In the 63rd minute, New Zealand was tenuously ahead 27-26 when they were reduced to 13 players with both Frank Vaenuku and Jake Wiseman in the sin bin.
Summoning the spirit of Charles Upham, New Zealand stripped France of possession and, with surgical precision, muscled compactly ahead, one pass from the ruck at a time as the blue wall creaked and shirked. A metre from the line, halfback Dylan Pledger applied a touch of sorcery, a twisting, nifty pass hit a thundering Aisake Vakasiuola, who crashed over the line. Rico Simpson’s sixth consecutive success established an eight-point buffer, which proved sufficient to stave off the French.
“Don’t worry about the next game, now we’ve got one more game to go,” an exhausted and elated Pledger, or Elgregoe The Magician, said afterwards.
“It was a tough one. The French were going to bring some heat. It’s pretty special, surreal, sure, proud of the boys' effort.”
A balance of clinical execution and courage was the stew for success. In the opening minute France shanked a clearance kick which bounced like an errant golf wedge. Stanley Solomon swopped upon the ball galloping 40 metres unopposed. Rico Simpson converted from the sideline.
In the eighth minute, New Zealand struck again. Initially belted behind the advantage line, the forwards rallied with vigorous thrusts. Quick hands to the right opened a gap for Vaenuku. The winger stormed ahead for 15 metres before reverse-flipping the ball to Mosese Bason, who surged another 25 metres.
France finally salvaged some possession and swiftly exploited New Zealand on the blindside, with centre Kalvin Gourgues dashing clear. Fabien Brau Boirie caught the restart and slashed through the defence, charging from 22 to 22. In retreat, New Zealand conceded a penalty from which openside Baptiste Britz trundled over from a lineout drive.
Finn McLeod and Xavier Tracey bullied their way within a nostril of the paint. France infringed, and Simpson kicked the resulting penalty to make it 17-12 at the water break.
Upon the resumption, New Zealand was forced into a defiant defensive rearguard. Xan Mousques had a try disallowed due to a forward pass by Jon Echegaray, who offloaded carelessly. Simpson intercepted the ball, emerging like a ninja when France had a two-on-one situation. A vital tackle was made by tighthead prop Robson Faleafa, who contorted sideways and Manumaua Letiu hacked the ball 70 metres to relieve pressure. It's unlikely the hooker will kick it further than Don Clarke again.
In the 35th minute, New Zealand had a scrum at the halfway line. Vaenuku cut sharply into the line and freed centre Cooper Roberts with a flat, penetrating pass. Wiseman trialled inside as the French fullback loomed, and New Zealand doubled the lead.
New Zealand missed 27 tackles in the first half, and this excessive number of misses ultimately proved costly when Brau Boirie broke through and sprinted 25 metres from a scrum. Brau Boirie has played 15 games in the Top 14 for Pau, scoring five tries. He was summoned to train with the senior side for the Six Nations earlier in the year. Pau is where All Blacks Test record holder Sam Whitelock (153 Tests, 125 wins) currently plays.
France were ill-disciplined to start the second half. A 48th minute Simpson penalty made it 27-19. Bason burglary, Letiu cunning, and Eli Oudenryn brawn kept France at bay.
In the 57th minute, Wiseman was dismissed for ten minutes after a head-on-head contact. When Vaenuku followed the second five to the sin bin six minutes after a try to French fullback Jon Echegaray, Kiwi hearts were pounding.
However, with Solomon, Simpson, Pledger, Bason, Letiu, and Sika Pole hunting redemption from a hefty 2024 semi-final exit against France, New Zealand held their nerve with wet sail assistance from a disciplined, efficient bench.
Despite France winning 16 out of 17 lineouts, they committed 21 turnovers. France has won the World Championship in 2018, 2019, and 2023. They are the first nation to produce over a hundred senior internationals in the tournament, boasting an overall record of 51 wins out of 74 games.
Meanwhile, New Zealand, heading into their seventh decider since 2008, has a record of 59 wins and 14 losses. They will play South Africa, whom they beat 48-45 earlier this year, to capture the Rugby Championship. The Junior Springboks beat New Zealand 22-16 in the 2012 final, the 'Baby Blacks' only loss in a final.
New Zealand Under 20: 34 (Stanley Solomon, Mosese Bason, Jake Wiseman, Aisake Vakasiuola tries; Rico Simpson 4 cons, 2 pens) France Under 20: 26 (Kalvin Gourgues, Baptiste Britz, Xan Mousques, Fabien Brau Boirie, Jon Echegaray tries; Luka Keletaona 2 cons, Bobby Bissu con) HT: 24-19