LONG READ World Rugby U20 Junior World Championships – 9 Players to Watch

The 2026 U20 Junior World Championship kicks off in Georgia and there will be a plethora of super-skilled next-gen stars on show over the coming weeks. The following list is just a smattering of the richly-talented individuals on show and many unheralded players will undoubtedly emerge before the Finals day on Saturday, 18 July.

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England – Lucas Friday

If you like rugby and live in England and haven’t heard of Lucas Friday then let us know what life is like under the rock. For a guy who’s done two ACLs in the last three seasons he’s achieved a helluva lot – 15 Prem and European apps for Harlequins this season for one. He was aged just 17 when he embarked on a World Rugby U20 Champion campaign in Cape Town alongside the likes of Henry Pollock and Junior Kpoku. Quietly composed and commanding, he kicks superbly off both feet, and his future battle with Archie McParland for the England senior 9 jersey should captivate fans for years to come.

Georgia – Mikheili Shioshivili

If you’ve not heard of the Georgian juggernaut before then you’ll maybe have seen him… from space, that is the scale of the human we’re talking here! Having made a try scoring senior Georgian debut in March v historic rivals Romania, then starting every Champions Cup knockout round in Toulon’s surge to the Semi-Finals, there was a fear he may be graduated prematurely from the U20s scene. However, the lure of a home Championship has seen the Georgian union bless us for one last campaign with the man who scored seven tries in just five U20 JWC appearances last summer in Italy.

Australia – Lehopo Leota & Kingbenjamin Swerling-Finaipepe

Alright, I’ve cheated the system here and gone for two, but they’re both front row and represent a key area of developmental focus for Chris Whitaker and Rugby Australia. Currently plying their propping trades in the Top14, they’re the first ever oversees based players to be selected for an U20s by the Junior Wallabies. Leota made his Racing 92 debut aged just 18 and this season featured in the Top14 and EPCR Challenge Cup whilst former Queensland Red Kingbenjamin not only has the best name in the competition but is spending his day-to-day living and breathing the dark arts at Castres alongside the likes of Georgia’s very own prop legend Levan Chilachava.

France – Melvyn Rates

Rates made his French U20 bow in last year’s Six Nations but missed out on 2025’s JWC. This year he heads to Georgia as arguably Les Bleuets deadliest edge man with some weighty Six Nations numbers behind him. Not only did he play every minute of every match he featured in delivering tries against Ireland and England, but he topped the competition offloads (11) and clean break (6) charts and found himself in the Top four for metres made (265), defenders beaten (20) and attacking catches (3). He made his Top14 debut last October and played a prominent role in Montpellier’s EPCR Challenge Cup triumph scoring four tries in five appearances – this kid’s a baller.

Wales – Steffan Emanuel

Considered hype has followed this lad every studded-step of his career. At 6ft and 95kgs, there are heftier midfield specimens on show in Georgia this summer, but Emanuel has serious gas and few boast his high-a-rugby IQ paired with an ability to execute his vision. Still only 19, this will be his third consecutive U20 JWC, having debuted aged just 17 in Cape Town two editions ago. He’s featured six times across URC and Europe this season for Cardiff and his performance and leadership co-captaining alongside Deian Gwynne with be integral to Welsh fortunes.

Argentina – Tomás Dande

Ever since Tomás Dande was capped at U18s two years early he has been tipped as a Puma of the future. The dynamic backrow played an key role in Argentina’s emotional third placed finish at last year’s U20s JWC and has gone from strength-to-strength In his second season of Super Rugby Americas, helping Tarucas to a historic Semi-Final. Despite losing to Dogos less than a fortnight ago, Captain Dande heads to Georgia full of confidence, in red-hot form and like so many familiar sounding names across the various nations in Eastern Europe this summer, with a bit of family pedigree with father Hugo an early Noughties Puma himself.

South Africa – Cheswill Jooste

Where do you start? Who do you pick? The defending champions talent conveyor belt continues to gather pace, which will surely terrify opponents. A clutch who were involved for SA ‘A’ v Zimbabwe last weekend travel to Georgia, however, Riley Norton and Vusi Moyo will not, with both called up to Rassie Erasmus’s Springboks proper…. So who’s left? Why 5ft 9, 75kg excitement machine Cheswill Jooste that’s who. Tries v Australia, England and Argentina contributed to last year’s U20s glory and he’s backed it up with a breakthrough Bulls season that saw him cross six times in seven starts. He missed out on the matchday 23 itself, but jets in to join the squad from Dublin fresh from having been involved in the URC final.

New Zealand – Bradley Tocker

It was a tough call between Tocker and Kele Lasaqa, the two NZ 7s capped stars but the Taranaki loosey just edges it – Lasaqa already has a gong being named World Rugby SVNS Rookie of the Year after all! Taranaki’s Tocker, though is equally electric. A former 100m schools sprint champion he’s got the speed and athleticism to cause nightmares for defences out wide. Used wisely by New Zealand, his ability to link with backs could be the x-factor needed for New Zealand to go one better than their 2025 Runners-up and claim the U20s crown for the first time since 2017.