Ireland U20s 3 – 19 England U20s: Player Ratings for England U20s after first round win
Today at 04:58 AM
By George Wellbelove
England U20s started their Six Nations title defence with a clunky win over Ireland U20s in windy and tricky conditions.
The stage was set at the Virgin Media Park in Cork with England coming in with big targets on their backs as winners of the Six Nations and the U20 World Cup.
The match was defined by a continual change of possession in which both sides could not get a foothold in attack.
England started the brighter with Ben Coen kicking well off the tee all evening. However, Junior Kpoku received a red card for a high tackle, which started a run of poor discipline for both teams.
England captain Tom Burrow and Ireland replacement Oisin Minogue both spent time in the sin bin during the match but neither side were able to capitalise during these moments.
The defining score came through a penalty try as Ireland were adjudged to have brought a driving maul down close to their line.
Following this, a nervy period of defence ensued for England but a lovely try-stopping double tackle from Kane James and Josh Bellamy ensured England would start their 2025 U20 Six Nations with a bang.
Read below to see our England U20 player ratings.
IRELAND U20s: 3
Tries: 0
Conversions: 0
Penalties: 1 (Wisniewski 30′)
Drop Goals: 0
Yellow Cards: 1 (Minogue 67′)
Red Cards: 0
Starting XV: 15. Charlie Moloney 14. Derry Moloney 13. Connor Fahy 12. Eoghan Smyth 11. Ciaran Mangan 10. Sam Wisniewski 9. Clark Logan; 1. Alex Usanov 2. Henry Walker 3. Alex Mullan 4. Mahon Ronan 5. Billy Corrigan 6. Michael Foy 7. Bobby Power 8. Eanna McCarthy
Replacements: 16. Connor Magee 17. Billy Bohan 18. Tom McAllister 19. David Walsh 20. Oisin Minogue 21. Andrew Doyle 22. Gene O’Leary Kareem 23. Daniel Green
England U20s: 19
Tries: 1 (Penalty 67′)
Conversions: 0
Penalties: 4 (Coen 12′, 28′, 34′, 79′
Drop Goals: 0
Yellow Cards: 1 (Burrow 25′)
Red Cards: 1 (Kpoku 16′)
Starting XV: 15. Jack Kinder, 14. Jack Bracken 13. Angus Hall 12. Nic Allison 11. Charlie Griffin 10. Ben Coen 9. Archie McParland; 1. Ralph McEachran 2. Kepu Tuipulotu 3. Vilikesa Sela 4. Olamide Sodeke 5. Tom Burrow (c) 6. Junior Kpoku 7. Henry Pollock 8. Kane James
Replacements: 16. Louie Gulley, 17. Oliver Scola, 18. Tye Raymont 19. Aiden Ainsworth-Cave 20. George Timmins 21. Lucas Friday 22. Josh Bellamy 23. Nick Lilley
ENGLAND U20s PLAYER RATINGS
15. Jack Kinder – 6
Did well at the back of the field to shut down Ireland’s kicking threat. Was often in the right positions at the right time but did have a few nervy moments under the high ball. Lovely try saving tackle to stop Foy from scoring in the 70th minute.
14. Jack Bracken – 5
It was a weird sort of match for Bracken. The speedster did not receive much ball as a result of England’s clunky attack. He was mainly called into action in defence and helped his side out as much as he could. Solid showing.
13. Angus Hall – 5.5
The centre partnership did not particularly generate any attacking flow or movement. It was a tough night for Hall, who was playing for the U20s for the seventh time. England’s attack was substandard all match and Hall will be looking to improve in round two.
12. Nic Allison – 6
Similar to Hall, Allison could not get the ball out wide. Whether that was due to the weather or Ireland’s defensive line speed, it needs to be worked on as other teams, such as France, will not leave as many points on the pitch like Ireland did tonight.
11. Charlie Griffin – 6
Did not receive much ball much like his back three counterparts. It was the story of the match that England would try and attack before making an error and handing the ball straight back to France. All being said however, he was able to keep Ireland tryless so well done.
10. Ben Coen – 7
His boot won the game for England and he should be proud of his kicking performance. A wide variety of kicks were able to keep Ireland pinned back at times in the match. Perhaps needs a bit more presence as a 10 but that should come as the tournament progresses.
9. Archie McParland – 5
The Northampton Saint was replaced midway through the first half. It was unclear whether he was injured or not but Lucas Friday came on to be his replacement. McParland performed decently in his twenty minutes but was caught out after being too slow to release the ball shortly before coming off.
1. Ralph McEachran – 5.5
Menace at scrum time and that was pretty much all there was to it. Quiet game and will be hoping for more of an impact next time.
2. Kepu Tuipulotu – 7
England’s best player on the night behind James. His workrate was second to none and he played more like a backrower, which is testament to his resilience and workhorse attitude. It will be interesting to see him kick on and be afforded more opportunities in the future. One to watch.
3. Vilikesa Sela – 6
A huge prospect and he performed his job well. Caused Ireland problems in the scrum but was also caught out a couple times for pre-engaging too early. Was victim of trying a quick lineout with Tuipulotu but the ball did not go 5 metres.
4. Olamide Sodeke – 5
Went missing throughout some parts of the game but contributed in defence. Perhaps outshadowed by some of his forwards colleagues but did not put a foot wrong.
5. Tom Burrow (c) – 6
Debut and captain for England U20s. He did reasonably well considering the occasion and the expectation he had on his shoulders. George Kruis-esque and should be seen more in the Premiership over the coming seasons.
6. Junior Kpoku – 3
Sent off in the 15th minute for a high tackle. He cannot complain about the outcome as it was a head high hit from Kpoku’s shoulder with zero mitigation. Luckily, the new World Rugby laws surrounding the 20 minute red card are in play.
7. Henry Pollock – 6
The all action flanker had a fairly quiet first half but was able to secure a key turnover with Ireland piling on the pressure at the end of the first half. A few trademark runs but the lively backrower did not bring anything substantial to the match. All in all, a decent performance.
8. Kane James – 8
18 tackles, 7 carries, 42 metres made. Given man of the match and rightly deserved. James was exceptional in a largely defensive performance for England. Whilst the attack did not go as planned, England’s defence was highlighted with big tackles and good cleanout work around the ruck and James was at the forefront of that.
Replacements – 6
A largely inexperienced bench for England on the night. This was shown by the amount of substitiutions that were made in the last ten minutes but credit to the replacements, they were able to see the game out. Lucas Friday played for the majority of the match in the difficult conditions and was able to inject some fast-ball into the game. A couple errors however did cause his side some problems but ultimately, England finished as victors so a job done.
The post Ireland U20s 3 – 19 England U20s: Player Ratings for England U20s after first round win appeared first on Ruck.
