Wales Under 20 have been drawn in the same pool as reigning champions New Zealand, Australia and Japan for the 2018 Junior World Championships.
World Rugby announced this week the event will be staged in France, venue for the 2023 World Cup, with matches being played in Béziers, Perpignan and Narbonne. The five match days will take place on 30 May, 3 June, 7 June, 12 June and 17 June.
The tournament features three pools of four teams, with the pool winners and the best runner-up progressing to the semi-finals. The pools are as follows:
Pool A: New Zealand, Australia, Wales and Japan
Pool B: England, Scotland, Italy and Argentina
Pool C: South Africa, France, Ireland and Georgia
Pool matches will be played Stade Aimé Giral in Perpignan, Stade de la Méditerranée in Béziers and the Stade d’Honneur du Parc des Sports et de l’Amitié in Narbonne. The semi-final and final venues will be announced in due course.
“The World Rugby U20 Championship is a proven finishing school for aspiring international players, with some of the biggest names in the game having graduated amongst a group of more than 550 internationals, including double World Rugby Men’s 15s Player of the Year Beauden Barrett,” said World Rugby Chairman Bill Beaumont..
“Following the success of Georgia, which broke all social media records, we are delighted to be heading to France and the rugby cities of Narbonne, Béziers and Perpignan. I am sure that the championship will capture the imagination and it will be fascinating to see who graduates to Rugby World Cup 2019 in Japan.”
The Baby Blacks won the title for the sixth time in 10 tournaments since the event was first hosed by Wales in 2008. The last time France staged the event, in 2013, Wales reached the final before going down 23-15 to England.
Sam Davies was named as the World Rugby Junior Player of the Year after the tournament and is one of five players from that team who have gone on to win senior honours. Dragons hooker Elliott Dee was the latest graduate during the 2017 Under Armour Series joining the 2013 skipper, Cardiff Blues back row man Ellis Jenkins, Dragons wing Hallam Amos and current Bristol scrum half Rhodri Williams.
Wales finished seventh in Georgia this year, with Australia sixth and Japan qualifying as winners of the World Rugby Under 20 Trophy competition.