Greece produced a commanding performance to claim the European U19 Shield, defeating Norway 94-6 in the final at the CREPS Font Romeu high performance facility in the Pyrenees, France.
The Greek side remained unbeaten throughout the tournament and ran in a total of 18 tries in a dominant display.
Peter Kokontis led the way with a hat-trick, while William Giovas scored two early tries. Other standout performers included Peter Papoulis, Lukas Kontrafouris, and Leo Valdmanis.
Greece led 52-6 at half-time, with Norway’s only points coming from a try by stand-off Joshua Silverstone-Utheim.
Head coach Jim Pizanias praised his squad after the match:
“I’m ecstatic for the boys, all 22 of them. They all got games in this series and it was great to see our six domestic players on the field in this match together. That was the best part about it. All those boys had a great tour and they’ll go back to their schools and universities and will let everyone know how great it is to play for Greece at rugby league. Hopefully we can get a 19s competition going in Greece on the back of this.”
Other Results
In the other Shield match, Ireland defeated Canada 44-40 in a high-scoring thriller, with late tries securing the win and second place overall.
Greece’s victory marks a significant milestone for the sport’s development in the country and highlights the growing talent pool of young Greek rugby league players.