Wales national under-20 rugby union team
The Wales national Under 20 rugby team is for Welsh rugby union players aged 20 or under on 1 January of the year during which they are selected.
| Union | Welsh Rugby Union | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Emblem(s) | The Prince of Wales's feathers | ||
| Ground(s) | Eirias Stadium, Colwyn Bay[1] Rodney Parade, Newport Liberty Stadium, Swansea Parc y Scarlets, Llanelli | ||
| Coach(es) | Gareth Williams | ||
| |||
| First international | |||
.svg.png.webp){kind=small} Wales 15–28 England  (1 February 2008) | |||
| Largest win | |||
Wales 74–3 Samoa  (12 June 2012) | |||
| Largest defeat | |||
 New Zealand 92–0 Wales (14 June 2011) | |||
| World Cup | |||
| Appearances | 6 (First in 2008) | ||
| Best result | Runners up, 2013 | ||
Under 20 age grade rugby came into existence, as a result of the IRB combining the Under 19 Rugby World Championship and Under 21 Rugby World Championship into a single IRB Junior World Championship tournament.[2] They also compete in the Six Nations Under 20s Championship.
2008 Junior World Championships
In June 2008 Wales hosted the 2008 IRB Junior World Championship. As hosts they played all their group matches at the Liberty Stadium in Swansea, starting against Italy on Friday 6 June, before further ties against Japan and France.[3] Wales won all three group matches before losing the semi-final to New Zealand and subsequently losing the 3rd place play-off to South Africa.
For the tournament the same management team remained from the 2008 U20 Six Nations; head coach Patrick Horgan and assistant coaches Rob Appleyard and Wayne Jones. Sam Warbuton remained as captain.[4]
For the next two Junior World championships, Wales alongside France will have to start the pool stages with a three-point deficit, following a brawl between the two sides in the 2008 tournament.[5]
2010 Junior World Championships
At the 2010 IRB Junior World Championship the Welsh squad won 2 games in the preliminary round against Samoa and Fiji while losing to New Zealand. At the playoffs for the 5th–8th place they first drew with Argentina 19–19 but lost in a drop goal shootout 9–8 and then met Fiji for a second time, again winning by 39–15 to finish in 7th place.
2011 Junior World Championships
After winning their opening game 34–8 against Argentina they were on the receiving end of a 92–0 thrashing by New Zealand in Italy
2012 Junior World Championships
In 2012 Wales beat the baby All Blacks 9 - 6, the first time New Zealand have ever been defeated in the competition. This was also the first Welsh win against New Zealand at any level since 1954. However, later in the tournament Wales lost 30-6 to New Zealand in the semi-final.
Current squad
Wales Under 20 squad for the 2020 U20 Six Nations.[6]
| Pos | Player | Club/Region |
|---|---|---|
| HK | Dom Booth | Scarlets |
| HK | Brodie Coghlan | Dragons |
| HK | Will Griffiths | Dragons |
| PR | Dylan Bartlett | Dragons |
| PR | Theo Bevacqua | Cardiff Blues |
| PR | Archie Griffiths | Bath |
| PR | Harri O'Connor | Scarlets |
| PR | Ben Warren | Cardiff Blues |
| PR | Callum Williams | Scarlets |
| LK | Ben Carter | Dragons |
| LK | James Fender | Ospreys |
| LK | Jac Price | Scarlets |
| LK | Rhys Thomas | Ospreys |
| FL | Gwilym Bradley | Cardiff Blues |
| FL | Ioan Davies | Cardiff Blues |
| FL | Benji Hoppe | Dragons |
| FL | Travis Huntley | Ospreys |
| FL | Jac Morgan | Scarlets |
| N8 | Morgan Strong | Ospreys |
| Pos | Player | Club/Region |
|---|---|---|
| SH | Dafydd Buckland | Dragons |
| SH | Ellis Bevan | Cardiff Metropolitan University |
| FH | Jacob Beetham | Cardiff Blues |
| FH | Sam Costelow | Leicester |
| FH | Ioan Lloyd | Bristol |
| FH | Luke Scully | Worcester |
| CE | Osian Knott | Scarlets |
| CE | Aneurin Owen | Dragons |
| CE | Bradley Roderick | Ospreys |
| WG | Harri Doel | Scarlets |
| WG | Ewan Rosser | Dragons |
| WG | Callum Williams | Scarlets |
| FB | Josh Thomas | Ospreys |
| FB | Dan John | Millfield School |
Management
- Gareth Williams - Head Coach
- Darren Joy - Team Manager
- Andrew Bishop - Defence Coach
- Dai Flanagan - Backs Coach
- Richard Kelly - Forwards Coach
- Rhodri Williams - Strength & Conditioning
Results and statistics
| Year | P | W | D | L | PF | PA | Diff | BP | Pts | Pool place | Play-offs | Final position |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 63 | 59 | +4 | 0 | 8 | 2nd | (5th–8th Semifinals) Lost to Argentina 19 – 19 (9–8 in drop goal shootout) (7th–8th Final) Beat Fiji 39 – 15 | 7th |
| 2009 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 107 | 58 | +49 | 2 | 7 | 2nd | (5th–8th Semifinals) Beat Ireland 19 – 17 (5th–6th Final) Lost to France 68 – 13 | 6th |
| 2008 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 85 | 39 | +46 | 2 | 14 | 1st | (Semifinals) Lost to New Zealand 31 – 6 (3rd–4th Final) Lost to South Africa 43 – 18 | 4th |
| Season | P | W | D | L | P | Position |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 1st (Grand Slam) |
| 2015 | 5 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 8 | 3rd |
| 2014 | 5 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 6 | 3rd |
| 2013 | 5 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 8 | 2nd |
| 2012 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 4 | 4th |
| 2011 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 5 | 3rd |
| 2010 | 5 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 6 | 3rd |
| 2009 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 2 | 5th |
| 2008 | 5 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 8 | 2nd |
| 2007 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 4th |
Notable former coaches
- Dai Rees (2007)
- Phil Davies (2009)
- Darren Edwards (2010)
- Richard Webster (2011)
- Jason Strange (2015)
- Chris Horsman (2018)
Notable former players
- Tom James (2007)
- Bradley Davies (2007)
- Dan Biggar (2008)
- Jonathan Davies (2008)
- Leigh Halfpenny (2008)
- Sam Warburton (2008)
- Alun Wyn Jones (2006)
References
- Wales Under 20 venue
- WRU: IRB Junior World Championships: Wales 2008: About the Tournament
- WRU: IRB Junior World Championships: Wales 2008: Fixtures & Results
- "Horgan announces Wales U20 JWC squad". Welsh Rugby Union. 2008-05-07. Retrieved 2008-05-17.
- "Brawl teams given suspended fines". BBC News. 2008-06-17. Retrieved 2010-05-27.
- "Wales U20 Six Nations squad announced". Welsh Rugby Union. 17 January 2020. Retrieved 17 January 2020.