2017 New Zealand U20s
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Speaking of Wayne Barnes, that first NZ try was off a fairly clear forward pass.
And what was Carlos Spencer doing playing for the U20s. Haven't seen that sort of cheeky pass in a while.
Some nice French tries in the 2nd 40.
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I was delighted to see the Baby Blacks made the final, after the nonsense after the haka at the start (good on the ref for keeping his cool while they were wasting time staring at each other) Excellent first half, that first try with that flick pass was great. Troubling in the second half though, when you are up 36-0, you should be burying the body.
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Sets up an interesting final, with Eng U20s sneaking past SA in the other semi. England have probably over performed this year given the players unavailable. Also not a vintage year for the tight 5, so would expect NZ to have too much in the final, but you never know.
Number 8 Zach Mercer (son of Kiwi RL player Gary) and FH Max Mailins the pick of the England players likely to be involved.
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That was a fun game to watch other than that YC from the French flanker. Red mist moment.
Our captain has some good pace for a blindside. Chased down that Fench back on the counter attack.
We mixed up the showtime with some really solid footy. France played the last 25-30 minutes with better accuracy at the collision. Better kicking game than ours in the 2nd half.
Watched that England v Baby Boks game and both of those sides play similar to France. Impressed through the tournament by England's loose forwards. If we keep the ball alive and play a good support game, I like our chances.
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England Team for the final. Couple more out with injury following the SA game, but it does mean that Umaga makes his first JWC start at 12
England U20: 15. Tom Parton (London Irish), 14. Darren Atkins (Bath Rugby), 13. Will Butler (Worcester Warriors), 12. Jacob Umaga (Wasps), 11. Gabriel Ibitoye (Harlequins), 10. Max Malins (Saracens), 9. Harry Randall (Gloucester Rugby), 1. Ralph Adams-Hale (Saracens), 2. Joe Mullis (Gloucester Rugby), 3. Ciaran Knight (Gloucester Rugby), 4. Josh Caulfield (Exeter Chiefs), 5. Jack Nay (Saracens), 6. Dino Lamb (Harlequins), 7. Ben Earl (Saracens), 8. Zach Mercer (Bath Rugby) captain. Replacements: 16. Henry Walker (Gloucester Rugby), 17. Ollie Dawe (Bristol Rugby), 18. Alex Seville (Gloucester Rugby), 19. Justin Clegg (Worcester Warriors), 20. Josh Bayliss (Bath Rugby), 21. Alex Mitchell (Northampton Saints), 22. James Grayson (Northampton Saints), 23. Paolo Odogwu (Sale Sharks). -
New Zealand team for the Final.
Tiaan Falcon ruled out with concussion suffered in the semi-final, so Stephen Perofeta has been rushed over.
The team is:
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Ezekiel Lindenmuth, Auckland
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Asafo Aumua, Wellington
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Pouri Rakete-Stones, Hawke’s Bay
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Isaia Walker-Leawere, Wellington
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Samuel Slade, Auckland
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Luke Jacobson (C), Waikato
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Dalton Papali'i, Auckland
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Marino Mikaele-Tu'u, Hawke’s Bay
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Ereatara Enari (VC), Canterbury
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Stephen Perofeta, Taranaki
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Caleb Clarke, Auckland
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Orbyn Leger, Counties Manukau
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Braydon Ennor, Canterbury
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Tima Fainga'anuku, Ta$man
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Will Jordan, Ta$man
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JP Sauni, Auckland
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Harrison Allan, Canterbury
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Alex Fidow, Wellington
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Sam Caird, Waikato
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Tom Christie, Canterbury
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Kemara Hauiti-Parapara, Wellington
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Tamati Tua, Northland
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Josh McKay, Canterbury
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I thought they were very thin for 10 cover.
Probably the worse injury for the squad to cope with.
Perofeta will be a bit jet lagged. Wonder when he got called over? Can only be days.
Other than this, the squad have been very fortunate with injuries. Almost unchanged 15s over the 4, now 5, games.
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@Rapido Perofeta arrived on Friday. They must have brought him over straight away after the semi. I think they lost two other players, including promising prop Tim Farrell. Fortunately for Farrell, he's young enough to be eligible again next year.
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Samoa has been relegated to the World Rugby U20 Trophy in 2018 after a 42-53 loss to Argentina. Not a quality game, despite all the tries. Samoa was promoted to the main tournament only last year. Obviously, the step up is difficult. Losi Filipo being suspended for 3 matches due to a dangerous tackle in Samoa's first match didn't help; he was one of their best players during the Oceania Tournament. Who will replace Samoa in the Championship will be decided in this year's U20 Trophy (to be played in August-September this year).
By the way, the French player (Kolingar) who head butted one of our NZ players during the semi has been suspended for 5 weeks (for a "strike with the head"). That means he'll miss France's 3rd place play-off and the first four games with Racing Club in France at the start of the 2017-18 season.
Another Frenchman, Arrate, has been suspended for 2 weeks for "making contact with eye area" of Aumua. He will also miss the 3rd place play-off and his first match with Biarritz Olympique in France.
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@Stargazer said in 2017 New Zealand U20s:
Now watching the Aussies take on Scotland for 5th place.
10-10 at the moment. Another loss to Scotland coming up.
