New Zealand Under 20 team named for World Championship final

New Zealand Under 20 team named for World Championship final

Blues first-five-eighth Stephen Perofeta has been named in the New Zealand team for the final of the World Rugby Under 20 World Championship after Tiaan Falcon was ruled out of the match due to concussion.

The New Zealand Under 20 team plays England in the final at 2.00am NZT tomorrow, Monday 19 June.

The team is:

1.	Ezekiel Lindenmuth	Auckland
2.	Asafo Aumua	Wellington
3.	Pouri Rakete-Stones	Hawke’s Bay
4.	Isaia Walker-Leawere	Wellington
5.	Samuel Slade	Auckland
6.	Luke Jacobson (C)	Waikato
7.	Dalton Papali’i	Auckland
8.	Marino Mikaele-Tuu	Hawke’s Bay
9.	Ereatara Enari (VC)	Canterbury
10.	Stephen Perofeta	Auckland
11.	Caleb Clarke	Auckland
12.	Orbyn Leger	Counties Manukau
13.	Braydon Ennor	Canterbury
14.	Tima Faingaanuku	Tasman
15.	Will Jordan	Tasman

16.	JP Sauni	Auckland
17.	Harrison Allan	Canterbury
18.	Alex Fidow	Wellington
19.	Sam Caird	Waikato
20.	Tom Christie	Canterbury
21.	Kemara Hauiti-Parapara	Wellington
22.	Tamati Tua	Northland
23.	Josh McKay	Canterbury

Starting first-five-eighth Falcon sustained a concussion in the sides semi-final win over France. A star of the tournament, Falcon and team mate Will Jordan have been nominated for the World Rugby Player of the Tournament award with online voting here http://rug.by/U20PlayerOfTheTournament

Perofeta, who played in the Blues recent victory over the British and Irish Lions, joined the squad in Georgia on Friday. Alex Mitchell from Taranaki has also joined the squad as a replacement for Ryan Coxon at prop.

Head Coach Craig Philpott said the team was looking forward to the final.

“Our young men are excited to add to the legacy of the Black Jersey and perform well in the World Cup Final.”

“Unfortunately, we have had to rule Tiaan out of the final due to concussion which was really disappointing for both him and our whole squad. Luckily we have an awesome replacement in Stephen who played for the Under 20s last year and brings a wealth of experience.

“The forwards selected have been rewarded for their consistent performances. Our scrum and lineout has been operating at close to 100 percent during the tournament so we need to reproduce that in the final.”

Information on World Rugby Under 20 World Championships
http://www.worldrugby.org/u20/

Watch the Under 20 final live on SKY Sport (NZT)
Monday 19 June coverage from 2.00am on SKY Sport Pop-Up 55