The U18s Men’s Rugby Europe Championship is in full flight, with the likes of Georgia, Spain, Czechia and the Netherlands earning a win in their opening matches and qualifying for the Championship semi-finals.
Despite losing in the tournament’s opening round, Poland, Belgium, Portugal and Germany still have much to play for and will face each other in the ranking semifinals.
Lelos remain unbeatable
The U18 Lelos kicked off their title-retention campaign with an incontestable 64-07 win against Poland, spelling dominance throughout the 80 minutes.
It took five minutes for the U18s champions to secure their first try, scored by rapid flanker Giorgi Zazadze.
Three minutes later, it was Luka Tchauka’s turn, with the fullback sprinting his way through the Polish defence to dot down his team’s second.
Until the break, the young Lelos added four more tries to their end, with Zazadze and Luka Tabatadze earning a brace each.
The Georgian staff made five changes, but that didn’t slow the champions down, as they extended their lead with two more five-pointers.
Despite the heavy loss, Poland experienced their best moment of form between the 50 and 60-minute mark, in which they bagged their only try from centre Marcel Marczewski.
Ticked off by that conceded try, the reigning champions went on a spree and collected an additional three tries before the final whistle.
Georgia will now collide with the home team, Czechia, for a chance to keep the title under their arm.
Netherlands break German hearts
If not for the Czechia-Portugal clash, Netherlands vs Germany would’ve been the game of the round, as the U18s Oranje scored a last-minute winning try when there was no time left on the clock.
The Dutch 18-16 win was built on Tim Boers' boot, as the fly half scored his team’s first six points, converting two successful penalty kicks.
Despite the Netherlands' strong start, Germany finally broke through the Dutch dam, giving Severin Zirbes the chance to bank his team’s first points. The fullback didn’t miss from the tee.
The U18s Schwarze Adler kept their foot on the gas pedal, and before the midway point of the first half, they scored their first try. Karl Kasper went over the line following a short-distance carry, giving his side the lead for the first time. Ben Sida added the extras.
As Zirbes slotted in an additional penalty kick, Germany went to the short rest, leading 13-6.
Unfortunately for the German side, their rivals didn’t give up and clawed their way back into the game, and it started following a try from Sjoerd Bakker. The towering lock ran a perfect line and brushed aside a couple of tacklers before nailing the ball on the ground. Boers locked in the conversion.
Germany would retake the lead before the 60-minute mark, again from a Severin Zirbes penalty kick conversion.
With both sides pushing as hard as they could, Germany was withing seconds of landing a remarkable win until Arno van Dijk decided to crash his rival’s party.
The replacement wing chased a cross-kick from Tim Boers, securing the ball before running unopposed to the in-goal area, making the several Dutch fans at the Marketa Stadium stands go wild.
The Netherlands has thus booked their spot in the Championship semifinals and is set to face Spain next Tuesday.
Try galore Leones secure 64 point win
Spain excelled in their opening U18 Championship match, claiming a 64-00 win against a Belgium side that tried their best to fend off the 2024 runners-up.
The Spanish quickly built a hefty lead before the break, scoring five unanswered tries. Hooker Martí Homar collected two, with Oriol Marsinyac, Guzmán Vinuesa and Ignacio Moreno getting one each.
Belgium tried to mount a resilient defence, but the Spanish precise and relentless set-piece was too much for the U18s Diables Noirs to handle.
While the win was already in the bag, the young Leones kept the pressure on and eventually banked five more tries. Marsinyac and Moreno, both with braces, and Unax Salvador, Alfonso Enciso and Lucas Martín were the second-half try scorers.
With five conversions from Enciso and two from Vinuesa, Spain earned one of their biggest wins in the last six years. The title contenders will now clash with the Netherlands for a chance to qualify for the Championship final.
Czechia earns another triumphant win over Portugal
Like last year, Czechia took down Portugal, with hosts claiming a 29-26 victory, showing that last year’s result wasn’t an exception.
The Portuguese side were in the lead seven minutes into the game, following a well-taken penalty kick from António Meneres.
Czechia gathered the ball from the restart and, in quick succession, found their way into the opposition’s in-goal area. Flanker Viktor Vodicka dotted down, and Markos Michopulos added the conversion.
Until the break, Portugal regained momentarily the lead from a try scored by hooker Thomas Cardoso, but wing Tobiáš Muller capitalised on a sensational team play to give Czechia a 2-point advantage at halftime.
While there were almost no key opportunities in the second-half’s first quarter, the final twenty minutes were packed with tries and points. Portugal, down to 14 men, went first following a try scored by João Andrade and a conversion by Martim Almeida.
The locals secured another try, this time around from blindside flanker Václav Bartousek.
Almeida successfully slotted in another penalty kick, but the Portuguese indiscipline gave Czechia a chance to reach the try area yet again. After several attempts, Jakub Bednar fended off a couple of Portuguese tacklers before outpacing everyone else to put his team ahead. Michopulos punted the conversion over with Czechia leading 26-23.
The U18s Lobos still levelled up things with two minutes to go until full-time, but one minute later, Michopulos wore the hero’s cape and secured the winning three points to ensue celebrations on his side.
For the second time in just one year, Czechia beat Portugal and will now face Georgia.
By Francisco Isaac
Photos by Martin Flousek
