Moments of concern but Ireland get over the line
Ireland 39 Japan 31
RELIEF would have been the overwhelming feeling for Andy Farrell and his Ireland squad at the final whistle yesterday.
There were times in this nine-try thriller when the hosts were in all kinds of trouble. Japan looked decidedly rusty against the Lions in Murrayfield last weekend. Understandable, given it was only their second outing together since the heroics of the 2019 World Cup.
Yesterday, Japan looked a lot more like the adventurous, allcourt outfit which terrorised Ireland during the ill-fated pool meeting in Shizuoka almost two years ago.
Farrell’s side managed to get the job done here. They were well in control by the final quarter, but there were plenty of moments across the opening hour which will concern the Ireland boss in his post-match analysis.
He’s the main man now but Farrell made his name as a world class defence coach. For all of Japan’s brilliance with ball in hand yesterday, Ireland didn’t help themselves with some of their defence.
They conceded four tries on their home turf and they rode their luck on a few other occasions. Their were times in the first half when the visitors were breaching their line seemingly at will.
Stuart Lancaster speaks about being ‘comfortable in chaos’ during his media dealings on the beat with Leinster. Structure is important but working things out on the hoof is paramount in the modern game. Farrell has spoken about ‘heads-up rugby’ on many occasions. Japan embody all those traits.
Ireland looked good in structured play, especially when they kept things simple and direct. Japan, meanwhile, revelled in the unstructured chaos. They looked most
comfortable when it all got a bit messy. Ireland looked lost at times after they ran through their preplanned plays, and that’s something they need to figure out as they move into the second half of this World Cup cycle.
Japan’s identity and style of play is crystal clear. Farrell’s Ireland are still working it out.
There was mitigation, of course. For Ireland, there were new combinations and a host of frontliners missing for numerous reasons, including Lions duty, injuries, mandatory rest and a few retirements.
Farrell made the point earlier this
week that his squad were together for just 12 days before this game. Fair enough. Then again, this was only Japan’s third match since their World Cup quarter-final defeat by South Africa in October 2019.
Taking that into account, some of their attacking play and finishing was of the highest order. Michael Leitch’s opening try was the result of a driving maul but the other three scores were borne out of offthe-cuff inspiration. And Yu Tumura – Japan’s talented No10 – was at the heart of most of it. It was his deft cross-kick which set the platform for Timonthy Lafaele’s superb try. It was Tumura again who raided the blindside and chipped across field for Siosaia Fifita to score during another purple patch. Naoto Saito was the beneficiary of brilliant handling by Semisi Masirewa and replacement No8 Amanaki Mafi to score Japan’s fourth and final try.
After a frantic first half, the message in the Irish dressing room at the break was simple: cut down on the unforced errors and get some structure back into the game.
For the most part, Ireland did just that in the second half. Gradually, this new-look squad grew into it and took the contest by the scruff of the neck. The tries from Josh van der Flier and Jacob Stockdale, which eventually broke Japan’s resistance, followed a similar script to the first-half scores from Chris Farrell, Stuart McCloskey and Finlay Bealham. The home side using their set-piece to lay a strong platform before direct, hard carrying from their big ball carriers. Caelan Doris caused much of the damage on that front.
This was the young Leinster No8’s first hit-out for Ireland after missing the entire Six Nations with concussion issues. He put in a huge
shift. Hugo Keenan was another who impressed throughout. James Ryan led from the front while Van der Flier and Peter O’Mahony impressed in a strong backrow unit. The sight of Joey Carbery getting through 80 minutes unscathed was another bonus.
There was also a pretty impressive cameo from Ryan Baird off the bench. Next season could be a big one for the talented 21-year-old lock who has the raw material to be a serious prospect.
It was a shame Gavin Coombes and Craig Casey got onto the field so late. Like Baird, they are the future of this operation. Farrell wasn’t taking any chances here though. It wasn’t perfect but his side got the job done here. That’s all that mattered yesterday.
RelanD: H Keenan; J Larmour (S Daly 31), C Farrell (B Burns 43), S McCloskey, J Stockdale; J Carbery, J Gibson-Park (C Casey 79); D Kilcoyne (E Byrne 59), R Kelleher (R Herring 71), F Bealham (J Ryan 59); U Dillane (R Baird 60), J Ryan (capt); P O’Mahony (G Coombes 71), J van der Flier, C Doris
SCoReRS - TRieS: Farrell, McCloskey, Bealham, Van der Flier, Stockdale; ConS: Carbery (4); penS: Carbery (2).
Japan: K Matsushima (S Gates 51); S Masirewa, T Lafaele, R Nakamura, S Fifita; Y Tamura (R Matsuda 67), N Saito (K Shigeno 67); K Inagaki (C Millar 51), A Sakate (K Horikoshi 62), J Koo (A Ai Valu 51); W van der Walt (J Cornelson 51), J Moore; M Leitch (capt), L Labuschangne, T Tatafu (A Mafi 54)
SCoReRS - TRieS: Leitch, Lafaele, Fifita, Saito; ConS:
Tamura (4); penS: Tamura.
RefeRee: K Dickson (England)