Defending champions England got their campaign off to a comfortable start with a 74-17 win over Samoa ©World Rugby

England got their World Rugby Under-20 Championship title defence off to a fantastic start today as they thrashed Samoa 74-17 at the Avchala Stadium in Tbilisi.

The Europeans scored 12 tries in their demolition job in Pool A at the tournament being hosted by Georgia for the first time.

Zach Mercer, Dominic Morris, Gabriel Ibitoye and Ali Crossdale all bagged two tries each for England with Max Malins, Marcus Street, Ciaran Knight and Alex Mitchell also getting over the whitewash.

Losi Filipo got both tries for Samoa with Ricky Pauli Ene added a penalty.

After the game, Mercer, who is the team’s captain, said it was the perfect start for them.

“We knew Samoa was going to fire hard for the first 20, so we needed to weather the storm effectively and the boys did that.

“I’m very proud of the the boys.

“We know we got a comfortable win in an 80-minute performance.”

France and South Africa drew 23-23 in their opening match at the tournament ©Getty Images
France and South Africa drew 23-23 in their opening match at the tournament ©Getty Images

The Pool’s other game saw Australia just edge Wales, winning 24-17 in the Avchala Stadium.

At the AIA Stadium in Kutaisi, Pool B got under way with last year’s runners-up Ireland losing 22-21 to Italy while New Zealand eased to a 42-20 victory over Scotland.

Back in Tbilisi, the matches in Pool C saw France and South Africa draw 23-23 and Argentina overcome the hosts 37-26.

The next set of games will be played on Sunday (June 4).