Junior Lelos make history at World Rugby U20 Championship
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Georgia's Under 20 National Rugby Team is about to make history by competing in the World Rugby U20 Championship for the first time.
The developing national side have arrived in England to prepare and train for the World Rugby U20 Championship, which will begin next week.
The junior Lelos will participate in the leading rugby tournament for youth teams for the first time. Their first game is against current champions New Zealand on June 7 at Salford's AJ Bell Stadium.
The Georgian team arrived in England earlier today and will rest today before starting its training program from tomorrow.
The competition features 12 of the best junior national teams of the world. Georgia has been drawn in the toughest pool with the junior All Blacks, Ireland and Wales.
Georgia's U20 team will be led by scrum-half Vasil Lobzhanidze (C) who also played for the senior national team at last year's Rugby World Cup. Screenshot from video by Georgian Rugby/Facebook.
After playing New Zealand next Tuesday, Georgia will face Wales at the Manchester City Academy Stadium in Manchester on June 11, before returning to Salford to round off their pool games with a match against Wales on June 15.
The U20 Lelos will be captained by scrum-half Vasil Lobzhanidze, who made history last year when he became the youngest player ever to play at the Rugby World Cup.
Experienced players will have a bigger role in tournaments like this because it is hugely important to resist the pressure which we obviously will have on us," team coach Ilia Maisuradze told World Rugby in the run-up to the tournament.
The Georgian team will make their debut at the tournament on the back of last year's triumph at the World Rugby U20 Trophy, an equivalent competition for leading second-tier rugby teams.
Georgia's U20 players defeated Canada with the final score 49-24 in Lisbon, Portugal to claim the title in May last year.
The World Rugby U20 Championship will be played in Manchester, England from June 7-25.
The full list of fixtures can be viewed on the official World Rugby website here.
Georgia has been crowned world champions after the nation' junior rugby team won the 2015 World Rugby Under 20 Trophy for the first time in Georgia's rugby history.
Georgia has gained the right to host one of the most prestigious worldwide rugby events in 2017.
Georgia's Under 20 national rugby team has made history at the World Rugby U20 Championship in England after claiming its first win of their first ever tournament against Italy on Monday.