Junior Wallabies coach Nathan Grey finalised his squad for the U20s World Cup earlier this week. 

The 30-man squad will train in Sydney next week before departing for Cape Town ahead of must-win pool matches against Georgia, Italy and Ireland from June 29. 

Before preparations ramp up, we checked in with Grey and asked him about a few of the players that have impressed him so far. 

Here’s what we had to say. 

Returning players

“We’ve got Jack Barrett (prop), Tevita Alatini (prop), Nick Bloomfield (prop), Trevor King (prop), Harry McLaughlin-Phillips (flyhalf), Toby Macpherson (lock), Ollie McCrea (lock) back from last year. 

“They’ll be huge for us in South Africa and I think it helps that five of those players are forwards. 

“We find the jump for forwards from club or underage rugby to the U20s World Cup is probably bigger than it is for the backs, so having a bit of experience there is really important. 

“They know what it will take to perform over there.”

Toby Macpherson – Brumbies/Uni-Norths Owls 

“Toby is our captain and he was huge for us in the Rugby Championships. He is a no-nonsense forward that just goes about his work and is super consistent,” Grey said. 

“He’s a great leader and all the boys got right behind him up in Queensland so he’ll be important for us over in South Africa.”

Jack Harley – Brumbies/Gungahlin Eagles

“Our forwards gave Jack Harley the player of the tournament up on the Sunshine Coast. He was playing in Brisbane but got the chance to go down to Canberra and play with the Brumbies in the Super 19s last year. 

“He’s got a great work rate, he’s a good defender and ball carrier and he’s got good control at the back of the scrum as a No.8. Plus he’s a great personality and the type of guy you like to have in your team.”

Ronan Leahy – Force/Sydney Uni

“Ronan was picked by the backs as their player of the tournament. He’s a big boy and he’s got good skill and he played on the wing for the Force towards the end of the Super Rugby season. That’s great reward for a lot of hard work he’s put in. 

“He played in the centres for us on the Sunshine Coast and that’s where I think he’s best suited at this level, although it’s great that he can play on the wing as well. 

“He’s been working really hard on his defence. He is a good defender, but he can be better and he’s working hard on that. He was also our vice captain and leads by example.”

Archie Saunders – Waratahs/Warringah

“Archie probably would have been with us last year if he didn’t get injured but fortunately he’s fit and has been playing great footy for the Rats up on the Northern Beaches in the Shute Shield. 

“He’s scoring tries and making line breaks and that’s what we want from our wingers.”

Harry McLaughlin-Phillips – Reds/Souths

“We’re excited to see what Harry can do over in South Africa, he’s a talent,” Grey said. 

“Obviously Kissy (Les Kiss) and the coaches up in Queensland see his value and have given him quite a bit of game time for the Reds this year. 

“I’ll be leaning on Harry to steer the ship around and he’s keen to do that. Last year he played fullback for us in the last couple of games and he was exceptional. 

“His skillset has grown since then and his confidence would have grown with it so we’re looking forward to watching him do his stuff over there.”

On the Rugby Championships held last month:

“It was a bit of a strange tournament because it was so tight. Going in to that last game against New Zealand, if we won, we would have won the tournament and if we lost, we finished fourth,” Grey told Rugby News.

“It was an excellent preparation for the World Cup though. We haven’t had the chance to get guys exposed to that level of rugby in the same way before.

“Everyone now realises how physical it is, how fast it is and how quickly you need to adapt to different conditions.

“It’s a great precursor for South Africa.”