Southern Hemisphere rivals Argentina and Australia will lock horns in the 2019 IRB Under 20 Championship semi-finals on Monday the 17th of June.
Tournament hosts Argentina will take on a talented young Australian outfit in what should be a cracking semi-final. Both teams have been slightly inconsistent at the tournament and will need to put in a polished display here if they are to make the next weekend’s final.
Argentina v Australia
Monday 17 June
Racecourse Stadium
20:30
To Win (80 Mins)
Argentina 17/10
Draw 20/1
Australia 5/10
*Forecast Odds
Handicap
Argentina (+6.5) 17/20
Australia (-6.5) 17/20
*Forecast Handicap
Argentina
Los Pumitas pulled off a miraculous turn around last Wednesday with their bonus point 46-27 victory over the French, coupled with New Zealand’s inability to pick up a losing bonus point against South Africa, seeing the Argentines claim the best pool runners-up semi-final berth.
While the Argentines put in a great attacking performance against the French, there were still issues for them with their leaky defence and their ill-discipline allowing the French back into the contest early in the second half.
They will need to behave like angels against the Australians this Monday as the referees will be targeting them due to their poor disciplinary record.
Australia
Senior-level Australian rugby may be going through the wringer at the minute but the future looks rather bright for Australian rugby with their young guns enjoying a solid showing in this year’s Under 20 Championship.
While the Australians did suffer a heavy 56-31 defeat to England in their final pool phase fixture, there were mitigating factors with the Australians taking the English rather lightly and that they played most of the game with 14 men due to an early red card.
Prior to last week’s defeat, the Australians had been in great form beating Italy 36-12 and following that up with a 45-17 victory over a strong Irish outfit.
Verdict: Argentina (+6.5) 17/20 *Forecast handicap
Argentina are a very talented team and if they can improve their discipline then they should be able to give the Australians a real run for their money.
