LONG READ The U20 Junior World Championship - Team of the tournament

The Junior World Championship came to a close at the weekend to bring to an end nearly six weeks of rip-roaring passion, thunderous hits and moments of sheer joy, and pain, but who were the players who left a particular imprint on the tournament in Georgia? Here’s RugbyPass’ Team of the Tournament. Let us know your views below…

15 Cohen Norrie (NZ)

What a baller. He arguably shone more with 10 on his back, but played plenty of game-time at 15 and possesses a lightness of foot that was as thrilling to watch as it was terrifying to defend. A try creator and scorer with a fearlessness to play what was in front of him. A joy to watch.

14 Simon Pfister (Arg) 

Argentina waned badly in the latter stages of the competition, but their early successes were embodied by their full-back’s attacking verve. Pfister ended his summer in Tbilisi with 8 tries in 5 games, topping the tournament metrics for metres carried metric and line breaks – you can’t argue with that!

13 Treyvon Pritchard (Aus) 

Sad end to the Queenslander’s competition suffering an early broken leg in the Semi-Final, every side step and flailing defender in his wake til that point showed us just why everyone Down Under is so excited about the player this lad already is, yet is destined to become even more.

12 Yaqeen Ahmed (SA) –

Despite starting all his games at 10 I’ve shifted Ahmed to 12 to create a Scottish-South African axis of huge attacking intent. His unquenchable thirst for scoring saw him amass 46 points in his three outings including a merciless 23 versus England in the Semi Final. He oozed competitive intent that drove his team on relentlessly and was as physical in defence and attack as anyone you set foot off the plane in Georgia.

11 Shinnosuke Uchida (Jap)

There is no scrum more terrifying in junior world rugby than a Japanese one manned at the base by Shinnosuke Uchida. The Tsukuba University winger’s acceleration and pace at times defied belief… just ask New Zealand, Scotland, USA and Spain all whom he scored tries against. Japan’s ploy to shift their winger to halfback left defences scrambling but also shone in his more conventional duties on the edge. A very exciting prospect.

10 Jake Dalziel (Sco)

Seventeen… 17 years old…And will continue to be so until 18th August – just let sink that in. The precocious talent from Melrose played every minute of every match and did so with a maturity beyond his tender years. He assumed a vocal leadership role throughout, ended with a personal haul of 49 points and infamously struck goal line restart v Wales that travelled 105 metres with the ball one revolution away from going dead!

9 Sion Davies (Wal) 

Possibly the toughest positional call to make with a wealth of high calibre scrum halves on show. The Welshman edges it due to his blend of physicality and ability to dictate the pace of the game with his varied decision making. Wales always looked like they had a chance of making something happen with him on the pitch. Benjamin Ledesma Aroncena makes the bench in acknowledgement of his versatility and ridiculous ability to beat men but the 9 and 21 could easily have been any combo of Mattia Andretti, Hendre Schoeman, Baptiste Tilloles, Bernat Fernandez, Charlie Sinton… the list goes on!

1 Oliver Reid (SA)  

One of the 2025 returners, Oliver Reid is now a back-to-back Junior World Champion and having started every game bar the opener v Uruguay was one of the key ingredients of the 2026 vintage. The 6ft 1in, 119kg Stormer was the cornerstone of an unshakable scrum and when not buried in the middle of an unstoppable maul, showed incredible energy and mobility marauding around the park in open play. His pre-competition involvement with South Africa ‘A’ v Zimbabwe comes as absolutely no surprise!

2 Josh Findlay (NZ) 

New Zealand’s man of industry got through more work in five JWC starts that most do in a full club season – his sheer number of involvements per passage both sides of the ball were off the charts. Set-piece was strong, with lineout rarely faltering, and generally always had his hand up to do the unglamorous work that allows others to shine around him.

3 Ollie Blyth-Lafferty (Sco) 

Some mighty tightheads touched down in Georgia this summer, including this Scot who lived up to every last 136kg of his weighty billing. The Scottish scrum was a rock with Blyth-Lafferty the starting cornerstone for all their games. Throw in tries against Japan, Argentina, Wales and the innumerable defensive dents he caused with ball-in-hand, one thing’s for sure, it won’t be long before he’s answering to Gregor Townsend as a senior international.

4 Heinrich Theron (SA) 

South Africa is quite simply the land of the lock isn’t it. All 6ft 7 of set piece technical proficiency, open-play energy with a sprinkling of nuisance making sees Heinrich Theron successfully satisfy all the key demands of what makes a great modern lock. What his partnership with JD Hattingh lacked in fireworks, was more than made up for in dependable, error-free rugby.

5 Baptiste Veschambre (Fra) 

Four starts and not a minute missed for the all action enforcer from Clermont. Sadly, part of a French lineout that disintegrated in the Final, but prior to that was the target man for launching try after try from set piece. He consistently showed he wasn’t a man to be trifled with in the tight; busy, aggressive and relentless… just the kind of garçon you don’t want to come across in a driving maul, unless you have a cockerel on your chest that is.

6 Deian Gwynne (Wal)  

The Welsh captain flies the flag for the entire backrow with Caio James and Evan Minto completing the tireless trio. The three of them completed close to 200 tackles as a collective with Minto carrying like his life defended upon it. Gwynne was everywhere – close quarter carries, wide channel scampers, midfield bursts – he led fearlessly, spoke with measure and barely missed a minute that mattered.

7 Tate Williams (Eng) 

The unbreakable man. England, down to 14 since the 31st minute v South Arica; the semi-final done, dusted, and a bench with no more reinforcements to deploy. Noone would have begrudged a stricken Tate Williams had he opted to go off and save his body with the game lost, but he hauled himself up to see out the game for his team. A performance that embodied the commitment and character we witnessed game-in-game-out from every nation at the Junior World Championship – lads putting it on the line for their mates… that’s what it’s all about.

8 Lucas Andjisseramatchi (Fra) 

It was evident from the first contact why La Rochelle partnered him with the likes of Greg Alldritt and Levani Botia 14 times across Europe and Top14 this season. He carried all tournament with a ferocity and chaos that few could handle. The French Captain ultimately fell short of his side’s ambition to claim another coveted title, but he leaves Georgia with his reputation further enhanced.

Replacements

16 Joe Roberts (Sco)
17 Matteo Frisach (Fra)
18 Edwin Langi (Aus)
19 Finn McLeod (NZ)
20 Josh Neil (Ire)
21 Benjamin Ledesma Aroncena (Arg)
22 Dane Mitchell (USA)
23 Sam Winters (Eng)