In a rollercoaster, edge-of-your-seat clash at Tbilisi’s Avchala Stadium, Wales Under-20s pulled off a landmark 38-36 victory over Australia’s Junior Wallabies at the World Rugby Junior Championship, booking a fifth-place playoff against Scotland on July 17. This result marks Wales’ first win over Australia at the youth global tournament since 2018, and their first victory over a top-tier southern hemisphere nation at this level since downing New Zealand in the 2019 edition.
Wales maintained their tournament-long trend of fast starts, extending their streak of opening-quarter tries across all four matches of the campaign, even after squandering three clear scoring chances in the first six minutes of play. The deadlock was broken in the 14th minute, when flying wing Rhys Cummings showcased sharp athletic awareness to keep Steffan Emanuel’s floating kick in play along the right touchline before diving over for the opening score.
Disaster struck early for Australia, who lost three players to injury before the 15-minute mark, and found themselves further behind when center Osian Darwin-Lewis crossed the line after a blistering break from number eight Evan Minto. Carwyn Leggatt-Jones converted both tries to push Wales 14-0 up, but a costly yellow card for a deliberate knock-on shifted momentum Australia’s way. The infringement came during Australia’s attacking build-up, allowing Tom Farr-Jones to cross for his first try, and the speed winger added a second after scrum-half Sam Blank sniped over from close range, putting Australia up 17-14 by halftime.
Wales reclaimed the lead just 60 seconds into the second half, when Cummings chased his own two hacked kicks to gather the loose ball and score his second of the game. Leggatt-Jones converted and slotted a long-range penalty to stretch the lead to 24-17, before captain Deian Gwynne – who has earned regular senior caps for Gloucester this season – crashed over from a short-range ruck to put Wales in a commanding position.
Australia rallied back, with wing Riley Whitfeld finishing an acrobatic try in the left corner to cut the deficit to 31-22 in the 55th minute. When Wales lock Luke Evans was issued a 20-minute red card for a high tackle, the Junior Wallabies capitalized on the man advantage, with prop Edwin Langi scoring a close-range try to bring the sides even closer. Down to 14 players, Wales held firm and earned a penalty try after choosing to kick for a corner instead of taking a shot at goal, extending their lead to 38-29 while Australia’s Toby Brial was sent to the sin bin.
Australia hit back once again, with John Greenfell sneaking over to cut the gap to just two points. In the 79th minute, Jonty Fowler raced down the left flank to score what Australian players and fans thought was a match-winning try, and the conversion was completed before Television Match Officials reviewed the play. The TMO spotted an earlier knock-on in the build-up, disallowing the try and confirming Wales’ narrow victory.
Richard Whiffin’s young Welsh side will now face Scotland, who secured a 44-26 win over Argentina earlier in the tournament, in the fifth-place decider with a 17:30 BST kickoff on July 17. A repeat of Wales’ Six Nations victory over Scotland would secure the nation’s best finish at the Junior World Championship since they finished runners-up in 2013.