Japan came within minutes of a famous upset in a thrilling encounter in Tokyo that saw the New Zealand Maori pull it out of the fire in spectacular fashion. It was a tremendous turnaround from the 40 point blowout in Kobe the week before, as the Brave Blossoms restored some pride with an excellent performance that showed vast improvement in commitment at the breakdown.
Whatever Eddie Jones said during the week did the charm, as Japan looked a completely different side out of the gate. Kotaru Matsushima made a big break within seconds of the kickoff and after spurning two easy shots at goal the Brave Blossoms looked for all money like they would score. Some brilliant work from Sean Polwart got the Maori out of jail but Japan’s intentions were very clear, they weren’t there to make up the numbers this week.
The Maori ran afoul of referee Angus Gardner early racking up several careless penalties in short order, and with only seven minutes played Tom Franklin was dispatched to the bin. Somehow they survived the onslaught and with Franklin waiting to come back on, Codie Taylor showed an impressive turn of speed to burst through a hole in the line and sprint 40 metres untouched to the line. As they returned to full strength the momentum shift yielded a second try in quick succession, with Nehe Milner-Skudder showing good footwork to cross in the corner.
Ihaia West’s penalty goal pulled them out ahead by three scores and it looked as though the Maori might start to run away with it, but Japan showed courage to fight back. After having the TMO call off a try on an obstruction call, a nifty back move put Akihito Yamada into space and the flying winger tiptoed past Milner-Skudder’s despairing tackle to slide over for a crucial score before the break. Gardner chose to review the score again but thankfully sanity prevailed and this time the try was awarded.
Carrying on from their good work in the first match, the front row really put the heat on to start the second half, and made quick work of a 5 metre scrum to win a second penalty try in as many weeks. Ayumu Goromaru’s conversion brought them into double digits and his penalty goal a few minutes later drew them level. The scrum kept turning the screw and eventually Goromaru got another shot to take the lead and he made no mistake.
With the clock winding down it looked as though the upset was on the cards, but in classic Maori fashion they put together a brilliant end-to-end attack that finished with captain Charlie Ngatai popping one out the back Sonny Bill style to Dan Pryor. The dreadlocked flanker went over in style as the Japanese dreams of victory were squashed in a heartbeat.
Leading the way for the Brave Blossoms was tireless captain Michael Leitch, powerhouse no8 Amanaki Mafi, and outstanding new loosehead Keita Inagaki. Diminutive halfback combo Atsushi Hiwasa and Kosei Ono provided snappier service this week, and Male Sa’u redeemed himself with a much better outing than his slow day in Kobe.
Japan can feel a fair bit more confident now as they head off to face Romania and Georgia in successive weeks. One particularly interesting battle will be in the scrums, where the superb technique of the smaller Japanese front row will be tested against the Eastern European behemoths. If they prove themselves up to the task, then there’s every reason to think they will return home with two wins out of two.
JAPAN 18 vs 20 NZ MAORI
Saturday, November 8, 05:00 GMT, Tokyo
SCORING
17 mins – C. Taylor try 0-5
18 mins – I. West con 0-7
22 mins – N. Milner-Skudder try 0-12
32 mins – I. West pen 0-15
39 mins – A. Yamada try 5-15
47 mins – Penaltry try (scrum) 10-15
48 mins – A. Goromaru con 12-15
54 mins – A. Goromaru pen 15-15
72 mins – A. Goromaru pen 18-15
77 mins – D. Pryor try 18-20
CARDS
07 mins – T. Franklin yellow (repeat infringements)
JAPAN
A. Goromaru; K. Hesketh (H. Tatekawa 68), K. Matsushima, M. Sa’u (R. Yamanaka 73), A. Yamada; K. Ono, A. Hiwasa; K. Inagaki, T. Kizu (H. Yuhara 58), K. Hatakeyama; L. Thompson, S. Makabe (H. Ono 65); H. Tui, M. Leitch (capt.) (H. Hopgood 75), A. Mafi.
NZ MAORI
N. Milner-Skudder (J. Webber 65); K. Baker, M. Proctor, C. Ngatai (capt.), J. Lowe; I. West (M. McKenzie 58), C. Smylie (J. Gibson-Park 72); C. Eves (B. Edmonds 58), C. Taylor (J. Royal 72), M. Kainga; T. Franklin (H. Triggs 58), B. Thomson; D. Pryor, S. Polwart (M. Crosswell 46), E. Dixon.
Referee: A. Gardner (ARU)
Assistants: L. Pearce (RFU) & J. Leckie (ARU)
TMO: G. Ayoub (ARU)
