Australia national under-20 rugby union team
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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 | 14 (First in 2008) | |
| Best result | Runners-up (2010, 2019) | |
Logo 2008–2017
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
Summarize
Perspective
Summary for all competitive test matches up to and including the 2024 season:
- As of 19 July 2024.
| Opponent | Pld | W | D | L | W% | PF | PA | Diff. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Argentina |
8 | 3 | 0 | 5 | 37.5% | 162 | 145 | +17 |
 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 |
 Georgia |
1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 100% | 35 | 11 | +24 |
 Ireland |
4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 50% | 98 | 84 | +14 |
 Italy |
7 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 85.71% | 232 | 91 | +141 |
 Japan |
3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 100% | 165 | 64 | +101 |
 New Zealand |
17 | 4 | 0 | 13 | 23.53% | 348 | 597 | –249 |
 Samoa |
6 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 100% | 228 | 94 | +134 |
 Scotland |
6 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 66.67% | 218 | 104 | +114 |
 South Africa |
4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 50% | 84 | 132 | –48 |
 Tonga |
4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 100% | 252 | 25 | +227 |
 Wales |
6 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 83.33% | 204 | 133 | +71 |
| Total | 91 | 54 | 1 | 36 | 59.34% | 2,788 | 1,991 | +797 |
World Rugby U20 Championship record
| World Rugby U20 Championship record | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Round | Pld | W | D | L | PF | PA | ||
| 2008 |
Fifth place | 5 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 221 | 68 | ||
| 2009 |
Fourth place | 5 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 186 | 74 | ||
| 2010 |
Runners-up | 5 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 239 | 131 | ||
| 2011 |
Third place | 5 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 166 | 117 | ||
| 2012 |
Eighth place | 5 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 107 | 94 | ||
 2013 |
Seventh place | 5 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 114 | 84 | ||
| 2014 |
Fifth place | 5 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 176 | 101 | ||
| 2015 |
Fifth place | 5 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 136 | 110 | ||
| 2016 |
Sixth place | 5 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 120 | 116 | ||
| 2017 |
Sixth place | 5 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 135 | 106 | ||
| 2018 |
Fifth place | 5 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 178 | 103 | ||
| 2019 |
Runners-up | 5 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 171 | 122 | ||
| 2023 |
Fifth place | 5 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 179 | 157 | ||
| 2024[a] |
Sixth place | 4[a] | 2 | 0 | 2 | 89 | 71 | ||
 2025 |
To be determined. | ||||||||
| Total | Runners-up (2) | 69 | 41 | 1 | 27 | 2,217 | 1,454 | ||
U20 Rugby Championship record
| U20 Rugby Championship record | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Round | Pld | W | D | L | PF | PA | ||
 2024 |
Fourth place | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 55 | 80 | ||
| 2025 |
To be determined. | ||||||||
| Total | Fourth place (1) | 3 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 55 | 80 | ||
Oceania Rugby U20 Championship record
Head coaches
- 2008: Brian Melrose[21]
- 2009–2012: David Nucifora[22][23]
- 2013–2016: Adrian Thompson[24]
- 2017: Simon Cron[25]
- 2018–2019: Jason Gilmore[26]
- 2020–present: Nathan Grey[27]
Honours
- Oceania Junior Championship
- Winners (1): 2019
- Runners-up (4): 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018
Award winners
The following Australia U20s players have been recognised at the World Rugby Awards since 2008:[28]
| Year | Nominees | Winners |
|---|---|---|
| 2009 | Richard Kingi | — |
| 2010 | Robbie Coleman | |
| 2015 | Jonah Placid | |
| 2019 | Fraser McReight | |
See also
Notes
- In the pool stage of the 2024 World Rugby U20 Championship, Australia's scheduled fixture against Ireland was cancelled due to weather conditions, rendering the pitch unplayable and unsafe.[19][20] Each team was awarded two points.[20] Thus Australia did not play the expected three pool stage matches followed-up by two knockout stage matches. Rather, Australia played two pool stage matches and two knockout stage matches, or four in total.
References
External links
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