Japan too strong for Rugby World Cup debutants Chile in bonus-point win
Japan ran in six converted tries as they kicked off their campaign with a 42-12 bonus‑point win against the tournament debutants Chile, who got two tries of their own in searing heat.
After opening the scoring through a Rodrigo Fernández try, the South American team, the lowest ranked at this World Cup, added another from Alfonso Escobar with Santiago Vila slotting over the conversion.
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Japan made the most of Chile’s two yellow cards to prevail with two tries by Amato Fakatava and more from Jone Naikabula, Michael Leitch, Ryoto Nakamura and Warner Dearns, all six being converted by Rikiya Matsuda.
A rousing rendition of the national anthem was followed by a spirited start in the Pool D match for Chile, the first World Cup debutants since Russia in 2011, and then a dream try in the sixth minute, created with Latin flair and finished off with a dollop of good fortune.
The full-back Iñaki Ayarza broke through two tackles to set up the opportunity but the captain, Martín Sigren, looked to have spoilt it when the ball was knocked out of his hand in the tackle. But it went backwards and the quick-thinking fly‑half Fernández pounced on the loose ball, dribbling it forward and then diving on it to dot down. A check by the television match official confirmed the try, to the delight of the capacity crowd.
Chilean euphoria lasted less than 120 seconds as they dropped the ball from the kick‑off, allowing Japan to score as the lock Fakatava burst through and sprinted away from the defenders for a quick reply.
Basic errors betrayed Chile’s naivety and a late tackle from Matías Dittus on Koo Ji-won meant a 10-minute spell in the sin bin, during which time Japan took the lead on the half-hour, as the winger Naikabula stretched over for their second try.
Sigren was also cautioned after head contact in a tackle on Kotaro Matsushima and with the numerical advantage Japan were able to maul over on the stroke of half‑time as Fakatava claimed his second try and stretched the lead to 21-7.
But if it was expected the second half would signal the end of the rookies’ resistance, the opposite was true as Escobar burst over for a 48th‑minute try to fire up the crowd and cut Japan’s lead to nine points.
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That was as good as it got for the gutsy Chileans, with Leitch scoring Japan’s fourth try in the 53rd minute, the centre Nakamura scoring the next, 10 minutes from time, and the 21‑year‑old Dearns used all of his two‑metre frame to stretch over and score at the end of the game.
“We struggled a little bit against the Chileans’ physicality but we executed our game plan which was great for us,” said the Japan coach Jamie Joseph.