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Wales Hold Off Georgia 25-24 After Late Referee Ruling in Junior World Championship Opener
Wales held off a late Georgia surge to win their opening Junior World Championship match 25-24 in Tbilisi. The visitors finished with 13 players after two yellow cards but denied the hosts a winning score.
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Wales defeated Georgia 25-24 in their opening Junior World Championship match at Avcjala Stadium in Tbilisi. The visitors led 15-12 at halftime and extended the advantage to 25-17 with five minutes remaining before holding out a final drive. Caio James scored the first try for Wales in the fifth minute.
Rhys Cummings added a second try in the 16th minute. Mikheil Shioshvili scored twice for Georgia, once in the 20th minute and again just before halftime, while Gabriel Razmadze crossed after the break. Carwen Leggatt-Jones kicked two conversions and two penalties for Wales.
Georgia's Khalvashi converted one try. Leggatt-Jones also scored a try in the 52nd minute. Wales led 25-17 when replacement hooker Tom Howe was held up over the line. Wing Tom Bowen received a second yellow card and was sent off.
Replacement prop Yestyn Cook was sin-binned for conceding a late penalty try. Georgia replacement back row Irakli Kolbaia appeared to score in the closing minutes, but referee George Selwood ruled he had been held up. bbc.co.uk reported that Wales, reduced to 13 players, denied the hosts a last-gasp winner.
Wales next face Uruguay and South Africa in Pool A.
