Oceania's best juniors on show
The best Under-20 talent will compete in a four-nation blockbuster tournament – as New Zealand, Samoa, Japan and host Australia come together to compete in the inaugural Oceania Junior Championship.
Getting underway this coming Friday, May 1, at Bond University, Gold Coast the tournament will provide a development opportunity for all teams' high performance players as well as a competition to compete for national pride.
The Championship will also provide teams an opportunity to finalise preparations for the World Rugby Under-20 Championship in Italy in June.
For Japan this is the first time they have sent an Under-20 team to a development competition in Australia.
Australian Rugby Union General Manager Pathways and Performance, Ben Whitaker was looking forward to the inaugural tournament.
"The Oceania Junior Rugby Championship is excellent opportunity for all countries to develop their up and coming players," Whitaker said.
"As host nation we also thank World Rugby and Oceania Rugby for their support in developing the competition.
"I know our Australian side is very much looking forward to the rigours of the competition and to testing themselves in match conditions before heading to the World Championship."
Oceania Rugby Tournament Director, Wayne Schuster promises an exciting championship.
"The Inaugural Oceania Rugby Junior Championship is an exciting prospect for Under-20 players in our region and will give fans the opportunity to see the next generation of players from the four respective nations," Schuster said.
"It's also very exciting to have Japan participate in the competition as they will be looking to build on their preparations for the World Rugby U20s Championship in Italy."
Japan defeated Tonga in Hong Kong last year at the World Rugby U20s Trophy, to earn a spot at this year's World Rugby 20s Championship in Italy.
"We are looking forward to watching a great spectacle of Rugby and we strongly encourage people to come and watch the next generation of Rugby stars from Oceania and Japan."
