Test Match No. 128: the 3rd Rugby World Cup (South Africa), game 3

日本語 Photo Journal
4 June 1995 in Bloemfontein
●Japan 17-145 New Zealand○
Lost to NZ by the highest recorded points
 
Data:
04/06/95, the 3rd WC Pool C
Japan 17 New Zealand 145
Free State Stadium, Springbok Park, Bloemfontein
Half-time: 3-84
Referee: George Gadjovich (Canada)
Touch Judges: Ed Morrison (England), Niculae Chiciu (Romania)
Crowd: 25,000
 
JAPAN: 15 Tsutomu Matsuda, 14 Lopeti Oto, 13 Akira Yoshida, 12 Yukio Motoki, 11 Yoshihito Yoshida, 10 Keiji Hirose, 9 Wataru Murata, 8 Sinali Latu (21 Takashi Akatsuka 56), 7 Ko Izawa-Nakamura, 6 Hiroyuki Kajihara, 5 Bruce Ferguson, 4 Yoshihiko Sakuraba, 3 Kazuaki Takahashi, 2 Masahiro Kunda (capt), 1 Osamu Ota.
Reserves: 16 Masami Horikoshi, 17 Katsuhiro Matsuo, 18 Kiyoshi Imaizumi, 19 Eiji Hirotsu, 20 Masanori Takura.
Tries: Kajihara (2); Conversions: Hirose (2); Penalty Goal: Hirose.
 
NEW ZEALAND: 15 Glen Matthew Osborne, 14 Jeffrey William ('Jeff') Wilson, 13 Marc Christopher Gwynne Ellis, 12 Alama I. Ieremia, 11 Erick James Rush, 10 Simon D. Culhane, 9 Ant D. Strachan, 8 Zinzan Valentine Brooke, 7 Paul William Henderson (capt), 6 Kevin J. Shuler, 5 Robin M. Brooke, 4 Blair P. Larsen (19 Jamie W. Joseph 16), 3 Richard Willie Loe, 2 Norm J. Hewitt, 1 Craig W. Dowd.
Reserves: 16 Walter Kenneth Little, 17 Andrew Mehrtens, 18 Graeme Bachop, 20 Olo Max Brown, 21 Sean Brian Thomas Fitzpatrick.
Tries: Ellis (6), Rush (3), Wilson (3), Osborne (2), R. Brooke (2), Loe, Ieremia, Culhane, Dowd, Henderson; Conversions: Culhane (20).
 
Scoring sequence (Japan's score shown first): 2min-try New Zealand, Rush; conv. Culhane-0-7, 6min-try New Zealand, Loe; conv. Culhane-0-14, 8min-try New Zealand, Ellis; conv. Culhane-0-21, 12min-try New Zealand, Ellis; conv. Culhane-0-28, 15min-try New Zealand, Larsen; conv. Culhane-0-35, 19min-try New Zealand, Osborne; conv. Culhane-0-42, 22min-try New Zealand, Ieremia; conv. Culhane-0-49, 27min-try New Zealand, Culhane; conv. Culhane-0-56, 29min-try New Zealand, Wilson; conv. Culhane-0-63, 33min-try New Zealand, Ellis; conv. Culhane-0-70, 35min-pen Japan, Hirose-3-70, 38min-try New Zealand, Wilson; conv. Culhane-3-77, 40min-try New Zealand, Rush; conv. Culhane-3-84, Half-time, 41min-try New Zealand, Osborne; conv. Culhane-3-89, 43min-try New Zealand, Ellis; conv. Culhane-3-96, 47min-try Japan, Kajihara; conv. Hirose-10-96, 50min-try New Zealand, Dowd; conv. Culhane-10-103, 58min-try New Zealand, R. Brooke; conv. Culhane-10-110, 65min-try Japan, Kajihara; conv. Hirose-17-110, 68min-try New Zealand, Ellis; conv. Culhane-17-117, 71min-try New Zealand, Ellis; conv. Culhane-17-124, 74min-try New Zealand, Rush; conv. Culhane-17-131, 76min-try New Zealand, Wilson; conv. Culhane-17-138, 78min-try New Zealand, Henderson; conv. Culhane-17-145.
 


We knew that the opponent was too strong for us anyway. Still, I am sad that this record will never be broken as long as the rugby World Cup continues. Japan, who has just advanced to the “top division” so to speak, was smashed by the champion on the real stage. Japan exposed their weakness rather than improvement to the world. They will have to restart in the lower division.
Japan faced an ugly loss against New Zealand by the highest recorded points of 17-145. The former record in the World Cup was 89 points, and the worst points Japan conceded in a test match was 106 (4-106 against NZ in 1987). NZ opened the scoring with a try as soon as the game started. They easily broke through Japan's defence and kept scoring a try every few minutes. Japan scored only two tries by Kajihara in the second half.