France achieve first U20 Championship with win over England

France produced a stunning performance to seal a 33-25 victory over England and win their first ever U20 Championship. In front of 15,000 passionate supporters at the Stade de la Mediterranee, France’s top-flight experience showed in controlling the game. 23 points from the boot of fly-half Louis Carbonel kept England out of reach from the hosts despite the best efforts of the top seeds.

An electric atmosphere at the Stade de la Mediterranee 

       France set their stall out early with a couple of penalties off the back of powerful work by the French forwards led by man-mountain Demba Bamba, their set-piece clearly causing problems for England. While England put themselves on the board from the boot of fly-half Marcus Smith it was France who scored the opening try.

       With the forwards hammering on the try line, an outstanding offload from Maxine Marty out the back of a tackle found Cameron Woki who dotted down in the corner despite the best effort from Joel Kpoku to keep him out.

       England got a much needed try just before the half-time whistle, a beautifully floated pass from Tom Hardwick found club-mate Jordan Olowofela who crossed the line to reduce the half-time deficit to 14-8.

       The second half was a mixture of French precision and English frustration. A number of penalties for the home side gave their already dominant set-piece an opportunity to build their lead. Three penalties for Carbonel saw the lead grow to 23-8.

       England gave themselves a lifeline with 10 minutes left on the clock. With an injection of pace from livewire scrum half Rory Brand, England found themselves camped on the French line. Kpoku and Ted Hill continued their strong carrying, which had been so prominent throughout the game, however it was substitute prop Joe Heyes, who fought him was over the try line.

       France found themselves on the front foot again soon after, as England were desperate to make something happen. Man of the moment Carbonel put a perfectly weighed kick in behind the English defence for replacement Adrien Seguret to pounce on and secure the win for France.

       A late try for England closed the gap but there was too much to be done. Olowofela crossing for his second try of the day and fifth of the tournament. The final whistle saw delight for the rapturous home crowd and heartbreak for the English side who had produced some outstanding rugby throughout the tournament but were beaten by the better side on the day.

       England will be frustrated that the performance never reached the heights of those against Italy or South Africa, albeit against a much stronger French side. The French defence proving near impossible to breakdown, and another high penalty count was punished by Carbonel

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       However, England should look back with great pride on an excellent tournament. The strength throughout the squad shone through and the colossal effort put it from all was evident to see. After a well-deserved rest, these players will be sure to be pushing for first team selection when they returned to their respective clubs with crucial international experience on their side.