Australian Schoolboys v England Academy: Live Stream

[Harrigan]

I know this is a light hearted comment... and nothing wrong with a bit of banter but I think you raise a very valid point.

For decades the Australian Schoolboys never lost a match and that sense of invincibility continued through the senior ranks.

Then the Junior Kiwis beat them for the first time and now the English Academy and the Schoolboys have a much more even record with the English winning quite a few series.

I don't think there is any coincidence that the Kiwi senior team started to beat the Aussies. It is now up to the generation of English test players who beat their Australian counterparts at junior level to win at the full test level as well.

We all know that psychology plays a big part in sport and having the attitude instilled in you from an early age that can never beat the guys wearing that Green and Gold jersey is going to have a long term effect. That is not the case any more (despite this mornings result!).

Sorry for the serious reply to what was a fun comment.

Are the Aussie Schoolboys the same as the Junior Kangaroos though? I always got the impression they weren't and the Junior Roos were another step up

[Guest]

Are the Aussie Schoolboys the same as the Junior Kangaroos though? I always got the impression they weren't and the Junior Roos were another step up

I think the Junior kangaroos are U20's while junior Roos are U18's. You could be thinking about the AIS which are also U18.

[Dunbar]

The Australian Schoolboys is selected nationally after the Secondary Schools Rugby League (ASSRL) Under-18s Championships so is the best of the under 18's in Australia. They play the under 18's Academy from England (the under 17's Academy team typically play the Australian Institute of Sport).

The Junior Kangaroos is the national under 20's team and they regularly play the NZ under 20's team.

I guess it is a better standard because the players are older but the Schoolboys are the pinnacle of their age group and many have gone on the be full internationals (over 50 I think).

My point stands though... if you become conditioned to winning (or losing) against a national side at an early age that can be psychologically difficult to shift later on.

[Jarv]

DId anyone else listen to the miked up refs at HT cant believe it hasn't been taken down? Basically the "Pom" play the ball is so bad (a lost cause) the ref decides to give up bothering. Informative and funny in equal measure.