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Where are they now? The 2016 England U20 Championship-winning team
By Liam Heagney
England are this Friday seeking to win their first World Rugby U20 Championship title since 2016. Mark Mapletoft’s recent Six Nations title-winning squad are in Cape Town preparing to try and dethrone world champions France, who are looking to win their fourth Championship in succession.
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Regardless of the result, there will be great optimism that several English players who have so far lit up the age-grade tournament can go on and enjoy successful careers in the pro ranks.
Ten of Martin Haag’s class of 2016, who defeated Ireland 45-21 in the final in Manchester, went on to play Test-level rugby, eight with England while Italy and Wales also picked up a player each.
Prop Will Stuart is the most current English international from these U20 Championship winners from eight years ago, starting both games in the recent series away in New Zealand.
Jack Willis, though, is the current most high-profile club player, having recently clinched the double with Toulouse.
Read on to find out what became of the entire match day 23 that last won a World Rugby U20 Championship title for England:
15. Max Malins (Saracens)
The out-and-out winger is now at Bristol after multiple honours at Saracens. Made his England Test debut in November 2020 and has 22 caps but none since Rugby World Cup 2023.
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14. Sam Aspland-Robinson (Harlequins)
Moved to Leicester in the summer of 2018 where he spent four seasons. Also has a spell on loan at Coventry in the Championship. After exiting Tigers in 2022, he hooked up with Rosslyn Park. Co-founded Syn Gum in Leicester with Ellis Genge.
13. Joe Marchant (Harlequins)
Debuted for England in August 2019, he was a regular Rugby World Cup 2023 pick but his 26-cap Test career is on hold as he now plays his club rugby for Stade Francais following a 2023/24 switch from Harlequins. Enjoyed a loan spell at the Super Rugby Blues in 2020.
12. Johnny Williams (London Irish)
Joined Newcastle in 2018 following the relegation of London Irish and went on to play for England versus the Barbarians the following year in a non-capped game. That left the door open to a switch to Wales and shortly after joining Scarlets, he made a November 2020 Test debut. Has seven caps, his last at Rugby World Cup 2023.
11. Matt Gallagher (Saracens)
Son of John, the Londoner who won the inaugural 1987 Rugby World Cup with the All Blacks, loan spells at Bedford helped him make the Saracens first-team for two seasons before a 2020 switch to Munster in Ireland was followed by a 2022 Premiership return to Bath. He will now join Benetton for 2024/25 after eligibility for Italy resulted in a debut Test cap for the Azzurri away to Samoa earlier this month.
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10. Harry Mallinder (Northampton Saints)
The U20s skipper, a first-team regular at Saints in the season leading into the Manchester final, was on a short-list of five for the player of the tournament award that was won by Ireland’s Max Deegan. Stayed at Northampton for five more seasons despite the exit of dad Jim as director of rugby. Then went to Japan where two seasons at Black Rams in Tokyo were followed by enrolling in the same American football international programme this year that earned Louis Rees-Zammit his Kansas City Chiefs contract. Currently a free agent.
9. Max Green (Yorkshire Carnegie)
One of three Carnegie players in the match day 23, the former Sweden U18 pick has had a transient career with limited first-team exposure. Switched to Bath in 2017/18, he also had time at Jersey and Bristol before spending 2023/24 at Harlequins where there was one start in eight appearances. Was named in May on their list of leavers.
1. Lewis Boyce (Yorkshire Carnegie)
The loosehead joined Harlequins in 2017 and was named in the initial England Six Nations squad in 2018. Uncapped, his two-year stay ended with a 2019 switch to Bath. Moved to Ealing for the latter part of 2022/23 but fancied a code change and was unsuccessfully on trial at the start of 2024 at Super League’s Leeds Rhinos.
2. Jack Singleton (Worcester Warriors)
His U20 Championship success was following by three productive seasons in the Warriors first team. Switched to Saracens for 2019/20 after England Rugby World Cup selection, but opted to joined Gloucester for the in-pandemic restart of that suspended campaign. The three-cap Test player is now back at Kingsholm after they loaned him last November to Toulon as a medical joker.
3. Billy Walker (Saracens)
Couldn’t nail a breakthrough at Saracens so instead spent time at Bedford and Nottingham in the Championship and also at Ampthill and Old Albanians in the National League. Permanent move to Notts in 2019 but switched to Cambridge in 2020, fuelling their move up the pyramid into the Champ.
4. Stan South (Harlequins)
Exited Harlequins in 2019 after 30 appearances for the Londoners. Pit stops at Exeter, Edinburgh and Brive followed before 2021 switch to the MLR in America where he has spent the last three campaigns at Old Glory in Washington DC.
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This was @EnglandRugby's journey to the #WorldRugbyU20s final
— World Rugby (@WorldRugby) July 17, 2024
5. Huw Taylor (Worcester Warriors)
After only having fleeting exposure at the Warriors, who had loaned him to London Scottish and Doncaster, he moved to Newport in 2018 and had five seasons there before a short-lived spell as RGC player/coach was followed by a move to the 2024 MLR with Seattle.
6. George Nott (Sale Sharks)
There were loan spells at Chester and Fylde before a first-team emergence at Sale was followed by a 2019 move to London Irish. Spent three seasons there before switching to the URC with Dragons in 2022.
7. Will Evans (Leicester Tigers)
Had some first-team exposure at Tigers before the age-grade tournament. Went on to have three more seasons with them before signing for Harlequins in 2019 where his turnover-winning/tackling ability is massively cherished. Spoke with RugbyPass last winter about his life in London and how he has now come to terms with not kicking on and winning Test-level caps.
8. Callum Chick (Newcastle Falcons)
The only XV player to go on and remain a one-club man. Has very much become part of the fabric at Falcons and he became the fourth player from this age-grade starting line-up to earn England Test selection, getting picked twice by Eddie Jones in the 2021 Summer Series.
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Replacements:
16. Charlie Piper (Harlequins)
Debuted for Quins in the 2017/18 Prem season but that emergence was short-lived and he emigrated to New Zealand to play for East Coast Bays in Auckland. Returned to England and was playing for Rosslyn Park in 2023/24 until a tib/fib break ended his season last November.
17. Tom West (Wasps)
The prop used spells at Nottingham to go on and become a Wasps regular through to the collapse of the club in October 2022. Took up a short-term deal at Leicester, spent 2023/24 at Saracens and is now set to move to Northampton.
18. Will Stuart (Wasps)
Another Wasps prop who had time at Nottingham before making it in the Premiership. Moved to Bath in 2019 when he remains. Featured in their recent Prem final and was a starter last Saturday for England away to New Zealand in Auckland. That was his 41st Test cap.
19. Andrew Kitchener (Worcester Warriors)
Became a Worcester regular following this age-grade win, staying with them through to their collapse in September 2022. Saracens snapped him up for the remainder of that season but he has now taken up a full-time role as a data analyst with Yes Energy.
20. Jack Willis (Wasps)
Became a regular Wasps pick and also made the breakthrough with England. Despite two ACL ruptures in the same knee, he emerged from his club’s collapse to join Toulouse. Won the last of his 14 Test caps at the 2023 World Cup and is now a double winner at his French club following Champions Cup and Top 14 success.
21. Harry Randall (Gloucester)
Spotted at Hartpury in 2017/18 by Pat Lam, he was snapped by Bristol where he remains their first-choice No9. Capped six times under Jones, he ended a lengthy spell of non-selection with a run off Steve Borthwick’s bench in last month’s win away to Japan.
22. Max Wright (Yorkshire Carnegie)
Stayed on for a while at Carnegie before switching to Bath in October 2017. Injury, though, left him waiting 11 months to debut. Had a loan spell at Newcastle in 2021/22 and was confirmed in May as a Bath leaver at the end of 2023/24.
23. Ollie Thorley (Gloucester)
Has stayed the course at Gloucester where is a firm Kingsholm favourite. Capped once by England, playing off the bench in their October 2000 Six Nations title clincher, but hasn’t had a look in since.
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I remember watching that squad, and while all the commentary chat focused on Williams and Evans it was striking how much the side relied on Marchant to get them out of trouble or make things happen.
It’s a shame that Eddie Jones’s England couldn’t work out how to use him - and that he’d signed to go to France before Borthwick made him an integral part of the RWC squad. I hope he’ll return to England and be back in contention for RWC 2027.
Why does it refer to Malins as an out-and-out winger when he plays fullback for Bristol and sometimes flyhalf?