When a player breaks straight into the England senior team at a young age, it’s often a sign of their quality.
But a lot of England stars have gone through the ranks of the age grade set up, doing their time, so to speak, with the under-20s including a bath of Eddie Jones’ current squad.
Triumphing at the 2020 U20 Championship, their 29th title, the England youngsters have previously boasted some wonderful try-scorers.
Some of those have gone on to achieve great things in the game, but unfortunately that isn’t exclusively the case. So, who is who? We’ve taken a look at England’s top five U20 try-scorers of all-time from world championships and what happened next.
5. Zach Mercer
Under-20 tries: 5
Senior England caps: 5
Senior England tries: 0
Clubs played for: Bath
Hit or Miss? Miss
Capped twice by Eddie Jones in 2018, Mercer has failed to feature since, but the 23-year-old remains on the Red Rose radar knowing a big start to the season could get him back in contention for the 2021 Six Nations. Jury is still out.
