Japan A; 26 (Takuhei Yasuda 1 try, Syokei Kin 1 try, Doga Maeda 1 try, Ryoto Nakamura 3 con, 1 pen)

Tonga A; 8 (Tuihakavalu Ika 1 try, Sosefo Ma’ake 1 pen)

What happened; Japan A established their first win in the 2016 World Rugby Pacific Rugby Challenge when they thrashed Tonga A 26-8 at the ANZ Stadium in Suva yesterday.

The Japanese braved the heat in Laucala, to put up a sterling performance. They looked sharp in their attacking line, which continuously pressured the Tongan defence into mistakes.

However, Tonga recorded the first points of the match through a try to Tu’Ihakavalu Ika before Japan A replied with a try to Takuhei Yasuda and converted by Ryoto Nakamura.

The Japanese continued to dominate possession putting the Tongans under extreme pressure, which saw them commit simple mistakes allowing Nakamuri to slot in another penalty. The Tongans replied with a penalty through halfback Sosefo Ma’ake as Japan A led 10-8 at the breather.

The Japanese regrouped well in the second half as they penetrated through the Tongan defence to score their second try through skipper Syokei Kin while Nakamura was successful with the conversion. Great work from the Japanese forwards in the breakdown area was where they won many possessions and took on the might of the Tongan forwards.

Japan A scored their final try through Doga Maeda in the dying moments of the match and Nakamura again scored the extra points.

Big Play: The Japan A forward pack displayed a magnificent performance in the second half as they drove the huge Tongan forwards backward on a number of occasion.

Comments; Japan A skipper, Syokei Kin said they need to prepare well for their next game

“We are not satisfied. We need good preparation in our next game,” Kin said.

Tonga A skipper Sione Lolohea said they need to improve on certain areas of their game.

“Today’s (yesterday) game we made a lot of errors which we need to fix before the next game especially in our ball handling and ruck area,” Lolohea said.

Edited by Leone Cabenatabua

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