France v New Zealand under-20s, the headline act of day two of the World Rugby U20 Championship in South Africa, will see the defending champions France go up against the most successful team in the tournament's history.
The game kicks off at 12.30pm UK time on Thursday, June 29.
The men in blue are winners of the two most recent U20 championships in 2018 and 2019, and currently lead Pool A following a commanding 75-12 win against Japan on Saturday. Les Bleuets are ahead of New Zealand on points difference alone, though, after they emerged with all five match points despite being pushed all the way in their opener by Wales before winning 27-26.
Watch the France v New Zealand World Rugby YouTube live stream below:
France coach Sébastien Calvet has made four changes to his starting line-up which beat Japan, as prop Zaccharie Affane, second-row Posolo Tuilagi, flanker Oscar Jegou and winger Théo Attissogbe come in. Calvet has also opted for a six-two split on the replacements’ bench, a decision he feels has been vindicated by the fact that rain is predicted in Paarl on Thursday.
“New Zealand are a team we need to press, especially on the basics. This was obvious before the weather forecast, which confirmed our choice,” he said ahead of the match, which kicks off at 1.30pm local time in South Africa. “The squad includes sevens players, notably [replacement Andy] Timo, a back-row player who can more than fill in as a three-quarter wing.”
Meanwhile, New Zealand have made three personnel changes for Thursday’s crucial match, as Tom Allen, Malachi Wrampling and Leo Gordon are handed starts. Peter Lakai, meanwhile, switches from number eight to openside flanker.
Despite New Zealand’s struggles against Wales, Calvet is under no illusions about the size of the task facing France at the Paarl Gymnasium Stadium.
“We know full well that this is a team that knows how to bounce back from rather average performances,” Calvet added. “We're expecting a very big game.”
