Junior Springboks vice-captain JF van Heerden held back tears earlier this week after being asked about what it means to play for South Africa.
McLaughlin-Phillips, who is still only 20 years of age, officially joined the Junior Wallabies earlier this week from the Queensland Reds.
A 43-20 win by New Zealand in round two's opening game against Argentina handed South Africa a clear benchmark against an Australian team eager to improve after a hefty round one loss.
The Junior Wallabies have got their Rugby Championship U20 campaign back on track with a hard-earned 24-19 win over the Junior Springboks.
Toby Macpherson will lead the Junior Wallabies into battle on Thursday evening when the Australians take on Argentina in the opening round of the first-ever U20 Rugby Championship.
Coach Nathan Grey has confirmed an exciting 35-man preliminary Junior Wallabies squad for the inaugural U20s Rugby Championship on the Sunshine Coast.
Rugby Australia have revealed a preliminary 45-man Australia U20 squad ahead of the expanded 2024 international schedule.
Jonah Lomu, Sir Bryan Williams and Christian Cullen have been named as the greatest All Blacks outside backs of all-time by a panel of rugby experts and the Kiwi public.
Rugby has a curious habit of sons of former international players becoming current day stars, a trend that is being replicated by the Graysons in Northampton.