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Junior World Championships - play-off finals

June 22 2008

South Africa clinched bronze at the IRB Junior World Championships after recording an emphatic 43-18 victory over Wales in the third-place play-off at the Liberty Stadium in Swansea on Sunday.

The match between the Baby Boks and the tournament hosts punctuated a weekend of play-offs and acted as a curtain-raiser to the grand finale between New Zealand and England.

Wales 18 South Africa 43

South Africa clinched bronze at the IRB Junior World Championships after recording an emphatic 43-18 victory over Wales in the third-place play-off at the Liberty Stadium in Swansea on Sunday.

Wales gave the Baby Boks a run for their money in the early stages of the second half and can be proud of their fourth place position in the competition, but they might regret the spell late in the first half in which their enthusiastic defence yielded three tries.

It took the hosts four minutes to register their first points with a Leigh Halfpenny penalty putting Wales in front after South Africa had been caught offside.

The Welsh held well, but were undone by a wicked bounce from a Ralph Koster kick, and South Africa's backs capitalised by sending the prolific Francois Brummer over in the left corner.

The Boks then found their rhythm, and Ebersohn notched a try on 20 minutes. Thereafter the match became a tackling practice for the Welsh, with Wilton Pietersen causing havoc on the counter-attack.

Halfpenny made it 14-6 with a penalty, but then Ebersohn's break gave Lionel Mapoe a try, and Koster scored a fourth in first-half injury-time, also taking a pass from Ebersohn. Brummer converted the second try, and the half-time score was 26-6.

The Welsh opened their game up early in the second half, and Halfpenny popped up to finish off an excellent move down the left with 25 minutes to go.

He couldn't convert that try, but Wilton Pietersen was sin-binned for a cynical foul and then reserve prop Sam Hobbs was driven over for a second Welsh try. Halfpenny did convert this one, and the score stood at 26-18.

But the effort in the fightback left the Welsh exhausted. South Africa regrouped, and ran in three tries in the final ten minutes, through Fred Kirsten, Mapoe's second and Ebersohn's brother Josias, handing the South Africans a handsome win.

France 21 Australia 42

Australia survived a stirring second-half fightback from France to edge this free-flowing encounter 42-21 at Cardiff Arms Park on Sunday and finish fifth at the IRB Junior World Championships.

The first half performance from Australia was effectively enough for them to secure the win as they played with a stiff breeze and raced into a 30-point lead at the break. France were a different side in the second half, but had left themselves a mountain to climb and ultimately came up just short.

Australia fly-half Quade Cooper kicked a first minute penalty and then a slick backline move brought the first try as centre Rob Horne put his lightning-quick wing Ratu Nasiganiyavi into space for a simple run in.

Cooper kicked the conversion and before the 10-minute mark had been reached on the clock Australia led 17-0 after right wing Junior Sovala Futi picked up a loose ball and dived under the posts for his fifth try of the tournament.

The Australians were completely in the ascendancy as they hassled France off their own scrums and turned defence into attack deep in their opponent's territory. Another Cooper penalty gave them a 20-0 lead after 23 minutes as the margin looked unassailable for France.

A tough task seemingly became mission impossible when Australia made the most of a turnover and Nasiganiyavi out-sprinted the defence for his second try before the half hour. The giant wing then completed his hat-trick before the break when his pace took him over again.

France did their best to come out firing in the second half and their efforts paid off when flanker Louis Madaule split the defence for a 49th-minute try as they finally managed to string some good phases together.

It got better for France when their other flanker Arthur Chollon scored another try following excellent driving forward play and fly-half Mathieu Belie kicked the conversion to reduce the deficit to 30-14 as the hour mark approached.

Australia steadied the ship with a try from prop Ben Daley in the 69th minute, but France hit back with another try through their powerful centre Mathieu Bastareaud. Belie converted to make it 35-21, but that was as close as they came.

Cooper helped Australia finish the game on a high as he a made a number of superb breaks and Man of the Match Nasiganiyavi set up second row Rob Simmons for the final try of the game before the final whistle.

Australia coach Brian Melrose said: "It was nice to finish off in that fashion. France are a top nation and both of us would be like to be playing later tonight but we proved we are one of the better sides. There was a massive wind but we got some good tries and we hung on the second half and pushed away at the end."

Argentina 10 Samoa 30

Four second-half tries tilted the balance Samoa's way in the play-off for seventh place between two well-matched teams at Newport.

Both teams endeavoured to move the ball around and play attractive rugby from the outset in dry conditions at Rodney Parade but individual errors prevented either side pulling away decisively.

Argentina opened the scoring when neat hands across the backline put left wing Federico Salazar into the corner, with fly-half Benjamin Madero adding a fine touchline conversion.

Chances were squandered by both sides until Samoa fly-half Ioane Sefo narrowed the gap with a penalty before centre Alvin Smith slipped a couple of tackles to score Samoa's first try.

It looked as though Samoa would go into the break with a 10-7 lead but a high tackle gave Madero the opportunity to level matters and he made no mistake.

Playing into the wind, Samoa started to control possession after the restart as they kept the ball in hand and their big forwards started to appear in the wide channels and make good ground.

Skipper Afa Aiono led the way when he burst through a gap and sprinted clear from halfway for his team's second score and centre Sanele Vavae Tuilagi extended the lead with another fine solo effort as Argentina started to tire and fall off one or two tackles.

Argentina hung in gamely but Samoa left wing David Masoe's try finished the game as a contest after Sefo had pounced on an Argentina turnover and second row Maselino Paulino galloped over gleefully to complete the scoring.

Samoa were good value for their victory, with Aiono leading from the front, though midfield pairing Smith and Tuilagi deserved special mention and a try apiece was an appropriate reward.

Ireland 39 Scotland 12

Ireland chalked up a comfortable 39-12 win over Scotland at a windswept Rodney Parade in Newport on Sunday, a result which means they clinch ninth place overall in the IRB Junior World Championship 2008.

Eric Elwood's side were the worthy winners on the day, but Scotland put in a gallant display after the sending off of their right wing Tom Bury for kicking an opponent on the ground left them a man short for an hour. However, they always had just too much to do.

Ireland made early use of the breeze at their backs with two penalties from scrum-half Ian Porter. However, Scotland made light of their numerical disadvantage and engineered several scoring opportunities with only heroic Irish defence keeping them at bay.

Things then went from bad to worse for Scotland as they lost influential centre Stephen McColl and then had second row Neale Patrick stretchered off within minutes of each other before conceding the game's first try just before half-time when left wing Chris Cochrane touched down after a after a Scotland kick was charged down.

Trailing 13-0, Scotland had a second half mountain to climb and it only became steeper when replacement Ireland fly-half Ian Madigan slid through a sublime grubber kick for outside centre Eoin O'Malley to gather and score under the posts.

However, the Scots showed real grit to bounce back when replacement Ruaridh Jackson gathered a loose ball on halfway and just out-sprinted the cover to touch down in the corner for his side's first points in the 52nd minute.

It was no more than their efforts merited and, even when Madigan put wing Dave Kearney in for Ireland's third try after a neat blindside break, Scotland responded with a score from flanker Andrew Rose.

Yet the Irish wingers had the final word as Kearney and Cochrane finished off length of the field moves to claim their second tries in the match.

Scotland had given their all but Ireland had just too much for them with number 8 Kieran Essex leading the way and scrum-half Porter's boot important in the early stages.

Ireland coach Eric Elwood said: "It was a good result for us. Any time you put 39 points on an opponent, it's a good result. It's been a long, tough tournament for us but we set out to win our last three games and we've done that. We know the Scots quite well and they were ravaged by injuries which was tough for them. But we can only play what's in front of us."

Italy 33 Canada 10

Italy proved too strong for Canada in their final game at the IRB Junior World Championship as they powered to a fine win at the Cardiff Arms Park to finish in 11th place.

The win was a repeat of Italy's triumph over the Canadians in the Division B final at the IRB Under 19 World Championship in Belfast last year.

Both sides came into Sunday's match on the back of narrow extra-time defeats - Italy losing to Ireland and Canada being beaten by Scotland - so both were determined to see out the competition on a winning note.

Italy started strongly, making some tough yards up front and full back Andrea Pratichetti breaking dangerously out wide.

Fly-half Riccardo Bocchino gave Italy a well-earned early lead with a penalty as Canada was forced to rely on skipper Nathan Hirayama to relieve the pressure with some touch-finding clearing kicks.

Italy turned their pressure into further points when first Bocchino added another long-range penalty and then wing Andrea Bacchetti showed blistering pace coming in off his wing to race through the Canadian defence and score the first try of the game.

Another two penalties from Bocchino put Italy firmly in control.

For Canada, full back Harry Jones had some decent runs but Italy took a comfortable 17-0 lead into the break.

Canada finally opened their account with a penalty from replacement Peter Jawl at the start of the second half but Italy hit back with a well-taken try by second row Alberto Cazzola following a storming run from prop and man of the match Massimiliano Ravalle.

Canada did not lack endeavour but handling errors let them down at crucial times.

Their never-say-die attitude paid off, however, when they worked their way patiently upfield to set up a wide thrust for replacement Conor Trainor to dive over.

Italy regained control with a Bocchino penalty and they closed out the game in impressive fashion with hooker Tommaso D'Apice running in another try.

Italy coach Gianluca Guidi said: "It was hard to prepare for this game because we lost against Ireland in our last game and we had to stay very focused. We had a professional mentality and it ended a good season for us. These guys are a big element of our future in Italy and I think that they work very hard as players."

Tonga 28 Fiji 20

Tonga came out on the top in the all-Pacific encounter, beating Fiji 28-20 in a back and forth encounter at the Racecourse Ground in Wrexham to claim 13th place at the inaugural IRB Junior World Championship on Saturday.

The Tongans, who came into the tournament as the number 16 seeds, were the first to score, Sotele Hehea starting and finishing a move that saw the second row touch down in the corner after only five minutes, though fly-half Sione Toke was unable to convert the score from wide.

However, Fijian dominance in the forwards gave them a steady stream of penalties with fly-half Sakiusa Malai Bulivakarua hitting the target twice in the opening 20 minutes of the match to give his side a 6-5 lead.

Not to be outdone, Tonga regained their lead with a penalty from Toke, followed by a superb weaving try for wing Mateo Malupo, giving the Tongans a 13-6 half-time advantage.

Fiji emerged for the second half full of fire and subjected Tonga to 10 minutes of unrelenting pressure on their try-line, but found the Tongan defence unwavering and Malupo then capped a man of the match performance with a sizzling run, allowing centre William Takai to cross for Tonga's third try of the match in the 55th minute.

Tonga's 18-6 lead was further extended just past the hour mark with a converted try for Toke, who marshalled his side well throughout a match involving two sides looking to end the tournament on a high.

With less than 20 minutes remaining, Fiji's hopes of victory looked faint, but their hard work was rewarded in the 74th minute when wing Patemio Kocoturaga scored in the corner, Bulivakarua converting to reduce the deficit to 25-13.

Any hopes of a late comeback were dashed, however, when Toke added a further penalty to his tally, presenting the Fijians with an insurmountable challenge.

Yet despite this, Fiji never gave in, flanker Uraia Verenadavui scoring a final try for the islanders, leaving a final score of 28-20 in Tonga's favour after Bulivakarua's conversion.

Tonga coach Fe'ao Vakata said: "We have improved with every game. We controlled the conditions better than our opponents. We will go back home pleased with our efforts in this great tournament."

Japan 44 USA 8

Japan finished the tournament on a high with a six-try performance that earned them a 15th-place finish and also provided an ideal platform to launch their campaign as hosts for the IRB Junior World Championship 2009.

The Japanese started brightly at the Racecourse Ground in Wrexham on Saturday, with fly-half Shingo Yoshida's kicking testing the USA defence in a match both sides were keen to win to secure a first victory in the inaugural tournament.

Despite having captain Michael Leitch sent to the sin-bin in the seventh minute, Japan were rewarded for their attacking approach when inside centre Aisea Havea scored an excellent solo try, converted by scrum-half Shuhei Oshima.

A second try was not far behind, outside centre Yasutaka Sasakura capping a well-worked move to make the score 12-0 in the 16th minute, with Oshima converting to add the extras.

Scrum-half Sean Treacy reduced the deficit with a penalty for the young Eagles, but Japan were soon back in control, wing Jamie Blackie crossing for their third try on 34 minutes after the Japanese had stolen a scrummage with a powerful drive. Japan entered the interval with a 19-3 lead after a failed conversion attempt.

After the restart, Oshima added a penalty and Yoshida kicked a drop goal to increase their lead to 25-3.

A superb cross-kick from man of the match Oshima then allowed right wing Takamasa Okubo to score Japan's fourth try, which Oshima converted.

USA scored a consolation try through inside centre Nate Ebner in the 79th minute, but Japan were not finished yet, responding with an unconverted try from second row Keisuke Matsuda.

Japan's final score came via full back Daisuke Natsui, who finished off a move started in their own 22 that showed excellent handling and vision from their backline.

Replacement Ryohei Yamanaka added the conversion to complete a resounding victory.

Japan coach Masahiro Kunda said: "We saved our best display until the last game and our forward effort made it possible for us to bring our backs into play and play in the Japanese style we like. I am really proud of the boys. They are all students and the experience will do all of them good towards improving their game. The tournament organisation and refereeing has been excellent."

With thanks to the IRB