USA compete but Japan a step ahead in Kumagaya

Japan made the most of their opportunities to secure a 41-24 victory over a game but ultimately outmatched USA side in Kumagaya on Saturday. The result gives the Brave Blossoms top spot in the pool as the two sides now move on to the knockout stage of the Pacific Nations Cup.

Malo Tuitama threatened early with two line breaks as Japan showed their intent to attack wide from the get-go. Quick ball at the breakdown caught the Eagles offside and Seung-Sin Lee knocked over three points to open the scoring for the home side.

The USA pressed into Japan territory but were rebuffed by a turnover at the tackle. From the ensuing lineout Lee chipped just over the heads of the onrushing defense, and Dylan Riley snatched the ball from the air. His midfield partner Nik McCurran was on hand to take the scoring pass in under the posts.

Not long at the restart a knock-on by Japan conceded an attacking scrum. The USA won the penalty and Luke Carty took the points on offer. Just as quickly however the Eagles made a hash of their clearance attempt and gave the ball straight back. A few phases later Sanaila Waqa drove in from short range to make it 17-3 for the Brave Blossoms.

The two sides exchanged scores before halftime. Penalties gave Carty a kick into the corner, and Jamason Fa’anana-Schultz powered over on the short side from the maul. More high tempo attack from Japan resulted in a score for replacement hooker Mamoru Harada on the end of an overlap, leaving the gap at 14 points with 40 minutes on the clock.

Early in the second half the Eagles midfield was guilty of over-pursuit on a loose ball, and when nobody filled in the gap Riley took off from 10 meters inside his own end. The midfielder swerved past the initial line and turned on the jets to show the cover a clean pair of heels on a cracking solo effort. Lee’s fourth conversion pushed the score out to an ominous 31-10 with 35 minutes still to play.

The Eagles didn’t fold, however, and took advantage of penalties conceded by Japan. When a driving maul was slowed, Ruben de Haas fired a flat pass that found Nate Augspurger unmarked. The winger stepped back inside a tackler to touch down in the corner. Not long after Augspurger would grab a double after Fa’anana-Schultz was held up, this time Carty looping around a ruck and giving the skip-pass for the try. Both conversions from wide out were on target from Carty and suddenly it was a one-score game.

After a brief hydration break the Eagles were called offside and Lee stepped up to make it a double-digit difference. The coup de grâce came after Japan were awarded a scrum penalty. A set move off the lineout befuddled the Eagles defense and Tuitama slipped through to score. Both teams emptied their benches and neither would score before full-time.

The two sides will stay in Japan for the next two weeks as the action shifts to Tokyo. Samoa are up next weekend for the Brave Blossoms, with the Eagles to take on Fiji. The winners of the two Semi Finals will collide in the Pacific Nations Cup Final on September 21, with the losers afforded a Bronze playoff.

 

SCORING

JAPAN 41
Tries (5) – N. McCurran (14′), S. Waqa (23′), M. Harada (38′), D. Riley (44′), M. Tuitama (66′)
Cons (5) – S. Lee 5/5 (15′, 24′, 39′, 45′, 67′)
Pens (2) – S. Lee 2/2 (4′, 61′)

USA 24
Tries (3) – J. Fa’anana-Schultz (29′), N. Augspurger 2 (51′, 58′)
Cons (3) – L. Carty 3/3 (30′, 52′, 59′)
Pens (1) – L. Carty 1/1 (18′)

TEAMS

JAPAN
1 Shogo Miura (17 Takayoshi Mohara 52′), 2 Atsushi Sakate (capt.) (16 Mamoru Harada 37′), 3 Keijiro Tamefusa (18 Shuhei Takeuchi 45′), 4 Sanaila Waqa (19 Amato Fakatava 59′), 5 Warner Dearns, 6 Tiennan Costley, 7 Kanji Shimokawa, 8 Faulua Makisi (20 Isaiah Mapusua 50′), 9 Shinobu Fujiwara (21 Taiki Koyama 63′), 10 Seung-Sin Lee, 11 Malo Tuitama, 12 Nik McCurran, 13 Dylan Riley, 14 Jone Naikabula (23 Tomoki Osada 49′), 15 Takuya Yamasawa (22 Harumichi Tatekawa 52′)

USA
1 Jack Iscaro (17 Jake Turnbull 61′), 2 Kapeli Pifeleti (16 Sean McNulty 61′), 3 Alex Maughan (18 Paul Mullen 46′), 4 Vili Helu, 5 Greg Peterson (capt.) (19 Jason Damm 59′), 6 Paddy Ryan, 7 Cory Daniel (21 Moni Tonga’uiha 49′), 8 Jamason Fa’anana-Schultz (20 Thomas Tu’avao 70′), 9 Ruben de Haas (22 JP Smith 52′), 10 Luke Carty, 11 Nate Augspurger, 12 Tommaso Boni (23 Dom Besag 67′), 13 Tavite Lopeti (23 Dom Besag HT-52′), 14 Conner Mooneyham, 15 Mitch Wilson

MATCH INFO

Date: Saturday, September 7
Venue: Kumagaya Rugby Stadium, Kumagaya
Kickoff: 19:05 local
Weather: partly cloudy, 84°F (29°C), humidex 91°F (33°C), wind SE 6-9mph (10-14km/h)

MATCH OFFICIALS

Referee: Hollie Davidson (Scotland)
Assistants: Sam Grove-White (Scotland) & Morgan White (Hong Kong)
TMO: Aaron Paterson (New Zealand)