Test Match No. 51: Canadian Tour 1976, game 4

日本語 Photo Journal
12 May 1976 at Swangard
●Japan 7-38 Canada BC state team○
Coach and players both too immature to beat Canada
 
Data:
12/05/76
Japan 7 Canada (British Columbia Representatives) 38
Swangard Stadium, Vancouver
Half-time: 3-16
Referee: Dave Brockington (Canada)
Touch Judges: Al Langley (Canada), Bob Richardson (Canada)
Crowd: close to 3,000
 
JAPAN: 15 Nobuyuki Ueyama, 14 Masao Yoshida, 13 Shigetaka Mori (-- Yoichiro Minamikawa 60+), 12 Nobufumi Tanaka, 11 Hirotaka Ujino, 10 Yuji Matsuo, 9 Takeo Tsuyama, 8 Ichiro Kobayashi, 7 Kyoichi Toyoyama, 6 Hirotsugu Atou, 5 Ryuichiro Fukurodate, 4 Koichi Shibata, 3 Takeshi Nakayama, 2 Manabu Sasada, 1 Tsukasa Takata (capt).
Try: Ujino; Penalty Goal: Matsuo.
 
CANADA: 15 G. Barry Legh, 14 Wes Thomas, 13 Stu Barber, 12 J. Robbie Greig, 11 Spence G. McTavish, 10 John M. Billingsley, 9 J. Preston Wiley, 8 Gary Johnston, 7 Tony Scott, 6 Ken Wilke, 5 Hans de Goede, 4 Ro E. Hindson, 3 Chris E. Le Fevre, 2 Barclay Logan, 1 Mike A. Eckardt.
Tries: Greig (2), Thomas (2), McTavish (2), Legh, Hindson; Conversions: Wiley (3).
 
Scoring sequence (Japan's score shown first): 10min-try Canada, Greig; conv. Wiley (missed)-0-4, 12min-try Canada, Thomas; conv. Wiley (missed)-0-8, 14min-pen Canada, Wiley (missed), 21min-pen Japan, Matsuo (missed)-0-8, 23min-pen Japan, Matsuo (missed)-0-8, 24min-pen Japan, Matsuo-3-8, 26min-try Canada, McTavish; conv. Wiley (missed)-3-12, 39min-try Canada, Thomas; conv. Wiley (missed)-3-16, Half-time, 50min pen Japan, Matsuo (missed), 53min-try Canada, Greig; conv. Wiley (missed)-3-20, 55min pen Japan, Matsuo (missed), 59min pen Japan, Matsuo (missed), --min-try Canada, McTavish; conv. Wiley-3-26, --min-try Canada, Legh; conv. Wiley-3-32, --min-try Canada, Hindson; conv. Wiley-3-38, 72min-try Japan, Ujino; conv. Matsuo (missed)-7-38.
 


Japan was aiming to rejuvenate the team over a few years as well as increasing its size. However, we became acutely aware that it was perhaps disrespectful to the opponent if Japan did not play with its best members of the year. Needless to say, the selected players did their best, but it is a fact that a young team do require time and experience in order to become strong enough.
The team was, as pointed out by newspapers, “the youngest ever Japanese national team, as young as a student team,” and the coach was underskilled. The results of the tour were one win and four losses. The test match against British Columbia ended in an ugly loss for Japan, scoring only one try and one penalty and conceding eight tries. “There were many areas for strategic improvement: we could not stop the scrum side attack, there were too many kicks, and we tackled too high. I feel deeply responsible for this loss,” commented coach Hibino.