New Zealand defeated Australia 37–7 in a hard-fought but inevitable result at the IRB Under 20 World Championships. It was a sweltering night in Treviso, and the Kiwis decided not to play too much open rugby, instead grinding down the junior Wallabies with aggression at the tackle, pressuring mistakes and converting them into tries.
The teenagers in Green and Gold started well, dominating possession for the first 15 minutes and following a full three minutes of continuity, opening the try-scoring for the game. Indeed, they went into the break still in touch at 13–7. Unfortunately it all went downhill after the 52nd minute when yet another Whitelock broke down the shortside for a try. From there the scoring became more regular and the Aussies had nothing to answer with, apart from a valiant rearguard defence.
PLAYER RATINGS
See our patented Player Scoring System™ at the bottom.
1 Scott Sio – the tight five did very well in set piece, and even managed to take two tight heads against the New Zealand side. Sio played his role in this, and showed good bustle, especially in defence. 6
2 Siliva Siliva – was the grafting work horse in the pack. Made impressive tight yards. 7
3 Paul Alo-Emile – Like Sio, held his end up and put in around the park. 6
4 Blake Enever – Needed a little more presence around the ruck, but OK. 5
5 Luke Jones – Impressive work-rate in the first half, go-to man in the lineout. 6
6 Colby Faingaa (c) – My man of the match even in a well-beaten side. Was in the right position every time and was part of at least three goal-line saves. The Super Rugby minutes have made their mark. 9
7 Michael Hooper – Like Faingaa his experience shone through and he harried on every loose ball. The two flankers stood between the Aussies and annihilation. 8
8 (Ed Quirk – injured after 15 minutes)
9 Eddie Bredenhann – Fed his runners well. 6
10 Ben Volavola – No doubt this kid has skills, but today he had a shocker of a match. Bad kicking in the first half led to awful passes to nobody in the second, one of them being picked up for a try. He also stood far too deep to threaten anyone on attack and simply held all others behind the gainline. 2
11 Kimami Sitauti – To be fair, rarely got the ball with any go-forward. 4
12 Bill Meakes – Anonymous apart from some solid defence. 4
13 Tom Kingston – Another whose professional minutes showed; took the ball forward. 6
14 Chris Nasiganiyavi – On the end of the only Aussie try, but couldn’t create anything else. 4
15 Simon Morahan – Looked solid and threatening from the back. 5
Reserves
16 Hugh Roach (R)
17 Tim Metcher (R)
18 Ted Postal (R)
19 Jarrad Butler (R) – On from the 15th minute, he worked well with Faingaa and Hooper, but really needed more muscle against the marauding Kiwis 6
20 Matt Lucas (R) – Was sprightly after he came on early for Bredenhan. 6
21 Rohan Saifoloi (R)
22 Jacob Woodhouse (R)
Rating system (no half-marks):
10 – A legendary performance to go down in the history books
9 – Outstanding performance: Man of the match shoo-in
8 – Excellent all-round game
7 – Good game with a few sparkles
6 – Solid performance
5 – Average – ho hum
4 – Below par
3 – Had a bad game
2 – Tell your story walking pal
1 – A complete joke
