Wales saw out host-nation Georgia in the opener of the Junior World Championships on Saturday, earning a narrow 25-24 win as they finished with 13-men.

Carwyn Leggatt-Jones did enough through tries and kicks to give Wales breathing space in the final quarter of the game, but his efforts were almost foiled by a determined Georgia as a late penalty try was awarded in-between a sin-bin to prop Yestyn Cook and a Tom Bowen red card.

This set up a desperate finale for Wales as they endeavoured to hold on to their 1-point lead despite only seeing 1% of possession in the last ten minutes.

Richard Whiffin’s side met the challenge and registered their first win of the tournament, putting four points on the table and sitting one point behind reigning champions South Africa.

Wales turn their attention to their second game of the tournament this Thursday against Uruguay, who were dismantled by the Springboks 104-7 in their opener.

Before the game, Richard Whiffin said: “We are playing the tournament hosts in the first game and are expecting a hostile crowd, but the boys are excited by that,”

“Georgia will be route one and will try to get dominance up front and in the collision area.

“We need to box smart and I believe we have the X-factor in our back line that will hurt anybody in the competition.

“We have spoken about improving on the Six Nations and winning in a red jersey, because we had good performances without getting the results. The first opportunity to do that is against Georgia.”

Despite his red card, it has been confirmed that starlet Tom Bowen will be available for the next game. Regarding the issue, the Independent Foul Play Review Committee (FPRC) said:  “The committee found that the sending off was sufficient sanction, noting that one of the yellow cards was for a technical offence,”

The player has accepted the sanction and as a result is free to play with immediate effect.”

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