Junior SARU Competitions

12/02/2024 - World Rugby U20 Championship Continues To Provide Test Pathway - Following the announcement that the World Rugby U20 Championship will return to South Africa in 2024, we take a look at the players who featured in last year’s tournament there and have since graduated to the test arena. More than 950 players have used the World Rugby U20 Championship as a springboard to the 

10/02/2024 - Junior Springboks Training Camp Off To Flying Start - The SA Rugby Academy finished their first week of squad preparation in Stellenbosch with a workout session against the University of the Western Cape (UWC), which left the Junior Springbok head coach Bafana Nhleko a pleased man. Although the young men will take a break from field training over the weekend, they will 

07/02/2024 - World Rugby U20 Championship 2024 Return To Western Cape - The 12 best Under-20 sides in the world will return to South Africa in June after World Rugby announced on Wednesday that the World Rugby U20 Championship will again be hosted in the Western Cape. The World Rugby U20 Championship 2024 will be played over five match days in Stellenbosch and Cape 

01/02/2024 - Academy Squad Named For Stellenbosch Camp - Four capped Junior Springboks are amongst a group of 35 players who will attend this year’s SA Rugby Academy Programme to continue preparations for the international season, which includes the inaugural Under-20 Rugby Championship in Australia and the World Rugby U20 Championship in South Africa. The talented group of rugby 

31/01/2024 - Academy Programme Continues With Two Camps - A big combined group of more than 50 Under-20 players attended the first two alignment camps of 2024 in Stellenbosch and Pretoria as part of the preparation plans for the SA Rugby Academy and the Elite Player Development 3 programmes. These camp activities and proposed friendly matches against local senior provincial 

14/12/2023 - Top Juniors Invited To 2024 Alignment Camps - Two groups of 23 players have been invited to attend Under-20 alignment camps in Stellenbosch and Pretoria in January to kickstart the preparations for the SA Rugby Academy and Junior Springbok season. The first camp, which includes Vodacom Bulls, Toyota Cheetahs, Sharks, and DHL Western Province players, 

09/10/2023 - Top u/19s Invited To Assessment Camps In Stellenbosch - The South African government missed the deadline to update its anti-doping act to comply with the latest WADA code. The revised code, which came into effect in January 2021, was agreed upon and accepted by more than 700 sporting federations across the globe. The Springboks might not be able to participate 

04/10/2023 - Future Bright Despite Mixed Bag Against Zimbabwe u/20s - There were some lapses in concentration and poor play in their victory over the Zimbabwean Under-20s in East London on Tuesday, but Junior Springbok Women head coach Laurian Johannes-Haupt was pleased with the overall effort by her squad and feels that a number of players showed good promise in this 

03/10/2023 - Junior Springbok Women Made To Sweat For Victory By Zimbabwe u/20 - The Junior Springbok Women were made to sweat for a hard-fought 29-10 victory over Zimbabwe’s Under-20s in East London on Tuesday, with the visitors refusing to lie down, especially in the second half of the match at Baysville High School. Playing with a strong wind in their backs, the hosts 

11/08/2023 - England u/18 Name Experienced Line-up For France u/18 - England returns to South Africa this summer looking to build upon successive victories this year’s U18 Six Nations Festival in Italy, with a host of fresh faces ready to stake their claim in Pendlebury’s plans. Try-scoring hooker and captain Kepueli Tuipulotu, who registered three touchdowns in this year’s U18 Six Nations

20/07/2023 - "We Are Looking Forward To Three Tough Games Against SANZAAR u/20s" - Bafana Nhleko - SA Rugby’s Director of Rugby Rassie Erasmus and Junior Springbok head coach Bafana Nhleko reacted enthusiastically to the announcement made earlier on Thursday by SANZAAR that a new U20 Rugby Championship will kick off in 2024. The Championship, which will be hosted in the 

20/07/2023 - SANZAAR Launch Exciting u/20 Rugby Championship - SANZAAR has announced that an Under 20 (U20) version of The Rugby Championship will kick off in 2024. The Championship will see up-and-coming stars of Argentina, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa rugby do battle on an annual basis. The Championship will allow for a more defined pathway for younger players into 

16/07/2023 - “There Is More Than One Aspect To The World Rugby u/20 Championship" - Bafana Nhleko - Nhleko said they will have time to review and reflect on the campaign, which he saw as a success: “There is more than one aspect to this tournament. We also want to develop this group as part of the bigger pathway for the Springboks and I am confident that we made good progress 

14/07/2023 - Junior Boks Secure Bronze At World Rugby u/20 Championship After Arm Wrestle Against England - The Junior Springboks were made to work extremely hard against a more physical England to secure a 22-15 win for the Bronze Medal on Friday at the World Rugby u/20 Championship. England dominated the early collisions and it was no surprise when they converted 

14/07/2023 - World Rugby u/20 Championship - Finals' Match Reports - Mastercard Player of the Match Dewi Passarella scored a hat-trick of tries as Italy beat Japan 45-27 to win the World Rugby U20 Championship 2023 11th-place play-off and secure their place in next year's tournament. Japan will now compete in the World Rugby U20 Trophy in 2024 after they again failed to capitalise 

13/07/2023 - “We Really Want To Beat England And Finish On A High" - Paul de Villiers - No team has played in more third-place playoffs than South Africa (nine) and this is the sixth tournament in a row that they have contested the bronze final. They have won eight and lost once only in those playoffs, with their only defeat at this stage of the tournament coming against Argentina (49-19) in 

12/07/2023 - Junior Boks Name Team For World Cup u/20 Championship 3rd Place Final Against England - Springbok loose forward Kwagga Smith on Tuesday spoke highly of the rivalry between the Springboks and All Blacks as they prepare to cross swords at Mount Smart Stadium in Auckland on Saturday in the Castle Lager Rugby Championship, and said it remains the ultimate test for 

11/07/2023 - "We Still Have A Lot To Play For" - Bafana Nhleko - The fact that they can still earn a podium position at the 2023 World Rugby U20 Championship by beating England in the bronze final on Friday will be a huge motivating factor for the Junior Springboks in the next couple of days as they prepare with the knowledge that some silverware can justify the hard work and effort of 

09/07/2023 - Junior Boks Lose Arm-Wrestle Against Ireland u/20 In World Rugby u/20 Championship - The Junior Springboks and Ireland u/20's were involved in a brutal arm wrestle on Sunday evening with Ireland securing their place in the World Cup u/20 Championship beating the Junior Boks 31-12 following a dominant second half. Despite the Junior Boks' dominance in the first quarter 

09/07/2023 - World Rugby u/21 Championship - Semi-final Match Reports - The ninth-place semi-finals got play underway on day four with Fiji claiming their first victory of the World Rugby U20 Championship 2023, 41-26 against Italy at Paarl Gymnasium. The win ensures that Fiji will be playing in the U20 Championship next year, but Italy now face another relegation battle on the final day to avoid 

09/07/2023 - "We Want To Be The Best Team We Can Be” - Paul de Villiers - The Junior Springboks are fully aware of what is at stake when they meet Ireland in the World Rugby U20 Championship semi-finals at Athlone Stadium in Cape Town on Sunday, but according to SA U20 captain Paul de Villiers, there are no external pressures on them to advance to the final next Friday. 

07/07/2023 - Junior Boks Unchanged For Semi-final Against Ireland u/20 - The Junior Springboks will face Ireland with an unchanged match-day squad in the first semi-final of the World Rugby U20 Championships at Athlone Stadium in Cape Town on Sunday afternoon. With no injury concerns following their hard-fought 24-16 victory over Argentina in their final Pool C match at the 

06/07/2023 - The Tough Route To World Rugby u/20 Championship Will Benefit Junior Boks - Junior Springbok head coach Bafana Nhleko said the tough route into the semi-finals of the World Rugby U20 Championship will benefit his squad going into Sunday's playoff encounter against Ireland. The Junior Springboks came back strongly in the second half of their Pool C match 

05/07/2023 - World Rugby u/20 Championship's Semi-final Fixtures And Venues Confirmed - Defending champions France will go into the World Rugby U20 Championship 2023 semi-finals as the top seeds after a 43-19 victory over Wales saw them top Pool A with the only perfect record in this year's competition in the Western Cape of South Africa. France's reward is a semi-final against England, 

04/07/2023 - Junior Boks Storm Into World Rugby u/20 Championship's Semi-final - The Junior Springboks secured their place in the semi-finals of the World Rugby U20 Championship with a superb second half performance by grinding out a 24-16 victory (half-time 7-16) over Argentina on a cold and windy night at Athlone Stadium in Cape Town.

04/07/2023 - World Rugby U20 Championship Day 3 - Results And Match Reports - Georgia is guaranteed their highest-ever finish in the World Rugby U20 Championship after confirming their place in the top eight with a bonus-point win. Three of their four tries were scored by hookers and a dominant performance by the forwards as a whole means they are now certain to avoid the relegation play

04/07/2023 - Bonus Point Win Will Take Junior Springboks Into World Rugby u/20 Championship Semi-finals - Junior Springbok captain Paul de Villiers is eagerly anticipating his team’s third and final, must-win Pool C clash against Argentina in the 2023 World Rugby Under-20 Championship at Athlone Stadium on Tuesday (kick-off 19h00). "We are well aware of what we need to do and that a 

02/07/2023 - Junior Boks Bulk Up For Vital Argentina u/20 Clash - Flyhalf Jean Smith, the Junior Springboks' leading scorer in their 2023 World Rugby Under-20 Championship campaign, will resume his role as the starting No 10 when South Africa takes on Argentina at Athlone Stadium in Cape Town on Tuesday.

30/06/2023 - Junior Boks Can Still Make The Semi-Finals At The World Rugby u/20 Championship - Junior Springbok Head Coach Bafana Nhleko and captain Paul de Villiers believe that the Junior Boks can bounce back from the defeat to Italy to qualify for the World Rugby U20 Championship semi-finals. The Junior Boks recorded their first loss of the campaign when they went down 34-26 to 

29/06/2023 - World Rugby U20 Championship Day 2 - Match Reports And Results - Wet conditions greeted the players in the Western Cape as the World Rugby U20 Championship resumed on Thursday with a series of key encounters. Australia, the 2019 U20 Championship finalists, and Ireland kicked off proceedings in Paarl and it was the current U20 Six Nations champions who prevailed 

29/06/2023 - Junior Springboks' Ill-Discipline Secured Italy u/20s Win - The Junior Springboks and Italy u/20 wrapped up the day's play in a wet Paarl on Thursday afternoon. The ill-discipline by the Junior Springboks was heavily penalised securing Italy a famous first 34-28 win in the World Championship over the Junior Springboks.

28/06/2023 - "We Are Expecting A Fierce Battle From Italy u/20” - Lumumba Currie - The Junior Springboks plan to deliver an energetic effort at Paarl Gymnasium on Thursday, where they will take on Italy in their second Pool C match of the 2023 World Rugby Under-20 Championship. Junior Boks' assistant coach, Lumumba Currie, was confident that the sell-out crowd will get good value for 

28/06/2029 - All To Play For In Round 2 Of u/20 Rugby World Championship - The meeting between defending champions France and New Zealand, the most successful team in World Rugby U20 Championship history, will headline the highly anticipated second day of this year’s tournament in South Africa. France, winners of the two most recent U20 Championships in 2018 and 2019, currently lead 

27/03/2023 - Five Uncapped Players Named In Junior Springboks Side To Meet Italy u/20 - "We needed some consistency in the spine and those guys will provide that. The five starting this week after coming off the bench against Georgia get some reward for the impact they had on the game once they got on the field, but again, rotation was always part of the plan." 

25/06/2023 - "There Were Good Moments And Some Not So Good Moments" - Coach Bafana Nhleko - There were good moments and some not-so-good moments for the Junior Springboks in their 33-23 win over Georgia on Saturday, but for head coach Bafana Nhleko, the victory was always non-negotiable and he was relieved that the team started their World Rugby

24/06/2023 - Junior Springboks Disappoint Against Georgia u/20 In World Rugby Championship u/20 Opener - The Junior Springboks disappointed with the quality of their play against an extremely physical Georgia u/18s in Stellenbosch on Saturday. Although the Junior Springboks won 33-23 they will have to get out of the first gear if they want to survive the pool 

24/06/2023 - u/20 World Cup - Day 1 Match Reports - After a three-year wait, the World Rugby U20 Championship finally made a return to the rugby calendar in Paarl and in Stellenbosch on Saturday when Argentina and Italy kicked off proceedings under a light blue sky.

23/06/2023 - Springbok u/20s Worked Hard To Be Best Prepared Team At World Rugby u/20 Championships - The unity in the Junior Springbok squad will take them a long way in the 2023 World Rugby U20 Championships that start on Saturday, apart from good preparation and clarity on what they want to achieve. Their tournament opener is against Georgia at the Danie 

23/06/2023 - Springbok u/20s Are Going To Need Experienced Players On Saturday - Nhleko hopes to give as many players as possible an opportunity to experience international rugby over the first two matches, but also had Georgia in mind in naming his match day squad: “We have seen them play and there are a couple of things we hope to do against them, but as important for us will be to 

22/06/2023 - Springbok u/20 Line-up Named For u/20 World Cup Opener Against Georgia u/20 - Junior Springbok captain Paul de Villiers is amongst a group of seven players that will represent the South African Under-20 team for a second year running after being named in the starting team to face Georgia in their World Rugby U20 Championship opener in Stellenbosch on Saturday.

22/06/2023 - u/20 World Rugby Championship Returns After Four-year Absence - The 12 captains gathered at Cape Town City Hall on Wednesday to officially launch the World Rugby U20 Championship 2023, which kicks off in South Africa on Saturday. The captains all got a closer look at the coveted trophy they will hope to hold aloft on 14 July during the official captains’ photo at Cape 

20/06/2023 - Mindset All Important For Junior Boks At World Rugby u/20 Championship - After two months of preparing in Stellenbosch, the Junior Springboks walked into a vibrant Southern Sun Newlands on Tuesday afternoon, with staff welcoming them with song and dance as the players checked into the team hotel, their home for the forthcoming World 

02/06/2023 - Springbok u/20 World Cup Squad Named - Paul de Villiers and Katlego Letebele will return for their second stint with the Junior Springboks, this time as captain and vice-captain of the South African squad to the World Rugby Under-20 Championship, which will kick off in Cape Town, Paarl and Stellenbosch later this month. The Junior Bok squad for the global showpiece – returning 

24/05/2023 - Future Stars Prepare For World Rugby u/20 Championship's Return In South Africa - The World Rugby U20 Championship 2023 kicks off a month from today on 24 June, when the global age-grade competition returns for the first time since 2019 before the pandemic, with rugby’s next generation of stars in action across the Western Cape in an event in which innovative

18/05/2023 - Junior Springbok Squad To Be Finalised Beginning Of June For u/20 World Cup - The SA Rugby Academy squad’s tour of Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal ended on Thursday as the bulk of the players returned to their respective homes for a short break before they shift gear as the World Rugby Under-20 Championship moves into view. The trip to Johannesburg and 

17/05/2023 - Smart Ball Set To Be Introduced At World Rugby U20 Championship - World Rugby is collaborating with Sportable and Gilbert to undertake the world’s first trial of smart ball technology in a live match officiating capacity at the World Rugby U20 Championship in South Africa in June. Celebrating 200 years of a sport that was born from innovation, World Rugby 

10/05/2023 - SA Rugby u/20 World Cup Squad To Sharpen Up On Tour - The travelling group of players and management leave Cape Town for Johannesburg on Thursday, and they will face the Lions on the same day. The squad then travel to KwaZulu-Natal, where they will go into a short training camp before facing the Cell C Sharks (17 May). Following the tour, the tight five will have a short 

06/05/2023 - Junior Bokkies Preparation For u/20 World Cup On Track - Junior Springbok coach Bafana Nhleko lauded the attitude and work-ethic of the players who are part of the SA Rugby Academy in Stellenbosch as the first block of the programme wrapped up with a training match against the Simbas from Kenya on Thursday morning. While Nhleko said the result of the match 

21/04/2023 - SA Rugby Surprise With Appointment Of Junior Bok Assistant Coach - The 38-year-old Currie, a World Rugby Level 3 accredited coach, has been in charge of the University of Fort Hare since 2014, with the crowning glory when they claimed the FNB Varsity Shield last year, and he was head coach at the Border Bulldogs the last few seasons while the union was under SA Rugby 

31/03/2023 - SA Rugby u/20 World Cup 2023 Programme Launched With 37 Players Named - A group of 41 players will attend this year’s SA Rugby Academy programme, which will also kick-start the Junior Springboks’ preparations for the World Rugby Under-20 Championship in South Africa later this year. While a total of 37 players will be in camp on a full-time basis, the four others will join 

11/03/2023 - SA Rugby u/20 Alignment Day Invited Surprised - The first SA Rugby u/20 Academy Alignment day will take place today in Johannesburg as Bafana Nthleko start his preparations for the 2023 national u/20 season. Rassie Erasmus said that “The Junior Springboks had a fantastic year last year under the leadership of Bafana, and they will soon get their preparations underway for 

12/02/2023 - Ireland u/20 And England u/20 Remained Unbeaten In The u/20 Six Nations Championship - Although England u/20 and Ireland u/20 were the unbeaten sides in the 2023 u/20 Six Nations championship it was once again Italy's u/20s that once again showed that they will be a force to be reckoned at the 2023 u/20 World Championship to be hosted in South Africa. For the South