Bonus point win probably not enough for Ireland

The five-try display means that the Irish did all they can to stay in the hunt but must now await the results of France v Argentina (5pm) and South Africa v New Zealand games this evening.

The injury-plagued Ireland Under-20s were unable to kick on and truly put a resilient Italy side to the sword in the second half as Noel McNamara's youngsters wrapped up the World Rugby U-20 Championship pool stages with a 38-14 bonus point win.

The big victory they needed to significantly boost their semi-final hopes looked on the cards when they surged into a 31-0 lead after just 38 minutes in humid Santa Fe. However, Italy hit back with tries either side of half-time and Ryan Baird's 55th-minute effort proved to be Ireland's final score.