England overpower France to win first under-20 Rugby World Cup since 2016 - 'This group is super special'
Published 20/07/2024 at 10:17 GMT+1
England produced a solid, gritty display to earn their first under-20 Rugby World Cup title since 2016, with a 21-13 victory over previous holders France. Les Bleus won the previous three iterations of the tournament, but were comfortably swept aside by a tight-knit England group in the final, with Joe Bailey, Arthur Green and Sean Kerr all on the scoresheet for the young Lions.
‘He will punish you’ – Van der Merwe bursts through gap to open scoring for Scotland
Video credit: TNT Sports
England were at their best to end France's dominance of the Under-20 Rugby World Cup, beating the holders 21-13 in the final in South Africa to win the tournament for the first time in eight years.
France won the previous three tournaments, and were in scintillating form heading into the final with a crushing 55-31 win over New Zealand in the semi-finals.
But England produced a steady performance to keep their opposition at bay, with a controlled performance spearheaded by captain Finn Carnduff.
"This group is super special," Carnduff said. "I genuinely see those guys as brothers for life and to win two trophies together, I can't believe it.
"We thought our errors were putting us on the back foot in the first half. We wanted to stick to our principles in the second half and I think we did that.
"We kept the ball at their end, used our set-piece to our advantage and moved the ball quicker."
- Borthwick 'hopeful' of Sinfield remaining part of England’s coaching team
- How to watch the 2024 Autumn Nations Series on TNT Sports and discovery+
- Holders Toulouse to face Ulster, Bath meet La Rochelle in Champions Cup openers
England fell behind to a Hugo Reus penalty on 12 minutes, but Bailey responded three minutes before the interval, powering over to score the opening try. Reus responded with another penalty on 43 minutes, as England held their slender lead.
After Mathis Castro-Ferreira was sent to the sin-bin for a high tackle on Henry Pollock, England enjoyed a dominant spell, which saw Kerr convert a penalty before Green ran over on 54 minutes.
Subsequent Kerr penalties in the 58th and 68th minute put England firmly in the driving seat, with France's Mathis Ferte grabbing a late consolation try.
The tournament win adds to a successful year for England under boss Mark Mapletoft, who also guided the young Lions to Six Nations glory in March.
The England coach told RugbyPass: "All coaches get frustrated at moments in games, but you have got to remember these lads are 18, 19, and 20. They are starting their rugby journeys.
"They’re not going to get everything right but what they found, and I don’t think it’s cliche, they found a way to win games.
“They are so strong at the end. So strong. We said, ‘Look, we started games slowly, we can’t afford to start slowly’ and we went in at half-time 7-6 up. I’m not going to say I thought we would bring it home but I genuinely did”.
The triumph was England's fourth U20 Rugby World Cup, with the young side not reaching the final of the tournament in the previous six years.
- - -
discovery+ is the streaming home of the Olympic Games, and the only place you can watch every moment of Paris 2024 this summer.
Related Topics
Advertisement
Advertisement