The U20 Championship cup final will be played in Béziers, France this Sunday night. Host nation France will match three-time champions England, in the tournament decider at the Stade de la Méditerranée.
The final kicks off at 19:00 local time and will be the 350th match in U20 Championship history.
Cup Final: France v England this Sunday for U20 Championship
The Cup final will be played, after the last matches of the Championship. That will see five matches played, prior to the last, major clash.
-
11th place: Ireland v Japan
-
9th place: Scotland v Georgia
-
7th place: Wales v Italy
-
5th place: Argentina v Australia
-
3rd place: New Zealand v South Africa
The third place match is worthy of a final, with consistent finalist New Zealand still smarting from the loss to France. But fans of the Baby Blacks can be confident that head coach Craig Philpott will get the best out of his boys.
For the Baby Boks, it might be a pathway to greater honours. The South African union is in a period of change, with members of the series winning Springboks including many former U20 stars. The advancement of youth in the senior team can be used by the young men, as an example of where they can dream of reaching – just as every one of the 12 nations has done.
1st place playoff Grand Final – France v England
The 2018 title decider will be England’s sixth successive appearance in a final, and a record ninth in total. It will be the first for hosts France, who finally ‘broke their duck’ in their fourth ever semi-final [defeating New Zealand 16-7].
The two sides have met on four previous occasions on the World Rugby U20 Championship stage, with France having won the most recent encounter in the U20 Six Nations. At the very same ground, France were the victim of a dominant England display. The hosts will be weary, yet respectful of the men wearing the red rose of England.
England captain Ben Curry told WorldRugby.org “everyone understands. We’ve been speaking about it since we got here, you get one opportunity at this. To get to a World Championship final is an incredible achievement. One we want to win.”
. Ben Curry wants to step out of his brother's shadow by lifting the Under-20 World Championship for England on Sunday. . https://t.co/SuwJqriTJd pic.twitter.com/eiyphLKrqo
— Sports News Desk (@sportnsdesk) June 16, 2018
French number eight Jordan Joseph spoke for his team mates, when he said “at the moment, I think the fact that we are in the final and that we beat New Zealand to do it, hasn’t really sunk in.
“Next, we just need to beat England and we’ll make history. We can’t stop at beating New Zealand – the challenge now is to beat England. That would be perfect.”
Each side will want to make the most of this opportunity. With New Zealand fighting for third spot, a new U20 Championship winner will come from the Northern hemisphere – and that is a reflection of the recent rise in power, of teams from Europe.
France v England – 7:00pm, Stade de la Méditerranée
“Main photo credit”
Embed from Getty Images
