England overcame France to win the Under-20 Rugby World Cup for the first time since 2016.
Mark Mapletoft’s side won 21-13 in Cape Town to end an eight-year wait for the title.
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Lock Joe Bailey scored the opening try of the match, giving England the lead just before half-time and cancelling out two Hugo Reus penalties for France.
It was a battle in the South Africa heat but the men in white looked to have the advantage and were outmuscling their opponents.
Arthur Green forced one over the line from a scrum to score a second try before Sean Kerr’s three penalties put England in a commanding lead.
Mathis Ferte scored a late consolation try but it was not enough for Les Bleus to win their fourth consecutive U-20 World Cup.
England’s eight-year wait is over! 🏉🏆#BBCRUGBY PIC.TWITTER.COM/GE9QTG1QI7
— BBC Sport (@BBCSport) JULY 19, 2024
The fourth World Cup victory for England is another trophy to add to their collection after they won the Six Nations earlier in the year.
They look to have a special squad who will be eyeing up a spot in the senior team sooner rather than later and captain Finn Carnduff was full of praise after the game.
He said: “This group is super special. I genuinely see those guys as brothers for life and to win two trophies together, I can’t believe it.
“We thought our errors were putting us on the back foot in the first half. We wanted to stick to our principles in the second half and I think we did that.
“We kept the ball at their end, used our set-piece to our advantage and moved the ball quicker.”
