South Africa retained their World Rugby Junior World Championship title with a hard-fought 16-5 victory over France in the final at the Mikheil Meskhi Stadium in Tbilisi, Georgia, becoming the first Junior Springboks side to win back-to-back titles.
The championship decider was delayed by 45 minutes due to lightning in the area, adding to the drama of an already tense encounter. South Africa led 6-0 at halftime thanks to two penalties from fly-half Yaqeen Ahmed, who finished the match with 11 points. Both defences dominated in an attritional affair, with South Africa having three tries disallowed and France one.
The breakthrough try came late in the match through Markus Muller, sealing the victory for Kevin Foote's side. Captain Siphosethu Mnebelele said: "It's amazing and credit to France but we just kept coming up and that's the South African spirit. I'm really proud of the boys."
The victory extends South Africa's winning streak in the tournament to 11 consecutive matches. They become the fourth team to win back-to-back Junior World Championship titles after New Zealand (2008-2011), England (2013-2014) and France (2018-2019). With three titles now, South Africa match France's tally, behind only England (four) and New Zealand (six).
Coach Kevin Foote praised his team's resilience: "We were really happy with our defence. France played with their usual flair and they were also big and physical, so we had to soak that up. But that's the story of this team — they never give up."
France, who won the U20 Six Nations earlier this year, can hold their heads high. Captain Lucas Andjisseramatchi said: "I'm really proud of the boys this year because we've done a great job — winning the Six Nations and reaching the final of the Junior World Championship. We'll come back stronger."
In the third-place playoff, New Zealand defeated England 41-26, while Ireland and Fiji secured ninth and eleventh place with wins over Italy and Georgia respectively.
Sources
- https://www.world.rugby/news/1044128/md5-review
