England, featuring Ipswich-born duo Lewis Ludlam and Will Owen will defend their title against New Zealand in the final of the World Rugby U20 Championship on Saturday, having overcome South Africa 28-20 on Monday.

Head Coach Jon Callard said: “I am so proud of the boys and how they played, particularly up front. The South Africans are very big and physical and we more than matched them – not just for size and heart, but for speed of thought and game management. The way we disrupted the line out and scrum was also very impressive. I would consider this evening a proper game of test football!

“The players deserve credit for the way they responded after the France game. Everyone knuckled down and realised that if we stick to the processes and do the basics well, we will be a successful side and today we showed that. We now have the opportunity to continue the journey of developing as individuals and a team as we look forward to next Saturday.”

Owen is a former Framlingham College pupil who played for Diss as a youngster, while Ludlam was a St Joseph’s College pupil who also represented Colchester.

They now play professionally with Leicester Tigers and Northampton Saints respectively.