chiefs.
He was then told that he would be taking charge of the Rugby World Cup final at the Stade de France, unless England would be in it.
So when Steve Borthwick‘s side were beaten 16-15 by South Africa in the semi-finals, Barnes was awarded the fairytale ending to his illustrious officiating career.
