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Glory for England U20s as second-half power show dethrones France
By Liam Heagney
England are World Rugby U20 Championship champions following a second-half show of force in South Africa to dethrone defending champions France.
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Ahead by a single point at the break after riding their luck at times during an edgy opening half, Mark Mapletoft’s dynamos took ample advantage of the yellow carding of Mathis Castro-Ferreira to transform a slender 7-6 advantage into an 18-6 cushion with an Arthur Green try and the boot of Sean Kerr.
From there they went on to win 21-13 and the French, who were chasing a fourth successive Championship title in a row, could have no complaints, such was the level of shackling put on their blunted attack by a pent-up English defence on a full moon night at the Cape Town Stadium.
The Six Nations champions, who had beaten the French 45-31 in Pau 18 weeks ago to clinch that particular title, had heroes all over the park in a team supremely led by skipper Finn Carnduff.
When it finished, the moral of the story was clear: England had continued from where they had left off in suffocating Ireland last Sunday with their potent scrum and forward dominance whereas the underperforming France had essentially played their final when walloping New Zealand 55-31 with wonderful flair in their semi-final.
The torrential rain that had affected the second half of New Zealand versus Ireland third-place play-off had relented by the time the final kicked off and it was the French who struck first with an 11th-minute Hugo Reus penalty from close range.
The out-half had tried his luck and missed from halfway six minutes earlier, but his team opted to kick to the 22 when they next were awarded a penalty in that same centre-field area.
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That infringement had followed on from the stoppage of the first England maul advance near their line, and the English were frustrated a second time not long after when Henry Pollock’s excellent break ended with a knock-on.
England had been slow starters across the tournament whereas France had always produced an early try, so being just a penalty kick down at this juncture was a ‘win’ for Mapletoft’s side.
That feeling was further fuelled when a TMO spotted knock-on from Castro-Ferreira chalked off the 19th-minute try from Mathis Ferte sparked by a Reus crosskick from near his own 22 that was caught by Fabien Brau-Boirie in the opposition half.
The near-misses continued. England’s Kane Douglas got held up over the line after breaking away from a maul, then France’s Fabien Brau-Boirie was reeled in near the line down the other end at the expense of a penalty that did nothing for Reus and co.
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It was hectic and the end-to-end nature didn’t relent. Kerr next saw a 31st-minute penalty kick from distance cannon off an upright. He didn’t have to wait long for another slightly closer opportunity, but he scuffed this effort away to the left.
Showing how to dominate in the scrum! ?@EnglandRugby score their second try in this final with everything still all to play for! ???????
Watch all the action live on RugbyPass TV ?#WorldRugbyU20s | #ENGvFRA pic.twitter.com/C6JuUJrBTx
— World Rugby (@WorldRugby) July 19, 2024
England stuck at it, though, and were emphatically on the board four minutes before the break when initial maul momentum down the right was followed on the other side by an important Pollock carry and then a worm-like burrow from Joe Bailey to make the line off pick and jam.
Kerr’s conversion made the lead 7-3, but Reus cut it to the minimum on the stroke of half-time. The livewire Pollock then began the second half eager for more involvement and a 46th-minute carry crucially resulted in a yellow for Castro-Ferreira. Could England now make good the numerical advantage? They most certainly could.
Kerr soon kicked three points when the French infringed at a breakdown and when gifted a scrum five out following a knock-on at a crosskick when Kerr chased down Maxence Biasotto, sub No8 Green powered over off the back of the march forward for the unconverted 53rd-minute try.
Kerr was on the tee again when the Castro-Ferreira binning was up, adding another three points for an 18-6 lead with 23 minutes remaining. The Championship was now definitely within England’s grasp.
France soon suffered the agony of a Ferte pass going forward when two-on-one out wide, the defensive rush from the advancing Ioan Jones affecting him. That was the best chance the defending champions had of a riposte when the final was still alive on the scoreboard.
Back down the other end, the English turned the screw at the screw for a 67th-minute penalty kicked by Kerr and that was effectively that, the clock getting expertly wound down until very last second when Ferte ran in a consolation converted try to give the result a closer complexion it didn’t deserve.
Very well played, England. U20 Championship champions of the world for the first time since 2016. It’s going to be one heck of a Friday night party for them.
CHAMPIONS! ????????#WorldRugbyU20s | @EnglandRugby | #ENGvFRA pic.twitter.com/jJSLwQNyu9
— World Rugby (@WorldRugby) July 19, 2024
Good performance. Some big strong boys coming through, we're going to need these lads sooner than later with our lack of depth in the front 5.
Congrats to England. They fully deserve the title.