All Blacks playmakers binned as Springboks inspire victories in Japan
We recap another entertaining weekend in Japan.
Following the weekend’s Japanese Rugby League One fixtures, we recap the action which saw two All Blacks being yellow-carded while Rugby World Cup-winning Springboks scored tries.
All Blacks Mo’unga and Barrett both see yellow in Japan
Toshiba Brave Lupus Tokyo survived a scare at home to basement-dwelling Black Rams Tokyo in the Japanese Rugby League One at the weekend, eventually winning 40-33 to keep on track for a home semi-final.
A try six minutes from time by centre Taichi Mano saw the Lupus home after they had shipped 19 unanswered second-half points to their visitors in the wake of two yellow cards – to All Black fly-half Richie Mo’unga and hooker Mamoru Harada for cynical penalties.
Shannon Frizell was on the scoresheet for the Lupus in the first half, along with Takuro Matsunaga, Atsuki Kuwayama and Yuto Mori with two, as the home side steamed their way to a 33-14 lead, with only a try-double from Nathan Hughes, the response from the visitors.
But the Black Rams had already run in one try before Mo’unga was sent packing for slowing the ball down; hooker Marada did the same at the next attacking set. Isaac Lucas then showcased his skills, spearheading the comeback with one searing break and a fabulous offload to Netani Vakayalia for the equalising score.
The Lupus regrouped just in time to clinch the win and maintain a seven-point lead over third-placed Tokyo Sungoliath.
Blue Revs down Sir Steven Hansen’s Verblitz
Shizuoka Blue Revs scored a 24-8 wet weather win over Toyota Verblitz, which may have consigned Steve Hansen’s men to another season outside of the play-offs.
The game started badly for the visitors when Beauden Barrett was yellow carded in the fifth minute for a neck tackle on a try-bound Shizuoka winger Keagen Faria, which saw the All Black fly-half binned as well as conceding a penalty try in the process. The defeat leaves Verblitz ten points adrift of the semi-final places with only five games to play.
Elsewhere, the Hanazono Kintetsu Liners also looked on track to provide a shock before spectacularly collapsing in Kobe against the Steelers.
Thirteen minutes into the second half, a try by winger Joshua Nohra closed the gap to five at 22-17, and the Liners looked to be in the ascendancy.
The Steelers also managed to regroup, however, adding six more tries in the remaining 25 minutes. Full-back Kanta Matsunaga and backrower Amanaki Saumaki both grabbed doubles, while fly-half Bryn Gatland kicked 20 points to extend his lead at the top of the individual points rankings for the season.
The bonus point win lifted Dave Rennie’s men into outright fourth on the championship table and seemingly in a head-to-head race with Yokohama Canon Eagles to secure the last semi-final berth.
Eagles stun Suntory
The Eagles stunned third-placed Suntory Sungoliath with an 83rd-minute penalty goal from a wide angle by the composed fly-half Yu Tamura to complete a 25-point comeback.
Sungoliath scored five tries in the first half, including one from their returning Springbok winger Cheslin Kolbe. Four were long-range efforts, as they repeatedly shredded the Eagles’ defence to romp to a 35-10 half-time lead.
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But remarkably, the Eagles held Sungoliath scoreless in the second 40 minutes and were aided by the faultless boot of the 70-test Brave Blossoms veteran Tamura, who kicked seven from seven to finish with 17 points and sparking scenes of pandemonium among his team-mates after the winning goal successfully bisected the uprights.
Damian de Allende leads the Knights charge
Saitama Wild Knights remain the team to beat, avenging their Grand Final defeat last season against Kubota Spears with a 55-22 shellacking and leaving the Spears’ title defence all but officially over.
The Spears’ fate was effectively sealed in the 25 minutes leading up to half-time when the Wild Knights ran in four tries to charge to a 26-3 lead, with two-time Rugby World Cup-winning Springbok Damian de Allende opening the scoring after a bust from 40 metres out, while the Australian-educated centre Dylan Riley also got in on the act, collecting an intelligent chip from his Brave Blossoms’ colleague Matsuda for the first of his two tries.
While Kubota had performed a miracle escape the week before, scoring two tries in the final three minutes to beat Yokohama, there was no reprieve this time, as the Wild Knights scored again three minutes after the re-start and kept piling on the points to exact an emphatic revenge.
The Mitsubishi Sagamihara Dynaboars kept their slim chances of play-off rugby alive with a narrow 31-26 win over the winless Mie Honda Heat.
The Dynaboars led 14-8 at half-time but could never completely shake off Heat, who twice led, before ex-All Black backrower Jackson Hemopo’s try, 15 minutes before the end, edged the visitors ahead for the final time.
A yellow card, seven minutes from full-time, that was awarded against Sagamihara’s fly-half James Grayson made for a nervous finale, but while the third penalty goal of the afternoon by the Englishman’s Honda counterpart Gwante O closed the gap to five, Heat were unable to find the match-winning score.
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