Rovigo, Italy – The Junior Springboks were crowned World Rugby U20 Champions for the first time since 2012 after delivering a commanding 23-15 victory over arch-rivals New Zealand in the final of the 2025 tournament on Saturday night. The win, secured at a sold-out Stadio Mario Battaglini in Rovigo, caps a dominant campaign by the South Africans and confirms their place among world rugby’s elite age-grade teams.
With the victory, the South African U20 side joins the senior Springboks and the Blitzboks as reigning world champions across all three tiers of World Rugby competition.
It was a physical and tactical final marked by strong defence, disciplined execution, and clinical finishing from the Junior Boks, who led 13-5 at halftime and never relinquished control. Flanker Xola Nyali opened the scoring within the first three minutes with a powerful maul try, converted by the reliable boot of Vusi Moyo. New Zealand responded through lock Jayden Sa from a well-worked lineout move, but the momentum quickly shifted.
In a significant turning point, New Zealand prop Sika Uamaki Pole was shown a yellow card for a high tackle midway through the first half. After a review, it was upgraded to a 20-minute red card – the first red in a U20 final since 2012. Despite also going down a man when centre Albe Bester was shown yellow for a dangerous ruck entry, South Africa maintained their composure and Moyo slotted two penalties to extend the lead to 13-5 at the break.
New Zealand pushed hard after the restart, flyhalf Rico Simpson reducing the deficit to five with a penalty. But Moyo, the tournament’s most consistent points-scorer, answered back with his third penalty to restore the eight-point cushion.
The South Africans remained relentless, dominating possession and territory as the clock wound down. A try by wing Haashim Pead appeared to have sealed the result, only to be ruled out by the TMO for obstruction. Another near miss followed when the Junior Boks were held up over the try line. But their persistence finally paid off with three minutes remaining when Pead chipped expertly to the corner where fullback Gilermo Mentoe gathered and scored to push the lead to 23-8.
A late consolation try by Maloni Kunawave for New Zealand brought the final score to 23-15, but it was South Africa captain Riley Norton who would lift the trophy and describe the moment as “the greatest day” of his life.
The win was South Africa’s seventh consecutive victory over New Zealand in U20 Championship history, reaffirming their dominance in this age group rivalry. It also marked the first time since the class of 2012 — which featured future World Cup stars Handré Pollard, Steven Kitshoff, and Pieter-Steph du Toit — that the Junior Springboks claimed the U20 world crown.
Elsewhere in the tournament’s final day, Argentina delivered a thrilling comeback to beat France 38-35 and match their best-ever third-place finish. Australia overwhelmed England 68-40 in the fifth-place playoff, while hosts Italy defeated Wales 31-23 to secure their highest finish at seventh. Georgia downed Scotland 22-7 for ninth, and Ireland edged Spain 38-37 in a dramatic 11th-place decider.
The 2026 edition of the U20 Championship will expand to 16 teams and be hosted by Georgia, with the inclusion of Fiji, USA, Japan, and Uruguay joining the top 12 from this year’s event.
For now, the spotlight belongs to the Junior Boks, who have reasserted South Africa’s strength at the youth level with a performance built on grit, skill, and championship resolve.
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