The undefeated SA U18s edged England in a thrilling conclusion to the U18 International Series in Paarl on Saturday.

In the first game of the day at Paarl Gimnasium, France ended their campaign on a winning note over the SA U18 A side in cold and wet conditions.

The visitors outscored their hosts by three tries to two, coming out on top in a match where the two packs of forwards set the tone.

While all five tries came from mauls, the South Africans made several unforced errors when they were in the French red zone in the second half, which could have swung the result in their favour.

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In the end, the visitors hung on and probably made better use of their opportunities as they consigned the SA U18 A side to a third straight defeat, albeit all of them with close margins.

But, in the second match, the SA U18s beat England 44-41 despite the visitors outscoring the hosts by seven tries to five which included a penalty try.

But, wayward goal-kicking and ill-discipline from England proved  costly as the SA U18 kickers, flyhalf Thurlon Williams and his replacement Stehan Heymans, kicked three penalty goals on a flawless day from the tee.

The SA U18s finished strong, with a try by fullback Joel Leotlela and a sideline conversion from Heymans levelling the scores with time running out on the clock, before Heymans landed the match-winning penalty with a minute left.

SA U18 44 (21) – Tries: Thomas Dyer (2), Ethan Bester, Joel Leotlela, Penalty try. Conversions: Thurlon Williams (3), Stehan Heymans. Penalties: Williams (2), Heymans.
England 41 (21) – Tries: Jack Bennett, Louie Trevett, Will Glister, Loic Keasey, Henry Pollock, Archie McParland, George Edson. Conversions: Sean Kerr (3).

SA U18 A 15 (12) – Tries: Juan Smal (2). Conversion: Liam Koen. Penalty: Koen.
France 20 (12) – Tries: Lilou Brun Bourdi, Baptiste Narmand, Enzo Fernandes. Conversion: Kalvin Gourgues. Penalty: Gourgues.

Photo: @YouthWeeks/Twitter