The Under-19s Rugby Championship is an Australian
rugby union
Rugby union, commonly known simply as rugby, is a close-contact team sport that originated at Rugby School in the first half of the 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand. In its m ...
competition for men's youth teams that forms part of the pathway for selection to the . The competition is hosted annually by
Rugby Australia
Rugby Australia Ltd, previously named the Australian Rugby Union Limited and Australian Rugby Football Union Limited, is an Australian company operating the premier rugby union competition in Australia and teams. It has its origins in 1949. It ...
and players must meet an under-19 age requirement. Previously, this tournament was played closer in time to the
World Junior Championship and used an under-20 age requirement.
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History
National U20s
The first National U20 Rugby Championship was played in 2014,[ and was contested by teams from New South Wales, Queensland and an Australian Barbarians side (selected from the other states and territories). National under-20 teams from the Pacific islands were also invited to play matches.][
The competition was played over two stages, with a Southern States U20 Championship held in March for teams from ACT, Victoria, Western Australia, South Australia, Tasmania, Northern Territory, as well as New South Wales Country and Queensland Country.][ A representative team from that tournament was selected to participate in the National U20 Championship's top division.][
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Super U20s
The Super Under 20s Championship was launched in 2016, with teams from Australia's five Super Rugby
Super Rugby is a men's professional rugby union club competition involving teams from Australia, Fiji, New Zealand, and the Pacific Islands. It previously included teams from Argentina, Japan, and South Africa. Building on various Southern Hem ...
franchises competing.[ Matches were scheduled as curtain-raisers to home games hosted by the Super Rugby teams, with the tournament played as a single round-robin followed by a final between the top two sides to determine the champion team.][
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U19s Rugby Championship
In 2018 the competition was changed to an Under-19 championship played six months earlier in the lead in to the campaign for the Oceania and World Rugby tournaments.[
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Teams
The teams playing in the Under-19s Rugby Championship are:
* Australian Barbarians U19
* Brisbane City U19
* Brumbies U19
* Melbourne Rebels U19
* NSW Country U19
* Queensland Country U19
* Sydney U19
* Western Australia U19
Following the tournament, an initial squad for the Junior Wallabies team is selected from the best players. The Australian team competes in the Oceania U20 and World Rugby U20 championships.
Champions
See also
* Australia national under-20 rugby union team
The Junior Wallabies is the national under-20 team that represents Australia playing rugby union. The team has been competing at the annual World Rugby U20 Championship since it began in 2008, replacing the previously held under-19 and under-2 ...
* Oceania Under 20 Rugby Championship
The Oceania Rugby Under 20 Championship is an international rugby union competition organised by Oceania Rugby, which is the regional governing body for rugby in Oceania. It is contested by men's junior national teams with an under-20 age requir ...
* World Rugby Under 20 Championship
The World Rugby Under 20 Championship (known as the IRB Junior World Championship until 2014) is an international rugby union competition. The event is organised by the sport's governing body, World Rugby, and is contested by 12 men's junior nat ...
References
External links
2015 National U20 Championship
official ARU homepage
{{Sports leagues of Australia
Rugby union leagues in Australia
2014 establishments in Australia
Sports leagues established in 2014
Youth sport in Australia