Junior Blacks to raise the bar
Tue, 17 Jun 2008 19:35
The New Zealand Under-20 team is expected to up their game another level as they move into semifinal mode and take on Wales on home turf.
New Zealand U20 co-coaches Dave Rennie and Russell Hilton-Jones have named the side to play Wales in the semifinals of the International Rugby Board (IRB) Junior World Championship in Newport on Wednesday.
New Zealand advanced to the play-offs after beating Tonga 48-9, Ireland 65-10 and Argentina 60-0 in the pool stages, while Wales beat Italy, Japan and France to qualify for a semifinal spot.
Hilton-Jones said it was important that the team remained focused.
"At this stage of the competition the team has achieved good results. However, as we move into semifinal mode we need to ensure that we take all aspects of our game to another level."
Meanwhile, Michael Harris has returned to New Zealand after suffering a knee injury in the team's match against Tonga in Wales.
Harris received extensive medical care last week, but the injury did not respond to treatment. The North Harbour flyhalf has been replaced by Manawatu's Kurt Baker.
New Zealand: 15 Trent Renata, 14 Zac Guildford, 13 Kade Poki, 12 Ryan Crotty, 11 Sean Maitland, 10 Daniel Kirkpatrick, 9 Aaron Smith, 8 Nasi Manu, 7 Luke Braid, 6 Mathew Luamanu, 5 Sam Whitelock, 4 Chris Smith (captain), 3 Ben Afeaki, 2 Quentin MacDonald, 1 Paea Fa'anunu.
Replacements: 16 Ash Dixon, 17 Toby Smith, 18 Josh Townsend, 19 Peter Saili, 20 Grayson Hart, 21 Jackson Willison, 22 Andre Taylor.
Date: Wednesday, June 18
Venue: Rodney Parade, Newport
Kick-off: 19.00 (18.00 GMT)
Referee: Romain Poite (France)
Touch judges: Phillip Bosch (South Africa), Robin Goodliffe (England)
Television match official: Andrew Small (England)
