• 7 Auckland players selected in NZ U20 squad
• Caleb Clarke returns for the second year in a row

Auckland makes up a quarter of the 28 strong squad that will travel to France later this month to defend the title they won so convincingly last year.

Caleb Clarke returns to the side for 2018 and is joined by Auckland cohorts John Akau’ola-Laula, Rob Cobb, Waimana Riedlinger-Kapa, Hoskins Sotutu, Harry Plummer and Tanielu Tele’a. Camron Suafoa wasn’t considered due to injury.

Auckland Rugby’s Head of High Performance, Ben Meyer, is pleased to have such a large number of hardworking, dedicated Auckland representatives in the squad.

“These boys have worked extremely hard since leaving school in the High Performance Academy to put themselves in this position. It’s a tribute to their dedication and hard work, a lot of which goes unseen, that they will now have an opportunity to represent their country at a World Championship.”

The Auckland contingent will be looking to continue their success in tournaments, having claimed the Jock Hobbs Memorial National Under 19 Tournament title in 2017.

After claiming the title of the best team in Oceania, the New Zealand Under 20 side will be looking to claim the world title for the second year running.

Head Coach Craig Philpott took note of the tough job selectors had in whittling the squad to just 28.

“We have been impressed with the quality of players that have been with us throughout our camps and at the Oceania Championships which meant it wasn’t easy to narrow this group down.”

While the talent in the squad is undeniable, there is also a large amount of experience within the group that Philpott can draw upon. 12 of the players have competed at Mitre 10 Cup level and all but one of the squad have completed an Oceania Championship campaign.

New Zealand is set to face Japan, Wales and Australia in a tough pool play assignment.

“Our focus will be very much on nailing our processes game by game and expecting the unexpected.

“Against Fiji at Oceania, we had to play 60 minutes with 14 men and that was a good test of our systems and mindset."

NZ U20 squad:

New Zealand Under 20 schedule (matches will be broadcast live on TVNZ Duke & streamed live on tvnz.co.nz)
 

New Zealand v Japan
Thursday 31 May
7am (NZT)

New Zealand v Wales
Monday 4 June
2.30am (NZT)

New Zealand v Australia
Friday 8 June
7am (NZT)