Gritty Junior Springboks stumble over the 2nd-last hurdle

The Junior Springboks had to endure yet another heartbreaking semifinal in an Under-20 World Championship after they lost 22-24 to England on Tuesday.

Chean Roux’s troops were on the back foot for most of the game but an excellent performance from the forwards and good defence kept them in the picture.

In fact, they probably would’ve held out had it not been for the backline’s appalling decision-making throughout the 80 minutes.

Who was the star in this match?

It’s starting to sound like a broken record but Juarno Augustus has been a giant in this tournament. His physicality and perseverance led to him scoring yet another brace of tries. But it was his defence that marked him out as the best player in this game. Not only did he tackle brilliantly, he also made two important turnovers.

Key themes and events

• Regardless of how close the Baby Boks eventually came, this was a game where the backs’ poor decision-making undermined a power performance by the forwards. Despite bossing the scrums and disrupting the English line-out to such an extent that they lost even of them, South Africa were never really able to take advantage.
• England established an early 17-7 lead within the first quarter as they exploited iffy first-time tackling and mistakes in the Boks’ own half. They also generally dominated territory and possession.
• The Junior Boks’ mental steel was a factor in keeping them in this game. On the stroke of half-time, a brilliant break by flyhalf Curwin Bosch set up a platform for the forwards to drive multiple phases before Augusuts powered over. It gave them a crucial psychological boost at the turnaround.
• With a poor exit strategy keeping them in their own half, South Africa continued to be put under pressure but England’s own errors meant it went unpunished. English flyhalf Max Malins error during one of the few times the Junior Boks were in their own opponents’ half was exploited through lock Ruben van Heerden’s score. They also managed a Bosch penalty to go into a 22-17 lead with 7 minutes to go.
• However, the Junior Boks didn’t tighten up in the dying moments. Two aimless kicks – one of them a crucal one by error-prone fullback Manie Libbok – gave England a sniff. They duly took advantage of some tired tackling to score the winning try. It said much of England’s determination but also the Boks’ lack of composure.

Point scorers

Junior Springboks – Tries: Juarno Augustus (2), Ruben van Heerden. Conversions: Curwin Bosch (2). Penalty: Bosch.

England – Tries: Zach Mercer (2), Alex Mitchell. Conversions: Max Malins (3). Penalty: Malins.

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