Prendergast penalty gives Ireland U20s win v England

Ireland picked up their first win of the U20 Summer Series in dramatic circumstances last night, after Sam Prendergast's late penalty gave them a 37-36 win against England in Verona.

Richie Murphy's side came out on top on 10-try thriller to secure their first victory of the summer tournament, after being beaten by France and South Africa in previous weeks.

Out-half Prendergast - younger brother of Connacht flanker Cian - kicked 15 points in total, with his final penalty on 78 minutes giving Ireland a first win since their Six Nations Grand Slam earlier this year.

With an extensive injury list, Murphy's squad for this summer's tournament in Italy had been much-changed from the Grand Slam, with a 42-21 defeat to France followed by a 33-24 loss against South Africa last Wednesday.

And it looked like they would be heading towards a third defeat in a row when England scored two tries in the opening five minutes to lead 14-0.

However, tries for Fionn Gibbons, James McCormick, Lorcan McLoughlin and a penalty try saw Ireland move into a commanding 31-19 lead early in the second half.

A topsy-turvy game saw England score three second half tries to retake the lead at 36-34 with 10 minutes left, before the Leinster academy out-half sent a long range penalty between the posts to seal the win.

"It was a really weird game, wasn't it? We were 14-0 down early on and then put some really good stuff together to get up at half-time [28-19] which was very encouraging," said Murphy.

"We lost our way a bit in the second half, a few set piece penalties which put us under pressure and we then probably overplayed at our end which gave them access into our 22.

"With England having such a big pack, it’s hard to stop them getting over our line. But Sam