IT was a gut-wrenching moment for Bo Abra on Sunday as he sat on the bench and watched his fellow Junior Wallabies suffer a 24-23 loss to France in the final of the World Rugby Under 20 Championships.
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The former Saint Stanislaus' College skipper had been hoping to hoist the trophy with his team-mates come full-time at Racecourse Stadium in Rosario, Argentina, but instead he had to settle for a silver medal.
That the Junior Wallabies had come so close in what was just the second time an Australian team had qualified for the under 20s decider made the loss even tougher to swallow.
Replacement prop Abra had watched on as the Junior Wallabies built a 13-10 lead with just over a quarter of the match gone, but as half-time approached, a lapse hurt their cause.
Defending champions France scored eight points in four minutes to take the lead.
Though the Junior Wallabies fought hard in the second half and twice snatched back the advantage, the experienced French outfit scrapped over the line.
It left Abra and his team-mates frustrated and bitterly disappointed.
"We're always proud of the boys, but everyone's pretty gutted with the result to lose by a point," Australian coach Jason Gilmore told rugby.com.au.
"We probably just gifted them eight points just before half-time which put them back in the lead, then we fought back well in the second half.
"They're defending champions from last year and they've got some key players back this year, so they were always going to be a tough opposition."
Having made his Australian under 20s debut in June as part of the Junior Wallabies squad which won the Oceania Championships, Abra headed to Argentina with two national caps under his belt.
While he did not play in the final against France or Australia's 34-13 semi-final win over Argentina, Abra got game time in two of the Junior Wallabies' pool matches.
Abra was injected off the bench in the 66th minute against Italy, a game the Junior Wallabies won 36-0. His other national cap came in the 56-33 loss against England, getting 26 minutes.
