South African rugby navel gazing will continue after the Junior Springboks were blown away by a superb England in the semi-finals of the Under-20 World Championships in Manchester on Monday. South Africa suffered a comprehensive 39-17 (halftime 31-3) defeat against the tournament hosts after an abject first 40 minutes that was worse than anything the senior Springboks have dished up against Ireland – and that’s saying something. England will now meet Ireland in the final while the Junior Boks will take on Argentina‚ who they lost to in Pool play‚ in the third/fourth play-off. England were rampant in the first half‚ running in five unanswered tries as South Africa fell off tackles‚ turned over ball and creaked in the set-piece. There was almost zero intensity from the Junior Boks in the opening stanza as England turned the ball over at will. England openside Will Evans‚ who has already played senior rugby for Leicester‚ was immense and captain and flyhalf Harry Mallinder looks like a future star. But besides some superb individuals‚ it was England’s all round intensity‚ skill and cohesion that left the Junior Boks floundering in the first half. “We are very disappointed‚” said SA coach Dawie Theron.“We played against a well-balanced England side‚ and unfortunately we made too many errors. We created three or four chances in their 22 early in the match‚ but either penalties or turnovers cost us. It was a hard lesson for our young team. “But that said we have to give England credit‚ they played very well. There was a stage where we fought back strongly and we had to convert our opportunities into points‚ but we conceded turnovers again. “An example of this was when we had an uncontested lineout in their half and we lost the ball‚ and they went on to score. So it was not a good night for us. One can see the disappointment on everyone’s faces‚ but we will work very hard ahead of our next match to finish the tournament on a positive note.” England scrumhalf Max Green finished off a long-range try after a turnover close to their own tryline for the game’s opening try inside 10 minutes. It set the tone for the remainder of the half. Lock Hugh Taylor added a second try minutes later following yet another turnover. It went from bad to worse for the Junior Boks when captain and centre Jeremy Ward received a yellow card for a reckless tackle. He was lucky to escape a straight red when he took his opponents’ legs out from under him in mid-air. England added further first half tries from wing Sam Aspland-Robinson‚ centre John Williams and fullback Max Malins to drive a dagger into SA’s hopes and ensure there would only be one outcome with 40 minutes to play. After the break the Junior Boks did manage to up their intensity and avoid complete humiliation. Two tries in two minutes – from wing Edwill van der Merwe and fullback Curwin Bosch – pulled SA to 14 points of the lead midway through the second half.But it was as close as SA would get as England scored a sixth try five minutes before the end through replacement Max Wright. England are now into the final for a fourth straight year while Ireland will play in their first ever final at this level. Monday’s victory over SA was also their sixth against the Junior Boks at the Under-20 World Championships since the tournament moved to its current under-20 format in 2008. Scorers: England – Tries: Max Green‚ Hugh Taylor‚ Sam Aspland-Robinson‚ John Williams‚ Max Malins‚ Max Wright. Conversions: Harry Mallinder (3). Penalty: Mallinder South Africa – Tries: Edwill van der Merwe‚ Curwin Bosch. Conversions: Bosch (2). Penalty: Curwin Bosch. Results between SA and England at Under-20 World Championships: 2008 Eng 26 SA 18 (SF) 2009 Eng 40 SA 21 (SF) 2010 SA 27 Eng 22 (3rd/4th) 2011 Eng 26 SA 20 (pool) 2012 SA 28 Eng 15 (pool) 2013 SA 31 Eng 24 (pool) 2014 Eng 21 SA 20 (final) 2015 Eng 28 SA 20 (SF) 2016 Eng 39 SA 17 (SF) - TMG Digital...