Test Match No. 137: The 2nd Pacific Rim Championship, game 2

日本語 Photo Journal
18 May 1997 at Chichibunomiya Rugby Stadium
○Japan 32-31 Canada●
Hirao's men came from behind to defeat Canada
 
Data:
18/05/97, the 2nd Pacific Rim Championship
Japan 32 Canada 31
Prince Chichibu Memorial Ground, Tokyo
Half-time: 17-16
Referee: Paul Martin Haley (Hong Kong)
Touch Judges: 1st Sigeya Hatamoto (Japan), 2nd Kazuhito Taniguchi (Kanto), 3rd Hideomi Miyahara
Crowd: 12,000
 
JAPAN: 15 Kiyoshi Imaizumi, 14 Terunori Masuho, 13 Andrew McCormick, 12 Yukio Motoki (capt), 11 Patiliai Tuidraki (16 Daisuke Ohata 37), 10 Kensuke Iwabuchi, 9 Wataru Murata, 8 Robert Gordon, 7 Takeomi Ito, 6 Ko Izawa-Nakamura, 5 Hiroyuki Tanuma, 4 Yoshihiko Sakuraba, 3 Kazu Hamabe, 2 Masahiro Kunda, 1 Keiji Mizobe.
Reserves: 17 Akira Yoshida, 18 Masami Horikoshi, 19 Hiroyuki Kajihara, 20 Masaaki Sakata, 21 Kazuaki Takahashi.
Tries: Masuho (2), Ito, Murata; Conversions: Murata (3); Penalty Goals: Murata (2).
 
CANADA: 15 Scott Stewart, 14 Winston Stanley, 13 Steve Gray (16 Rob Card 73), 12 Tom Woods (17 Bobby Ross 68), 11 Chal Smyth, 10 Gareth Rees (capt), 9 John Graf, 8 Colin McKenzie, 7 John Hutchinson, 6 Al Charron, 5 Ian Gordon, 4 John Tait, 3 Ricard Bice (21 Brian Mosychuk 73), 2 Adam Marchall, 1 Eddie Evans.
Reserves: 18 C. Robertson, 19 Anthony Healy, 20 Kevin Morgan.
Tries: Graf, Stanley, penalty try; Conversions: Rees (2); Penalty Goals: Rees (3); Drop Goal: Ross.
 
Scoring sequence (Japan's score shown first): 7min-pen Canada, Rees (missed), 16min-try Canada, Graf; conv. Rees-0-7, 19min-try Japan, Ito; conv. Murata-7-7, 22min-try Japan, Masuho; conv. Murata-14-7, 25min- pen Canada, Rees-14-10, 28min-pen Japan, Murata (missed), 32min-pen Canada, Rees-14-13, 35min-pen Canada, Rees-14-16, 37min-pen Japan, Murata-17-16, Half-time, 47min-try Japan, Masuho; conv. Murata-24-16, 52min-try Canada, penalty-try; conv. Rees-24-23, 54min-pen Japan, Murata (missed), 58min-pen Japan, Murata-27-23, 76min-try Canada, Stanley; conv. Rees (missed)-27-28, 81min-drop goal Canada, Rees-27-31, 84min-try Japan, Murata; conv. Murata (missed)-32-31, 85min-drop goal Canada, Ross (missed), 86min-drop goal Canada, Rees (missed).
 


Japan achieved a dramatic come-from-behind win against Canada in the Pacific Rim Championship, in which each country played two matches home and away. It was the first time in 11 years that Japan had beaten Canada.
Japan turned the game around in the added time. Even when Canada scored a drop goal and led the game by four points, Japan did not lose hope. They kept possession of the ball from the kick-off. Motoki made a vertical dash, and from a ruck Murata attacked at the side and jumped to the left corner to score a last-ditch try. Until today, Japan had to shed bitter tears so many times because they could not maintain their concentration to the very end. Today, however, they kept it and won this match. “We never give up until the game is over,” said captain Motoki. “The team stayed focused all through the game. I think we played adequately for an international match,” commented coach Hirao.