Battling England get ready to turn up the heat on Scotland

ENGLAND U20s begin the defence of their World Championship crown this afternoon, taking on familiar rivals Scotland at the Payanini Centre in Verona in a rematch of their 57-13 win from the Six Nations.

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Sale Sharks lock Tom Burrow captains the side, having led England throughout the Six Nations. He will be sharing leadership duties with co-captain and fellow Yorkshireman Ben Redshaw, who starts on the bench.

England beat France in the final in South Africa last summer, but it was Les Bluets who took this season’s Six Nations title after England lost against Wales in their final game.

Only three players who started that final last summer against France — Junior Kpoku, Kane James and Ben Coen — return to the starting XV this time, with a handful more from last year involved off the bench.

England head coach Mark Mapletoft has overseen the build-up in Italy, with the players pushing themselves through the heat in preparation for the opener.

"Wednesday was a good, hard, physical session in very hot conditions. Coaches got crabby, players got crabby - which was good because we wanted to get that out before we play on Sunday."