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Japan player ratings vs England | Autumn Nations Series
By Martyn Thomas at Allianz Stadium, Twickenham
Japan player ratings: The Brave Blossoms had targeted a fast start in south-west London and had the opportunity to take the lead early on as captain Naoto Saito lined up a penalty just inside the England half.
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His attempt slid wide, blown off course by the wind, and it wouldn’t take too much longer for the Japanese game plan to suffer the same fate.
Ben Earl, Sam Underhill and England skipper Jamie George (twice) all crossed the whitewash to put the hosts into a 28-0 lead with a little more than 30 minutes on the clock.
It would have been worse had TMO Olly Hodges not spotted a Jack van Poortvliet knock on in the lead up to Tommy Freeman touching down, and it soon was. After Saito converted his own try, Ollie Sleightholme produced some magic to score in the left corner.
After a brief renaissance from Japan it was a similar story in the second half as England ran in another four tries either side of a second for the Brave Blossoms, from Kazuki Himeno.
15. Takuro Matsunaga – 5
Missed touch with an early penalty and that seemed to set the tone for an uninspiring overall display, although he showed some nice touches with ball in hand.
His 33rd minute kick off went straight out on the full and after he had converted Himeno’s second-half try, he was brushed aside too easily as Tom Roebuck went over late on.
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14. Tomoki Osada – 3
Beaten too easily by Sleightholme as the England winger scored in the left corner on the stroke of half-time.
Osada later held onto the ball when he could have passed inside and was caught out by a Smith dummy fake in defence.
13. Dylan Riley – 6
A game of two halves for the talented centre, who was a threat with ball in hand but was targeted too often in defence. It was through the gap between him and centre partner Siosaia Fifita that England profited for Ben Earl’s opening try and it was a trick they repeated.
However, he set up the try for his captain and was a thorn in England’s side whenever Japan were able to get him the ball in open space.
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12. Siosaia Fifita – 7
Missed a tackle on Ollie Lawrence in the move that led to England’s opening try but was generally a positive influence in defence, making five tackles in the first half alone.
Helped create Japan’s first-half try for Saito and was a willing carrier in midfield throughout.
11. Jone Naikabula – 4
Chose to hack a Riley kick when he could have gathered and the ball went straight into touch. Took one for the team by conceding a defensive penalty in the first quarter but could not stop Underhill moments later.
Lawrence bounced off an attempted tackle midway through the first hald and he missed three tackles in all. Was not able to impose himself physically.
10. Nicholas McCurran – 4
A difficult evening for the fly-half whose pack were under pressure for most of it. Completed five tackles in the first half and was required to run more ball than he maybe would have wanted.
An aimless kick into the England 22 early in the second half summed things up.
9. Naoto Saito (captain) – 6
His early penalty attempt was blown wide by the wind and he spent much of the first half playing behind a pack going backwards.
Picked a good line to support Riley and score his side’s first try, which he then converted himself.
1. Takato Okabe – 4
Conceded three penalties in his hour on the pitch, more than any other player. Those infringements proved particularly costly too, as two of them led directly to England tries.
He did win Japan a scrum penalty of their own early in the second half but this will not be a performance that lives long in the memory.
2. Seunghyuk Lee – 5
Answered a late call to start, having initially been named on the bench. Was successful with his first lineout throw – on his own 5m line – but it was messy, forcing his side onto the back foot.
Completed five tackles in the first half and also won Japan’s only turnover in the opening 40 minutes but struggled at scrum time and was replaced at the break.
3. Shuhei Takeuchi – 5
Penalised at a scrum on halfway as his side struggled at the set piece. Put in a defensive shift, though completing the joint-most tackles in the first half (eight), along with teammate Epineri Uluiviti.
Was one of two front-row changes made by Eddie Jones at half-time.
4. Sanaila Waqa – 4
Put in a big tackle on Sleightholme midway through the first half but it was one of only three in his 50 or so minutes on the pitch.
Moments later he gave away a penalty for a tackle off the ball, Marcus Smith drilled it into the corner and England scored from the resulting lineout. Such is life at Test level.
5. Epineri Uluiviti – 6
Completed five tackles within first 18 minutes. Coupled that with a linebreak that was let down by an errant offload. Also guilty of a tackle off the ball in the opening quarter.
Completed eight tackles by the end of the first half, which was the joint most.
6. Kanji Shimokawa – 4
Missed two of the six tackles he attempted and was unable to assert himself on the contest as England put Japan under real pressure. He was replaced early in the second half just as the Brave Blossoms were beginning to earn parity.
7. Kazuki Himeno – 7
Jones has challenged him to become the best back-row in the world but on this evidence he has some work to do. Some nice early carries around the ruck and always a willing runner, making more carries than any other player (15).
He also completed eight of his 10 attempted tackles. Moved to No8 early in the second half and clearly enjoyed himself. Helped get the Japanese scrum moving forward and scored his side’s second try.
8. Faulua Makisi – 3
The No8’s half was summed up in the final minute as he gave away a penalty for a neck roll just as the Brave Blossoms were building pressure inside the England 22.
Missed four tackles in the opening 40 minutes and was replaced early in the second half.
Replacements:
16. Kenta Matsuoka – 5
Initially shored up the Japan scrum and lineout but his overthrow led to England’s sixth try.
17. Yukio Morikawa – 5
Came on in the final quarter and didn’t put a foot wrong, but wasn’t able to turn the tide in Japan’s favour.
18. Keijiro Tamefusa – 6
Another who momentarily at least helped Japan gain parity at scrum time. That impact wore off as the half ticked on.
19. Daichi Akiyama – 5
Thrust into the battle early in the second half but was unable to have much of an impact.
20. Tevita Tatafu – 6
Showed some good hands in the build-up to Himeno’s try and can be happy with his cameo.
21. Ben Gunter – 6
Came on and allowed Himeno to shift to No8. Was part of a scrum that began to creep forward.
22. Shinobu Fujiwara – 5
Came on in the final quarter and another who did nothing wrong but wasn’t able to drive the Brave Blossoms forward.
23. Yusuke Kajimura – 5
Showed some nice touches in his 17 minutes of the pitch but most of his work was defensive. Could do little to stem the late England tide.
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