Italy had a solid day in the Junior Championship to move into the lead as previous leaders Norway struggled. The leaders are now Italy with 235, ahead of Norway 224, Netherlands 220.5, Poland 215, Sweden 205.5, and Germany 205.

I would like to welcome Bulgaria to these championships. Their Schools team lost narrowly in the first round but in Round 2 had Bulgaria’s first win at a Youth Championship since 1988 – the last time any Bulgarian team took part. Not only that, but the win was 24.5-0 over Netherlands, and they followed it up by demolishing Hungary 25-0 in Round 3 then beat Czech Republic 18-12 to lie fourth on 81.5 behind Poland and England, tied on 89, 1 VP ahead of Sweden on 88. Meanwhile, spare a thought for Wales, who have started 1, 1, 0, 0. Ouch! Let’s all wish them a change of fortune today.