Australia national under-20 rugby union team
The Australia national under-20 rugby union team, nicknamed the Junior Wallabies, is the national under-20 rugby union team that represents Australia. The team has been competing at the annual World Rugby U20 Championship since it began in 2008, replacing the previously held under-19 and under-21 championships. The team also competes at the Oceania U20 Championship as of 2015 and the U20 Rugby Championship since 2024.
| Union | Rugby Australia | |
|---|---|---|
| Nickname(s) | Junior Wallabies | |
| Coach(es) | Nathan Grey | |
| ||
| First international | ||
| Australia 81–12 Canada (6 June 2008; Rodney Parade, Newport) | ||
| Largest win | ||
| Australia 91–7 Tonga (1 May 2018; Bond Sports Park, Gold Coast) | ||
| Largest defeat | ||
| Australia 12–69 New Zealand (10 July 2022; SC Stadium, Bokarina) | ||
| World Cup | ||
| Appearances | 7 (First in 2008) | |
| Best result | Runners-up (2010, 2019) | |
Australia's highest finish at the World Rugby U20 Championship was second-place in 2010[1][2] and 2019. The team finished third in 2011 by beating France in the third place playoff,[3] and fourth in 2009 after losing to South Africa 32–5 in the third place playoff.[4] The Junior Wallabies also finished second in the first four editions of the Oceania U20 Championship before being crowned champions in 2019 after defeating New Zealand 24–0.[5][6][7]
Team name
The Junior Wallabies name was incorporated into the Australian under-20 crest prior to the 2018 season, but the name was also previously applied to several other teams in the history of Australian rugby.[8][9] In the era of amateur rugby from the 1950s onwards, the Junior Wallabies team was selected from uncapped players (with no age restriction) to play against touring Test sides[10][11] or to represent Australia on goodwill tours to Asia and the Pacific.[12][13] Media publications sometimes also used the name Junior Wallabies to refer to age-graded national teams such as the Australian under-19 side,[14] Australian Schoolboys,[15][16] and later the Australian under-20 team.[17][18]
Overall record
Summary for all competitive test matches up to and including the 2023 season:
| Opponent | Pld | W | D | L | W% | PF | PA | Diff. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Argentina | 6 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 50% | 150 | 106 | +44 |
| Canada | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 100% | 167 | 12 | +155 |
| England | 8 | 1 | 1 | 6 | 12.5% | 165 | 204 | –39 |
| Fiji | 8 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 100% | 352 | 125 | +228 |
| France | 7 | 3 | 0 | 4 | 42.86% | 178 | 170 | +8 |
| Ireland | 4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 50% | 98 | 84 | +14 |
| Italy | 6 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 100% | 220 | 74 | +146 |
| Japan | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 100% | 165 | 64 | +101 |
| New Zealand | 16 | 4 | 0 | 12 | 25% | 323 | 561 | –238 |
| Samoa | 6 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 100% | 228 | 94 | +134 |
| Scotland | 6 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 66.67% | 218 | 104 | +114 |
| South Africa | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 33.33% | 60 | 113 | –53 |
| Tonga | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 100% | 252 | 25 | +227 |
| Wales | 5 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 80% | 168 | 104 | +64 |
| Total | 84 | 51 | 1 | 32 | 60.71% | 2.644 | 1,840 | +804 |
World Rugby U20 Championship record
| Year | Round | Position | Pld | W | D | L | PF | PA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | 5th place | 5th | 5 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 221 | 68 |
| 2009 | Semi-finals | 4th | 5 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 186 | 74 |
| 2010 | Runners-up | 2nd | 5 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 239 | 131 |
| 2011 | Semi-finals | 3rd | 5 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 166 | 117 |
| 2012 | 8th place | 8th | 5 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 107 | 94 |
| 2013 | 7th place | 7th | 5 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 114 | 84 |
| 2014 | 5th place | 5th | 5 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 176 | 101 |
| 2015 | 5th place | 5th | 5 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 136 | 110 |
| 2016 | 6th place | 6th | 5 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 120 | 116 |
| 2017 | 6th place | 6th | 5 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 135 | 106 |
| 2018 | 5th place | 5th | 5 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 178 | 103 |
| 2019 | Runners-up | 2nd | 5 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 171 | 122 |
| 2023 | 5th place | 5th | 5 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 179 | 157 |
| Total | 13/13 | 0 titles | 65 | 39 | 1 | 25 | 2,128 | 1,383 |
U20 Rugby Championship record
| Year | Position | Pld | W | D | L | PF | PA | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | 4th | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 55 | 80 | |||
| Total | 1/1 | TBD | ||||||||
Head coaches
- 2008: Brian Melrose[19]
- 2009–2012: David Nucifora[20][21]
- 2013–2016: Adrian Thompson[22]
- 2017: Simon Cron[23]
- 2018–2019: Jason Gilmore[24]
- 2020–present: Nathan Grey[25]
Honours
- Oceania Junior Championship
- Winners (1): 2019
- Runners-up (4): 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018
See also
References
- "New Zealand crowned JWC 2010 champions". IRB. 21 June 2010. Archived from the original on 27 February 2014. Retrieved 27 February 2014.
- "Young Wallabies finish runners up at Junior Worlds". 2010.
- "France 17–30 Australia". IRB. 26 June 2011. Archived from the original on 10 November 2014. Retrieved 10 November 2014.
- "Australia finishes fourth at IRB Junior World Championship". 2009.
- "Rugby – Junior Wallabies beat New Zealand to win Oceania under-20s crown". Special Broadcasting Service. 5 May 2019.
- Decent, Tom (5 May 2019). "Junior Wallabies thumping of NZ provides lift game desperately needs". The Sydney Morning Herald. Nine Entertainment. Archived from the original on 5 May 2019.
- "Junior Wallabies deliver good news with Oceania title win over New Zealand". The Australian. News Corp Australia. 6 May 2019.
- "John Weatherstone, 22, left, who will leave Australia on Saturday to tour Japan, Hong Kong and Taiwan with the Junior Wallabies". The Canberra Times. 6 March 1972. p. 36, col. 4. Retrieved 13 April 2018.
- "S. Africa names a strong side". The Canberra Times. 27 July 1971. p. 22, col. 4. Retrieved 13 April 2018.
- Australian Rugby Union (27 January 2009). "Biographies - Norman Peter Reilly". Brave and Game. Archived from the original on 25 January 2014. Retrieved 25 November 2013.
- "Third visit in five years". The Canberra Times. 8 July 1990. p. 36. Retrieved 13 April 2018.
- "State Players Nominated". The West Australian. Perth. 25 June 1953. p.18, col. 2. Retrieved 13 April 2018.
- "Union teams selected for Ceylon, Fiji tours". Illawarra Daily Mercury. Wollongong. 9 July 1953. p.12, col. 5. Retrieved 13 April 2018.
- "Roff keen to tackle NZ side". The Canberra Times. 22 July 1994. p. 28. Retrieved 13 April 2018.
- "Junior Wallabies maintain unbeaten record". The Canberra Times. 22 January 1982. p. 18. Retrieved 13 April 2018.
- "Schoolboys still dominant". The Canberra Times. 28 January 1982. p. 26. Retrieved 13 April 2018.
- Tucker, Jim (7 May 2016). "Goalkicker Mack Mason proves hero as junior Wallabies become history-makers in beating All Blacks". The Courier-Mail. Archived from the original on 7 May 2017. Retrieved 13 April 2018.
- "Sport: Samoa expecting full-strength Australia in U20 opener". Radio New Zealand. 2 June 2015. Archived from the original on 6 February 2018. Retrieved 13 April 2018.
- "Australia announce strong U20s squad". ESPN. 6 May 2008. Archived from the original on 7 May 2017. Retrieved 7 May 2017.
{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link) - "Annual Report 2009" (PDF). Australian Rugby Union. pp. 40–41. Archived from the original (PDF) on 21 March 2012. Retrieved 7 May 2017.
- "Trans-Tasman rivals set for final showdown". ESPN. 20 June 2010. Archived from the original on 7 May 2017. Retrieved 7 May 2017.
- "Australian U20s coach announced". Australian Broadcasting Corporation. 15 February 2013. Archived from the original on 7 May 2017. Retrieved 7 May 2017.
- "Simon Cron, who led Northern Suburbs to Shute Shield win, named Australian U-20s coach". The Daily Telegraph. 9 November 2016. Archived from the original on 7 May 2017. Retrieved 7 May 2017.
- "Jason Gilmore says Super Rugby experience with Reds will help him plot junior Wallabies revival". Fox Sports. 10 April 2018. Archived from the original on 11 April 2018. Retrieved 4 April 2017.
- Williamson, Nathan (18 June 2021). "Junior Wallabies name squad for Oceania Tournament". rugby.com.au. Archived from the original on 18 June 2021.