Remembering the greatest age-grade clash of all time between New Zealand and England

Colin Newboult
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New Zealand and England went head-to-head in 2011 in the Junior World Championship final in what remains the greatest match in the tournament’s history.

The Baby Blacks had dominated the competition since its inception in 2008 but, for the first time, they were pushed all the way by a talented England outfit.

Some claimed immediately afterwards, given how competitive the match was, that this New Zealand squad were not quite as good as their predecessors.

That was, of course, complete rubbish as the match itself was of very high quality as the game went back and forth before New Zealand came out on top 33-22. Several of the individuals on both sides then went on to have incredible careers, with some being among the best of their generation.

Planet Rugby looks at the two sides and what became of the 44 players involved.

New Zealand

15 Beauden Barrett: One of those to make an indelible mark on the game, earning over a century of caps and being regarded as one of the best modern day playmakers.

14 Mitchell Scott: Never quite fulfilled his promise and has spent most of his career playing provincial rugby in New Zealand. Did have a brief stint with Western Force in Super Rugby but failed to truly make the step up.

13 Francis Saili: Not quite good enough for the All Blacks, despite earning two caps in 2013, but Saili has still had a fine career, firstly with the Blues before moving north to play for Munster, Harlequins, Biarritz and Racing 92.

12 Lima Sopoaga: A very talented playmaker who burst onto the scene with the Highlanders and was rewarded with All Blacks honours. Played back-up to Barrett for two years before moving to Europe where he has featured for Wasps and Lyon.

11 Charles Piutau: 17 New Zealand caps doesn’t do his talent justice, with Piutau forgoing his chance of putting on a black jersey by leaving after the 2015 World Cup. Impressed at Wasps for a season before further standout stints with Ulster and Bristol Bears. Has switched allegiance to Tonga and could feature for ‘Ikale Tahi at the 2023 World Cup.

10 Gareth Anscombe: The man who kept Barrett out of the fly-half jersey. Anscombe sparkled at U20 level, but it never quite happened for him in New Zealand after that. Moved to Cardiff in 2014, became Welsh-qualified and has appeared over 30 times for their national team.

9 TJ Perenara: Formed one of the best double acts with the legendary Aaron Smith for years and currently stands on 83 All Blacks caps. Has enjoyed an outstanding career for both club and country.

8 Luke Whitelock: Another talented member of the Whitelock clan, he captained this side superbly from number eight. Did make eight appearances for the national team but wasn’t quite deemed good enough by the coaches. Moved to Pau in 2019 and has remained there ever since, and will be joined by his brother, Sam, following the World Cup.

7 Sam Cane: The heir to the legendary Richie McCaw, he became the first choice openside after the great man retired. Hasn’t reached the heights of McCaw but that was always going to difficult. Cane has nevertheless enjoyed a distinguished career, despite injury issues over recent years, and is in the mix to take the number seven spot for the 2023 World Cup.

6 Brad Shields: A consistently excellent performer for the Hurricanes in Super Rugby, who many thought should have been selected for the All Blacks. With no call-up forthcoming, he moved to England and signed with Wasps. Having qualified for the Red Rose through his parents, Shields earned eight caps but failed to make the 2019 World Cup squad and now plays in France in Perpignan after Wasps’ demise.

5 Brodie Retallick: Will go down as one of the all-time great locks. Quickly rose to stardom, making his All Blacks debut just a year after this tournament had finished and has pretty much been first choice ever since. Has earned a century of caps and will be crucial to New Zealand’s chances of regaining the Webb Ellis Cup.

4 Steven Luatua: Established himself as an excellent blindside after playing second-row here. Became a stalwart at the Blues and also feature 15 times for the All Blacks, but he could never quite nail down his position and duly left for Bristol Bears in 2017, where he has played ever since.

3 Ben Tameifuna: Big Ben probably should have been an All Black at some point, but coaches had concerns over his fitness so he was never called up and duly declared for Tonga, making his debut in 2017. After leaving the Chiefs in 2015, Tameifuna has played in France for Racing 92 and Bordeaux-Begles.

2 Codie Taylor: Took a few years before the national coaches recognised his talents but finally received a call-up in 2015 and has been a mainstay of the squad since then. Has also been an excellent performer for the Crusaders in Super Rugby and has helped them to six titles.

1 Solomona Sakalia: Alongside Scott, the only other player in the starting XV not to ‘make it’. Has played plenty of provincial rugby with Bay of Plenty, Manawatu and Wellington, but did not feature at Super Rugby level.

Replacements: Three future internationals were on the bench in the form of Dominic Bird, Brad Weber and Waisake Naholo, while Carl Axtens carved out a good club career in France, spending four years at Toulouse. Elsewhere, Michael Kainga played for the Maori All Blacks and featured in the Hurricanes’ 2016 Super Rugby-winning squad, but has not been involved in professional rugby since 2017. Finally, Rhys Llewellyn and Sefo Setefano failed to make much impact in the game.

England

15 Ben Ransom: Never really cemented his place in the Saracens first team, despite spending six years at the Londoners. Then moved to London Irish for two years before retiring from professional rugby and pursuing a career in finance.

14 Andy Short: Appeared intermittently at first club Worcester Warriors before stints at Bristol and London Irish, but his career was plagued by injuries. Returned to Worcester in 2015 but retired in two years later with a recurring hip problem.

13 Elliot Daly: Standout for Wasps before he finally earned international recognition in 2016 and became a first team regular, helping England to the World Cup final in 2019. Has earned over a half-century of caps and could play a key role in the 2023 global tournament.

12 Owen Farrell: Was tipped to be involved in the 2011 World Cup squad after steering Saracens to the Premiership title but he was overlooked by Martin Johnson. Farrell has of course gone on to become a genuine England legend and remains one of their most important players.

11 Christian Wade: One-cap wonder who really should have had many more international appearances. Not selected because of his perceived weaknesses, instead of the qualities he brought. The most elusive runner for years in the northern hemisphere as he continually shone for Wasps. Had a three-year stint in American football attempting to break into the NFL before returning to rugby union and signing for Racing 92.

10 George Ford: Was just 18 when this tournament was played and became World Rugby Junior Player of the Year. Has since enjoyed an outstanding career, being the main man at Bath, Leicester Tigers and Sale Sharks, while he currently stands on 84 England caps. Could still play a big role for the national team over the next few years.

9 Chris Cook: Spent 11 years at Bath and played plenty of games at his hometown club, despite never truly nailing down the number nine shirt. After that, he spent time with Bristol Bears and Northampton Saints before signing for Zebre Parma, where he spent the 2022/23 campaign.

8 Alex Gray: Like Whitelock, Gray captained the team from number eight and big things were expected from him, but he never really broke through. Stints with Newcastle Falcons, London Irish and Yorkshire Carnegie ultimately proved to be unsuccessful and he turned his attentions to American football. Signed with Atlanta Falcons in the NFL but never featured in a game and briefly moved back to rugby. The 32-year-old has recently joined the TV series Gladiators after leaving the sport.

7 Matt Kvesic: A standout performer at Premiership level for several years but that never translated to England caps. He made four appearances for the national team between 2013 and 2019, with his last coming against Italy in a World Cup warm-up. Has played for Worcester Warriors (twice), Gloucester, Exeter and Zebre Parma, and recently signed for Coventry in England’s second tier.

6 Sam Jones: Highly talented player who appeared set to have a distinguished international career before he became a victim of England’s infamous judo sessions under Eddie Jones in September. Jones suffered multiple leg injuries as a result of an incident at a training camp and it sadly led to his retirement in March 2018. Now manages a restaurant in London.

5 Charlie Matthews: Quality club player who has been a stalwart at Harlequins. Left in 2018 to join Wasps and also had a stint at Japanese club Kamaishi Seawaves, but returned to the Londoners in 2022.

4 Joe Launchbury: The lock was a relatively late bloomer having been released by Harlequins’ academy at the age of 18. Wasps soon picked him up and the second-row made remarkable progress, starring during this Junior World Championship campaign and becoming a full international a year later in November 2012. Injuries have hampered him over recent years and the Red Rose have missed his physical presence and technical excellence.

3 Henry Thomas: Plenty was expected of the tighthead, especially when he was a regular in the Sale Sharks side by the age of 20 and earned his first caps in 2013, but he failed to push on after that. Injuries were a constant problem after Thomas joined Bath in 2014, but his move to Montpellier in 2021 has been good for him. Eligible for Wales following the change in World Rugby’s laws and has duly been named in Warren Gatland’s wider training squad for the World Cup.

2 Mikey Haywood: Never quite good enough for international rugby but a loyal servant to Northampton Saints, where he remained throughout his professional career until his recent retirement. Made over 250 appearances for the Saints before he left at the end of the 2022/23 season to take up a position at St Joseph’s College in Ipswich.

1 Mako Vunipola: Has enjoyed an outstanding career at the top level. Moved from Bristol to Saracens after this 2011 Junior World Championship and immediately impressed, earning his first England cap a year. A regular for the Red Rose and a three-time British and Irish Lions tourist, Vunipola is another success story from this incredible clash.

Replacements: Scrum-half Dan Robson and wing Marland Yarde both earned England caps, although perhaps should have played more for their country given their talent. Prop Will Collier has also earned international honours and has been a cornerstone of the Harlequins pack for over a decade. Rob Buchanan equally featured prominently for Quins before his retirement, but Sam Twomey less so as the lock left the game in 2019 to work in business. Elsewhere, the talented Ryan Mills has enjoyed a fine, if slightly injury-plagued, career and was most recently at Premiership runners up Sale Sharks, while Matt Everard left Championship club Nottingham in 2017 to focus on coaching. He had five years at Wasps before joining Leicester Tigers in 2022.

READ MORE: Opinion: We pick England’s likely 33-player squad for the Rugby World Cup

England Beauden Barrett Brodie Retallick Owen Farrell

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