TRC U20: New Zealand pile on the points, Australia overcome 17-nil defecit

New Zealand and Australia have claimed big wins in round two of The Rugby Championship U20s in South Africa, leaving the trans-Tasman rivals as the only undefeated sides after their draw in round one.

The day started with a bang as New Zealand leapt to a 47-14 lead over Argentina at the halftime break, with the Kiwi forwards leading the charge by dominating the collision area and showing plenty of skills when sending the ball through the hands.

The tone was set early when an Argentine scrum was marched backwards, while a breakdown steal and diffusion of a rolling maul in the opening five minutes also proved the Kiwi pack’s class.

It took just shy of nine minutes for New Zealand to claim the first points of the game, with a chip and chase from winger Maloni Kunawave resulting in a try in the corner.

The Argentine scrum responded to the early challenge and set the platform for their backs to attack. A looping run by playmaker Ramón Fernandez Miranda and a draw and pass by fullback Sebastián Dubuc opened up the wing for Martiniano Arrieta to score.

Impressive conversions from the sidelines saw the scores locked at seven apiece, but that was as close as the South Americans would get as a 16th-minute try to Kiwi captain Mosese Bason was followed by 22nd, 27th and 29th-minute efforts by the boys in black.

Play remained in the Argentine half until the Kiwis were penalised on a contestable kick for not retreating, and Fernandez Miranda landed a superb kick just shy of the New Zealand line to give his forwards a shot at a rolling maul. The Pumitas were up to the task and muscled over the line.

However, with just four minutes remaining in the half, the Baby Blacks managed to inflict yet more scoreboard pain on their opponents, taking the ball up the middle of the field with tries to openside flanker Caleb Woodley and hooker Eli Oudenryn.

Set-piece inaccuracy stopped New Zealand from adding to that score early in the second period, and a dangerous offload was snaffled up by Argentina, who scored from close range.

From that point on, though, it was all one-way traffic. While some handling errors delayed their final onslaught, New Zealand ran in four tries in the final 17 minutes of the contest for a record scoreline.

The Kiwis, with an impressive 75-point tally, ended the round on top of the competition standings and in the driver’s seat to defend their inaugural title.

New Zealand 75 – (Maloni Kunawave 2, Mosese Bason 2, Josh Tengblad, Caleb Woodley, Eli Oudenryn, Tamiano Ahloo, David Lewai 2, Taniela Maisiri tries; Will Cole 8 cons, Rico Simpson 2 cons)

Pumitas 21 (Martiniano Arrieta, Nicolás Cambiasso, Juan Ignacio Races tries; Arrieta 3 cons) HT: 47-14

Soon after the first match ended, it was the hosts’ turn to face an impressive Junior Wallabies outfit.

Having impressed none other than Siya Kolisi with their physical size this week, the South African pack got their team on the board early with a rolling maul try in the second minute.

Attacking metres were hard-won for the Australians, and handling issues in the face of a hard-hitting defence didn’t help, although those issues weren’t exclusive to the Aussies.

Impressive defence and ruck work by blindside Luca Cleverley gave Australia a chance at attacking in good field position, but the South African defence was fierce.

Both sides emerged from prolonged attacking periods with no points to show for it, until a loose Australian pass was picked up by Siya Ndlozi, who showed plenty of pace to score as fellow Sevens product Sid Harvey chased hard.

The 14-0 scoreline was maintained for the final 10 minutes of the half, with a Springbok rolling maul effort scrubbed out after a review found loosehead prop Simphiwe Ngobese had slid in front of the lineout jumper to deny the Australians a fair challenge in the maul.

The South Africans started the second period with momentum, winning a penalty and taking the three points on offer.

Those gears started to turn in the other direction shortly after, though, with Australia winning consecutive penalties to give themselves a crack at South Africa’s line via a driving maul of their own. While the effort was initially stalled, captain Eamon Doyle managed to emerge at the front of a swirling maul to dive over the line unmarked.

The superb athleticism of Cheswill Jooste injected a dose of energy into the game, but as the contest opened up, it was the Australians who were able to win the territory battle, largely through their kicking game.

Reserve prop Edwin Langi capitalised on the field position by getting Australia over the line, making it a three-point game heading into the final quarter.

Just a minute later, the Aussies were storming upfield, with Nick Conway unlocked down the left edge and Doyle continuing the momentum with a swift carry. Reserve hooker Lipina Ata was in position to run off Harvey’s shoulder and after bumping off a brave tackle by Ndlozi, placed the ball, picked it up and stormed the final five metres to score.

Now with a four-point lead, Australia came within just centimetres of scoring once more, were it not for a powerful hit from Cheswill Jooste, who pushed Conway over the sideline in the in-goal area.

The disallowed try only offered momentary relief for the hosts, as Xavier Rubens made another break and linked up with Conway, who returned the ball to his centre for the try.

Moments later, Conway was disallowed yet another try, this time due to a prior knock-on after a contestable kick from just outside South Africa’s 22.

The hosts then had their lineout stolen before head-high contact allowed Harvey to extend Australia’s lead to 12.

South Africa launched one final attack, but even with a try to powerhouse openside Batho Hlekani, it was too little, too late. A breakdown steal sealed a dramatic Australian win.

Junior Springboks 24 – Tries: Xola Nyali, Siya Ndlozi, Batho Hlekani. Conversions: Vusi Moyo (2), Kyle Smith. Penalty goal: Moyo.

Australia 29 – Tries: Eamon Doyle, Edwin Langi, Lipina Ata, Xavier Rubens. Conversions: Sid Harvey (3). Penalty goal: Harvey.