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Japan beat the United States Eagles 29-19 at Nagoya’s Mizuho Stadium on Sunday, a tremendous result for coach John Kirwan. Dealt an injury ravaged squad (seventeen, to be exact), Kirwan fielded a side containing four new caps, a new captain, and three uncapped players on the bench.
A strong defensive effort and good field position saw Japan hold on for a rare win over the United States, despite two late sinbinnings for the home side.
Kirwan later praised his side, “My exact words to the boys were ‘ugly but great.’ We often talk of courage and heart but in the second half we showed that and really stepped up with just 14 men in the last 15 minutes.”
It was the first time the sides had met since the 2003 World Cup, where the United States won 39-26, and a case can be made for the improvement of Japanese rugby due to the Top League competition (now in its sixth season) and Japan’s participation in the Pacific Nations Cup during the past three seasons.
Admittedly, the Kiwi combo of Ryan Nicholas, Shaun Webb and Luke Thompson played a huge part in shaping the win, as well as huge Tongan born No.8 Ryu Koliniasi Holani.
But Kirwan was happy with his new blood.
“The new guys fitted in and started their careers with a win,” he said. “We are starting to change the culture. If we can keep finding players like them, then we are going to be a very competitive team.”
In general, there’s been an improvement in fitness levels and professionalism, with World Cup hero Kosuke Endo spending the recent NPC season as part of the Canterbury squad. That experience paid dividends when he finished a superb break from new cap fullback Kaoru Matsushita.
The United States thumped Uruguay 43-9 the weekend before, but it would appear that the lack of domestic rugby in the US is hindering their development, despite fielding a side that featured twelve members of their World Cup squad.
In any event, it was only Japan’s fourth ever victory over the Eagles, and there’s a second Test in Tokyo this weekend to show whether there’s been a shift in tier-two rugby.
Should Japan prevail, the US simply must enter some type of IRB competition.
Join The Roar rugby editor Christy Doran, former Wallaby Matt Toomua and a cast of regular and special guests as they look at the biggest issues in the game on The Roar Rugby Podcast. If you’re looking for great odds on the next game check out Aussie bookmaker PlayUp. Chances are you’re about to lose. Set a deposit limit.