This is set to be the most competitive tournament yet as some of the results during the build-up to the competition allude to, specifically Georgia's famous victory over England.
Saturday 24 June
Argentina | Italy
Odds TBA*
The tournament kicks off with a very tasty affair as the Argentines take on Italy. These two sides have made brilliant progress at under 20 level, in particular the Italians who finished this year’s Under 20 6 Nations in third place claiming wins over Wales (29-25) and Scotland (17-40). They also ran the English and French close going down by seven points to the former and by one to the latter.
The Argentines have had a less auspicious lead up to the tournament playing against domestic opposition. They did enjoy a solid 2022 beating Australia 21-24, Fiji 5-61 while going down 32-9 to New Zealand.
This is a vital game for both sides considering they will still have play both South Africa and a vastly improved Georgian outfit. I reckon this one will be a very tight affair and I’m backing the Italians to keep it within what should be a very narrow handicap.
Verdict: Italy
England | Ireland
Next up we have 6 Nations champions Ireland taking on an English Under 20 side that seems far from vintage.
The Irish have enjoyed a great year defending their 6 Nations crown with a clean sweep of all five of their 6 Nations fixtures. They have a very handy squad with a number of players representing the national side for the second year running.
While Irish Under 20 rugby is in rude health, the English seem to be on the wane. They ended this year’s 6 Nations in fourth with three wins. Things got worse for them after that dismal campaign as they then suffered a first defeat at the hands of Georgia going down 40-38.
While they did bounce back from that defeat with a win over the Georgians, they will have had to have improved drastically if they are to book a semi-final berth at this tournament.
I’m going to play to play it safe here and back the Irish on the straight win. While they did beat England 36-24 in the 6 Nations I’m not at all confident they’ll be able to win by such a comfortable margin this time around.
Verdict: Ireland
France | Japan
Reigning champions France will taken on newly promoted Japan in our next fixture of the day. The French have a brilliant Under 20’s program that has filtered through to senior level and is reaping great dividends with national stars Romain Ntamack and Antoine Dupont graduates of successful Under 20 French campaigns.
The French are set to release a monster of a man onto the field this coming Saturday with the player out of the Tuilagi dynasty, Posolo Tuilagi, set to cause all sorts of problems for the Japanese this Saturday. The 18-year-old weighs in at over 125 kilograms and was absolute dynamite in France’s 2023 Under 20 6 Nations campaign in which the French finished as runners-up.
While the French have played a lot of international rugby this year, the Japanese haven’t had that many fixtures. They come into this one as the lowest ranked seed at the tournament and lost to both Samoa A and the Fiji Warriors prior to the tournament. They did record a somewhat encouraging 52-46 win over a New Zealand Universities side in their final warm-up game.
While the handicap is a big one, I can see this classy French side clearing it against the Japanese Juniors.
Verdict: France to clear the handicap
Wales | New Zealand
Our next fixture pits Wales up against New Zealand. The Welsh had a rather poor Under 20 6 Nations campaign as they finished the tournament in sixth place and failed to pick up a win.
The Junior Kiwis had a better but still far from impressive build up to this fixture as they drew 1-1 with Australia in a two-match series. They were actually lucky to salvage a draw from the series as the Australians looked the far better side.
To compound matters for the Kiwis, they are missing a number of stars for a multitude of reasons with Payton Spencer and Maliu Niuafe, Taranaki’s Fiti Sa, Waikato’s Cody Nordstrom and Canterbury’s Toby Bell all unavailable.
The Welsh have had a far from ideal build-up to this one with head coach Byron Hayward stepping down after their dismal Under 20 6 Nations campaign. Interim coach Mark Jones has been given the task of changing their fortunes.
I can’t see this Welsh side offering much at this tournament and I reckon they will struggle against an albeit understrength but still dangerous New Zealand side.
New Zealand on the minus.
Australia | Fiji
Next up we’ve got the Australians taking on the Fijians at the Danie Craven Stadium in Stellenbosch. The Junior Wallabies come into this one as second seeds and they deserve that tag even though they have not played that much rugby of late.
They enjoyed as old 2022 campaign beating Argentina 21-24 and Fiji 58-5 while going down 12-69 to New Zealand. They managed to get one over their cross-Tasman rivals a month ago beating the Kiwis in the opening match of their two game series before giving their old foes a real run in the second fixture.
They looked the better of the two sides in that series and they have some serious talent on their books including burly centre Taj Annan who made his Super Rugby debut against the Fijian Drua earlier this year.
Speaking of the Drua and this Fijian Under 20 side has a couple men who have already their Super Rugby debut with Philip Baselala and Motikiai Murray turning out for the new boys in the ‘comp. They also have the nephew of Richie Mo’unga turning out at fly-half in Isaiah Ravula. He’s part of the Highlanders academy and has been touted for big things.
I reckon this one will be full of points and I’ll be doing my main punting on those points lines through the Hollywoodbets Live In-Play platform. I also fancy the Wallabies to surge past the handicap during the final quarter of this fixture.
Australia on the minus.
South Africa | Georgia
The last game of the day sees tournament South Africa take on dark horses Georgia. The South Africans have a very handy record at home winning the last edition of the tournament that was staged in South Africa back in 2012. They are seeded as third favorites in the competition.
The hosts enjoyed a solid 2022 season beating England 22-30, Ireland 24-33, France 27-42 and Wales 47-27. They also have some serious talent on their books with Springbok Sevens star Masande Mtshali one to watch.
Georgia enjoyed their best moment as a rugby nation in the lead up to this tournament as they beat England 40-38 in Tbilisi. While they did lose the following fixture against the English, that win will have them brimming with confidence headed into the Under 20 Championship. They have a powerhouse pack and their backline looks more dynamic than previous iterations.
While I reckon the South Africans will have no trouble winning this one, I do think the handicaps being bandied about are too high. Hence, I’m on the Georgian plus line.
Georgia on the plus.
