Six second half tries gave Japan a 57-17 win over Canada in their Pacific Nations Cup matchup in Sendai on Saturday. While the final score was lopsided, it was a close contest at halftime with the Brave Blossoms only ahead by seven points. In failing to secure a bonus point, the Canadians will now have to wait for another week before learning if they have done enough to qualify for the 2027 World Cup.
The first try was too easy for the Brave Blossoms. Malo Tuitama broke down the left side and a grubber from Dylan Riley forced Canada to concede a 5-meter scrum. A free kick gave Amato Fakatava a chance to go quick and the big eightman bashed ahead, building just enough momentum to reach the line with under three minutes on the clock.
Seung-Sin Lee added three points from the boot after the Canadian defense had held out on their goal line. The Maple Leafs then had their first period of sustained possession and eventually it yielded a try to Sion Parry, the flanker getting the credit on the back of a driving maul. Another scoring opportunity came at the half-hour mark but instead of pressing for a second try, Peter Nelson opted for the points to bring the scores level.
Repeat infringements by Japan drew the ire of the referee and finally he lost his patience, sending Waisake Raratubua to the bin for illegal entry at a maul. Again Canada’s tactics were questionable, repeatedly kicking the ball away despite being in an attacking position. Japan put the ball in hand and once in range wasted no time with Warner Dearns punching in under the posts to make it 17-10 to the home side at the intermission.
The trend of Canada kicking and Japan running continued in the second half, but it wasn’t until the 55th minute when the Brave Blossoms took control. Fakatava slid over on the end of a sweeping attack that saw the ball go through several pairs of hands. Soon after Sam Greene went over in the corner after the Canadians made a mess of a lineout in their own end.
Ben Gunter was next on the scoresheet, barging over on a lineout drive after the now-dominant Japanese scrum won a penalty. Greene sent Tomoki Osada over on the end of an overlap, and then diminutive winger Kippei Ishida stepped his way through on a switch move. Jesse Mackail muscled his way over for a consolation try, but the final say would go to Ishida who again showed off his footwork to weave through traffic and grab a double.
Next up for Japan is the USA in Sacramento next weekend. The Eagles need a bonus point win over the Brave Blossoms to avoid the 5th-place final, anything less will see the Canadians into the PNC Semi Final with Fiji the most likely opponent. Should the USA come up short, they could see themselves opposite Samoa with a ticket to Australia 2027 on the line.
JAPAN 57
Tries (8) – A. Fakatava 2 (3′, 55′), W. Dearns (38′), S. Greene (59′), B. Gunter (64′), T. Osada (73′), K. Ishida 2 (76′, 80’+3′)
Cons (7) – S. Lee 7/8 (4′, 39′, 56′, 65′, 74′, 77′, 80’+4′)
Pens (1) – S. Lee 1/1 (12′)
YC (1) – W. Raratubua (31′)
CANADA 15
Tries (2) – S. Parry (23′), J. Mackail (78′)
Cons (1) – P. Nelson 1/2 (24′)
Pens (1) – P. Nelson 1/1 (30′)
JAPAN
1 Sena Kimura (17 Kenta Kobayashi 52′), 2 Hayate Era (16 Kenji Sato 65′), 3 Shuhei Takeuchi (18 Keijiro Tamefusa 53′) 4 Waisake Raratubua, 5 Warner Dearns (capt.), 6 Ben Gunter, 7 Kanji Shimokawa (19 Tiennan Costley 67′), 8 Amato Fakatava (20 Faulua Makisi 62′), 9 Shinobu Fujiwara (21 Kenta Fukuda 47′), 10 Seung-Sin Lee, 11 Malo Tuitama (23 Tomoki Osada 46′), 12 Charlie Lawrence, 13 Dylan Riley (22 Yuya Hirose 69′), 14 Kippei Ishida, 15 Sam Greene
CANADA
1 Cali Martinez (17 Emerson Prior 67′), 2 Dewald Kotze (16 Jesse Mackail 67′), 3 Cole Keith (18 Conor Young 56′), 4 Piers von Dadelszen, 5 Mason Flesch (19 Callum Botchar 65′), 6 Sion Parry, 7 Lucas Rumball (capt.) (8 Matthew Oworu 72′-77′), 8 Matthew Oworu (20 Matt Heaton 56′), 9 Jason Higgins (21 Stephen Webb 74′), 10 Peter Nelson, 11 Nic Benn (23 Brenden Black 72′), 12 Spencer Jones (22 Noah Flesch 60′), 13 Ben LeSage, 14 Josiah Morra, 15 Shane O’Leary
Date: Saturday, August 30
Venue: Yurtec Stadium, Sendai
Kickoff: 17:00 local
Weather: sunny, 90°F (32°C), wind NW 7-10mph (11-17km/h)
Referee: Paul Williams (New Zealand)
Assistants: Jordan Way (Australia) & Damon Murphy (Australia)
TMO: Glenn Newman (New Zealand)
AloJapan.com