World Rugby U20 Championship: The RugbyPass team of the tournament

Now that the dust has settled on the 2024 edition of the World Rugby U20 Championship, it’s time to name the RugbyPass team of the tournament. Reporting live from the competition had its traditional difficulty of each match day being split between two venues, so it was only possible to watch live three of the six matches in every round in the Cape Town region.

That meant being in person at only 15 of the 30 scheduled fixtures and the slack was brilliantly taken up by RugbyPass TV live streaming on its platform which ensured we could keep tabs on the games we couldn’t physically attend.

England flew out of South Africa last Saturday evening to Heathrow as the rightful champions, the consistency of their potent scrum and manipulative defence helping them to a deserved first title since 2016.

That denied France a fourth title in succession; Les Bleuets essentially played their final in their swashbuckling semi-final win over New Zealand which was by far the most creative attacking display by any team across the tournament.

Elsewhere, the Baby Blacks’ third place was their best at the tournament since winning in 2017, fifth place Argentina were unfortunate not to have made the semi-finals as the standard of their pack play was immense, while Spain must be commended for keeping their heads up in their first-ever Championship appearance and eventually getting a sudden death reward.

It would have been easy for the Iberians to be demoralised by the chunky pool scores suffered against France, Wales and New Zealand. But they reacted excellently to give Italy a run for their money before taking part in a rankings final classic at Athlone that ended with a 93rd-minute try to relegate Fiji to the 2025 Trophy.

Fans of other countries will naturally disagree but we have selected a ‘Best XV’ containing nine England players. It’s always very hard to look beyond the title winners in assembling these types of theoretical teams as the champions have the shiny medals proudly dangling around their necks.

New Zealand (two), Spain, Argentina, France and Wales also have representatives while there are very honourable mentions of certain players from other countries. Here is the RugbyPass team of the 2024 World Rugby U20 Championship:

1. Asher Opoku-Fordjour (England)

A world star in the making. Ask any professional-level prop and they will say it is difficult to pack down both sides of the scrum consistently well but this fella – a gentle giant who is an excellent interviewee – makes it look so easy and the set-piece dominance he helped to perfect was integral to England’s title win. A good start to next season at Sale and Steve Borthwick must surely call him for senior England training.

2. David Gallego (Spain)

Vernon Bason and Craig Wright can feel hard done by but legacy moments are worth their weight in gold and the sudden death Spanish try-scorer from the maul spectacularly jumped the queue with his 93rd-minute winner which relegated Fiji, igniting an incredible outpouring of captivating joy. A 47th-minute sub, he was effective in digging his team out of a precarious 5-19 situation, making 17 carries.

3. Billy Sela (England)

Wasn’t around for the knockouts as he limped away on crutches following the match day three win over South Africa in Athlone. However, he was terrific when extricating England from of their most adverse situation at the tournament, the opening day 0-14 start versus Argentina. There were 14 carries, nine tackles and an all-important 44th-minute lead-taking try that afternoon when Jack Bracken’s hat-trick nabbed the headlines.

4. Efrain Elias (Argentina)

The Championship was blessed with multiple brilliant captains and this graduate of the Dogos franchise in South America, who is switching to Toulouse for 2024/25, was exceptional in the engine room, leading with a cop-on and playing with an enviable work rate that included five starts, three tries, 59 carries, 72 tackles and 10 turnovers won. Left his best until last, smashing Australia with 18 tackles and four turnovers.

5. Junior Kpoku (England)

We jest that he should have been cited for the injury over-reaction when winning the final turnover penalty in the semi-final win over Ireland. Went from that suggested dislocated shoulder to bossing the French in the row in the final. Showcased himself as an infectious character in a RugbyPass interview and in contributions to the Embedded documentary. Now set to accelerate at Racing in the coming months. Also eligible for 2025 U20s selection.

6. Finn Carnduff (England)

France’s Joe Quere-Karaba was a delight, but Carnduff was the first name we inked on this XV list. Numerous U20s named him as their hardest-working teammate. Has all the attributes to be a Leicester legend and so mature was his all-round play in South Africa, we predict he will be part of the England Rugby World Cup 2027 squad. Ultra serious but with rapid wit. His quip about Friday night recovery before the long-haul flight home was classic.

7. Henry Pollock (England)

We have gone with the Duracell Bunny of the England op, a loud and proud energy giver who runs the talk. We twigged he got game during the Six Nations when he pushed back on praise and instead criticised himself for not being consistent enough in his performances. If there was an issue, he certainly fixed it at the Championship where his carrying contribution culminated in the French yellow card that was crucial in the final.

8. Arthur Green (England)

This was Mathis Castro-Ferreira’s jersey to lose and he spectacularly lost it with that costly second-half sin-binning in the final. Unlike the England stars already mentioned, Green, the son of ex-Test prop Will, is essentially a super sub inclusion similar to Spanish hooker Gallego. Only a final half-time introduction, the RugbyPass match centre credited him with 19 carries – including that crucial 52nd-minute try off a five-metre scrum. That’s impact!

9. Dylan Pledger (New Zealand)

There were plenty of scrum-halves with bright moments such Leo Carbonneau of France, Ireland’s Oliver Coffey and both England No9s, the starting Ollie Allan and his 17-year-old accomplice Lucas Friday. We have gone with Pledger, though, who was the lighter fuel for the New Zealand attack when it fired. You’ll see why if you look at his moments in the second-half comeback pool win over the French in Stellenbosch.

10. Hugo Reus (France)

Class act who embodied the French spirit of blooding players young in the Top 14. The La Rochelle orchestrator’s level of confidence was enchanting, his skills frequently the stuff of highlights reels. Check out his no-look, out-the-back pass versus Spain or his poetic leap and sublime offload when staying out of touch to assist a semi-final try against New Zealand. As for his crosskicks, he has written the go-to book on perfect execution.

11. Macs Page (Wales)

Stanley Solomon was looking a very good shout until his semi-final red card. Once you went beyond the Kiwi, though, you were struggling for an out-and-out left-wing star as France’s Mathis Ferte was more effective at full-back. That got us thinking and we have utilised the jersey to solve a selection bottleneck in another backline position, namely outside centre. Macs Page, take a bow. A gutsy operator who refused to take no for an answer.

12. Sean Kerr (England)

New Zealand’s Xavi Taele was excellent. So too Robin Taccola of France. But we couldn’t ignore the contribution that Kerr had with the title-winning England. He was an immensely tidy operator for the most part and when it came to knocking over points from the kicking tee or manipulating space by making the right decision, his delivery produced exactly the go-forward reward his team needed at critical times across their joyous campaign.

13. Aki Tuivailala (New Zealand)

We were tempted to pencil in Jurenzo Julius, the standout South African player in their disappointing tournament, but Tuivailala’s array of skills demanded recognition. He was to the fore in New Zealand’s comeback pool win over the French, and the way he delivered two powerful killer blows in the third-place play-off after his team were down a yellow-carded man to the Irish was clinical. That’s how you stand up and be counted.

14. Jack Bracken (England)

It was a shame Ben Redshaw cried off late for the final; Newcastle really do have a back-three gem on their hands. His absence versus France, though, left us considering an impact-moment player to fill this jersey and we picked Bracken, the 18-year-old son of Kyran, who conjured a day-one hat-trick on his England U20s debut. For someone so young to be so confident in their skills was a life lesson: always back your talent regardless of the odds.

15. Ioan Jones (England)

Started as his team’s 23rd man versus Argentina but went on to become England’s defensive line calling card in both semi-final and final. His try-ruining shot out of the line on a two-versus-one to spoil France’s biggest chance to get back into the decider was so smart. Was also intelligent when joining their attack, making some lovely interventions. France’s Xan Mosques and Ireland’s Ben O’Connor also had their full-back moments.

Replacements:

16. Vernon Bason (New Zealand)

Similar to England’s Wright, this guy was a proper scrapper in difficult moments. Had wheels and a nose for the try line. Honourable mention to Argentina’s Juan Greising-Revol who enjoyed maul tries versus South Africa, scoring three in two appearances versus the hosts.

17. Lino Julien (France)

As with England’s Opoku-Fordjour, this guy can play both sides of the scrum which was very useful for the French. Also had decent handling skills. Italy’s Sergio Pelliccioli deserves kudos for his effort in their pool ambush of Australia, as does Barnabe Massa of France.

18. Afo Fasogbon (England)

No mean feat for Fasogbon to superbly fill the vacancy left by the injured Sela and see England continue scrum time dominance. South Africa’s Zachery Porthen also had good moments as did Georgia’s Davit Mchedlidze, Argentina’s Tomas Rapetti and New Zealand’s Joshua Smith.

19. Joe Bailey (England)

There were plenty of contenders for this spot, including Georgia’s Davit Lagvilava, South Africa’s JF van Heerden, France’s Corentin Mezou and Australia’s Toby Macpherson, but Bailey got the nod for his consistent level of grunt work and that first-half finish in the final.

20. Mathis Castro-Ferreira (France)

As with lock, you could fill your boots here with a wealth of options. We liked England’s Nathan Michelow for his massive work rate, Ireland’s Brian Gleeson, South Africa’s Bathobele Hlekani, Morgan Morse of Wales, Argentina’s Juan Penoucos, Georgia’s Nika Lomisze, Australia’s Dane Sawers, Jeremiah Avei-Collins’ cameo versus the Irish for New Zealand, and French pair of Quere-Karaba and Geoffrey Malaterre, but Castro-Ferreira’s semi-final hat-trick makes him the pick.

21. Ollie Allan (England)

The merits of the back-up nines to Pledger were discussed above and we have gone for Allan on the basis that we love a comeback story. He was made redundant in June 2023 after the London Irish collapse and he also missed the entire Six Nations through injury, but his year had a glorious Hollywood script ending.

22. Benjamin Coen (England)

Similar to Allan, this guy wasn’t on track to start for England at the Championship but he took his chance brilliantly and efficiently contributed. Ireland’s Jack Murphy was another notable operator, while in terms of a standout moment, Rico Simpson’s composure to slot the win-clinching kick for New Zealand to beat France in the pool stages was neat.

23. Xavi Taele (New Zealand)

As with lock and back row, you could spend an age coming up with the final name on the match day team sheet. If we were to go with a moment, the likes of Finn Treacy, the 83rd-minute Ireland match-winner versus Georgia, would be a contender, while Ferte of France was a classy finisher numerous times. However, Taele gets the vote for the calibre of his all-action game.

Head Coach: Mark Mapletoft (England)

The 52-year-old very much gets it. Numerous age-grade coaches don’t understand the generational differences of the kids they are coaching, but Mapletoft is a different breed and his personability created an environment that allowed the England ‘brotherhood’ to thrive.

Such was his confidence in the way the English go about their player development business, he even allowed RugbyPass TV to film a behind-the-scenes documentary of their campaign which is a great heirloom for the class of 2024.

Then there was his lack of vanity coaching. His natural instinct is ball-in-hand play but he curbed that MO to ensure England played to scrum and defence strengths.

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