Junior Boks will draw on experience in World Cup semi, says Foote

Being able to draw on the experience gained in do-or-die knockout rugby at the tournament in 2025 will be crucial for the Junior Boks when they face England in the Junior World Cup semifinals on Monday, coach Kevin Foote said.

The defending champions roared into the semifinals when they beat Wales 52-33 on Tuesday at the Avchala Stadium in Tbilisi.

After a slow start, during which Wales scored two converted tries in the opening 10 minutes, the Junior Boks started finding their rhythm and played with more confidence.

“Some of these Junior Bok players have experienced knockout rugby at this tournament before, so we’ll draw on that experience and look forward to the challenge ahead,” Foote said.

While Foote said his side were not at their best in the opening exchanges, he was encouraged by how they responded.

“We were a little bit passive in the beginning,” he said.

“But once we got into the game and built some momentum, I thought we created some really good try-scoring opportunities. There was a lot of attacking intent, and the players showed good composure to take control of the match.

“There were a couple of scrum penalties against us, but overall, I thought the pack did really well.

“They worked hard throughout the game, gave us good front-foot ball and helped us get the result over the line.”

While pleased with the victory, Foote said there were still areas requiring improvement ahead of the England showdown.

“From a defensive perspective and in terms of ball retention, there are definitely things we need to work on,” he said.

“We’ll review the game, look closely at some of the turnovers and make sure we’re sharper going into the semis.

“We’ve achieved our first objective by coming through the pool stages, and now we look ahead to the semi-final.”

The Junior Boks finished first in Pool A with 15 points, while Wales ended second with 10 points.

New Zealand clinched first spot in Pool B, also on 15 points, while England and France also qualified for the semi-finals by topping their pools.

Although the SA U20s outscored the Welsh by eight tries to five in the Georgian capital to top Pool A, they will have to work hard at eradicating a number of basic errors.

They scored four tries without reply before the break, but a couple of errors due to over-eagerness in the Welsh red zone cost them more points, while some weak moments of defence also allowed Wales to stay in the contest.

Hendre Schoeman went over after a brilliant scrum by the Junior Boks to open the scoring in the 12th minute, and five minutes later Ethan Adams also crossed the whitewash.

The big centre chipped into space; Yaqeen Ahmed collected and then passed back to Adams, who raced clear. Both were converted by Ahmed, and parity was restored at 14-14.

Wales were feeling the pressure, and when Siphosethu Mnebelele was driven over in the 26th minute, South Africa took the lead.

When Wales’ tighthead prop Jac Pritchard was sin-binned after half an hour, the SA U20s pounced with Heinrich Theron going over for their second try from a driving maul to make it 26-14 at the break.

Risima Khosa scored a superb try out on the right wing early in the second half to push the Junior Boks past 30 points, but when Cheswill Jooste was yellow carded for a deliberate knock-down, Wales pounced.

In Monday’s other last four showdown, New Zealand take on France.

Scorers:

Junior Springboks 52: Tries: Hendre Schoeman, Ethan Adams, Siphosethu Mnebelele (2), Heinrich Theron, Risima Khosa, Liam van Wyk (2). Conversions: Yaqeen Ahmed (6).

Wales 33: Tries: Caio James, Steffan Emanuel, Osian Lewis, Tom Bowen, Lewis Edwards. Conversions: Carwyn Jones (3), Lloyd Lucas. - Additional reporting SA Rugby Communications