Junior World Championships 2011 New Zeland Australia

Semi Final

22 June 2011

New Zealand’s bid for a fourth successive IRB Junior World Championship title remains on track after they beat their trans-Tasman rivals 37-7 in the second semi final at the Stadio Comunale di Monigo in Treviso on Wednesday. The final score may look convincing after New Zealand scored 37 unanswered points, but the match was in stark contrast to the 2010 final, with the Baby Blacks facing an altogether tougher and more competitive team to the one they beat 62-17 in Argentina. But it was another fly half stealing the show, just as George Ford had done for England in their semi final victory over France, with Gareth Anscombe scoring 22 points in New Zealand’s win.

The victory stretched New Zealand’s unbeaten run in the tournament to 19 matches and they will now face England on Sunday in a repeat of the 2008 and 2009 finals after Rob Hunter’s side earlier beat France 33-18. Chris Kuridrani, who arrived only on Sunday as an injury replacement, had given Australia a deserved 7-0 lead after a scoreless opening 10 minutes when David Nucifora’s charges frustrated their opponents and starved them of possession, resulting in the try. However, that only seemed to incense the Baby Blacks and midway through the first half Francis Saili broke through the resolute defence to draw the scores level, before Anscombe took his tournament points tally past the half-century mark with two penalties for a 13-7 lead at half time. Australia flanker Michael Hooper and centre Tom Kingston proved lively throughout the match but were punished by a New Zealand team looking for their fourth consecutive title and the Aussies will now play France in the third-place play-off. In the second half, New Zealand captain Luke Whitelock helped extend the defending champions’ lead as the number 8 bundled his way through three players before offloading to Charles Piutau for his fifth try of the tournament. Having scored braces against Italy and Wales, the wing drew level with England’s Christian Wade as the tournament’s leading try scorer on five, before Anscombe added the extras and a further penalty. The son of coach Mark Anscombe, the tournament’s leading points scorer then converted his own try after intercepting a wayward pass by his opposite number Ben Volavola and racing away to touch down. Replacement Brad Weber added a fourth New Zealand try at the end, the Baby Blacks' 34th of the tournament, to take them past their previous record of 33 at each of the previous Junior World Championships with one match – the final – remaining.