Northampton Saints second row Aiden Ainsworth-Cave is set to captain the England U20 Men’s side on his 17th and final U20 cap as England face New Zealand in the third-place play-off final of the 2026 World Rugby Junior World Championship in Georgia.
England conclude their campaign at the Mikheil Meskhi Stadium, Tbilisi, this Saturday (3pm BST kick-off) with a first meeting with the Baby Blacks since 2017.
Ainsworth-Cave is joined by four fellow Saints in the run-out side, with Jonny Weimann in line for his first start for the U20 Men this season at scrum-half, alongside Hugh Shields at fly-half.
In the pack, Ainsworth-Cave is joined by Jack Lewis at openside flanker and Oliver Scola at loosehead, whilst Sonny Tonga’uiha is set to come off the bench.
Ahead of England U20 Men’s last Junior World Championship outing, Andy Titterrell said: “The group has earned this opportunity through the work they’ve put in across the tournament, and the commitment shown by players and staff to build strong connections, take ownership of their development and support one another every step of the way has been imperative.
“We know New Zealand will provide another huge test, but there’s a real belief within our team and a unity in how we’ve prepared, with everyone aligned on finishing the competition strongly.
“This fixture is a chance to bring together everything we’ve worked on as a team and deliver a performance that reflects who we are and what we'’ve built throughout the Championship.”
England U20 Men’s squad to face New Zealand
15 George Pearson (Leicester Tigers, Buckingham RFC, 12 caps)
14 Tyler Offiah (Bath Rugby, Ealing Trailfinders, 10 caps)
13 Nick Lilley (Exeter Chiefs, Ivybridge RFC, 17 caps)
12 Finn Keylock (Saracens, Marlow RUFC, 7 caps)
11 Sam Winters (Bath Rugby, Henley Hawks, 4 caps)
10 Hugh Shields (Northampton Saints, Old Northamptonians RFC, 4 caps)
9 Jonny Weimann (Northampton Saints, Royston Rugby Club, 10 caps)
1 Oliver Scola (Northampton Saints, Old Northamptonians RFC, 17 caps)
2 Jimmy Staples (Harlequins, Worthing Rugby Club, 8 caps)
3 Ollie Streeter (Harlequins, Haywards Heath RFC, 10 caps)
4 Elliot Williams (Harlequins, London Irish Amateurs, 8 caps)
5 Aiden Ainsworth-Cave (c) (Northampton Saints, Bedford Junior Blues, 17 caps)
6 Tate Williams (Harlequins, East Grinstead RFC, 6 caps)
7 Jack Lewis (Northampton Saints, Ashby RFC, 2 caps)
8 George Marsh (Leicester Tigers, Holt RFC, 8 caps)
Replacements:
16 Jerold Gorleku (Harlequins, Twickenham RFC, 5 caps)
17 Alan Poku (Saracens, Ealing Trailfinders, 2 caps)
18 Sonny Tonga’uiha (Northampton Saints, Old Northamptonians RFC, 8 caps)
19 Freddie Ogden-Metherell (Gloucester Rugby, Lydney RFC, 4 caps)
20 Kealan Freeman-Price (Gloucester Rugby, Drybrook RFC, 3 caps)
21 Lucas Friday (Harlequins, Bromley RFC, 16 caps)
22 Will Knight (Gloucester Rugby, Longlevens RFC, 12 caps)
23 Zac Finch (Saracens, Sidcup RFC, 2 caps)