In a decisive display of attacking rugby at Tokyo’s National Stadium on Saturday, the Six Nations champions France wrapped up a three-week summer tour with a 42-15 win over host Japan in the inaugural 12-team World Rugby Nations Championship. The result caps off a mixed but ultimately successful run for the French side, which opened the new tournament with a narrow 34-32 defeat to New Zealand’s All Blacks before bouncing back to beat Australia 42-26 in Brisbane a week prior to facing the Brave Blossoms.
The opening half of the match proved far more competitive than the final scoreline suggests, with Japan matching France’s physical intensity across the pitch and keeping the game within one score going into the halftime break. France got off to a blistering start, taking the lead just two minutes in after hooker Maxime Lamothe crossed the line following a close-range lineout drive. Japan responded quickly, however: fullback Takuro Matsunaga slotted a penalty to cut the deficit, then sparked a blistering long-range counter-attack from his own 22-meter line that saw winger Kippei Ishida finish the move in the left corner, putting Japan up 8-5 by the 15th minute.
France seized control of the match over the next 20 minutes, capitalizing on sustained forward pressure that earned Japan lock Harry Hockings a yellow card for repeated infringements. Fullback Matthieu Jalibert scored his first try of the night in the 19th minute, followed just four minutes later by a five-pointer from No. 8 Alexandre Roumat that extended France’s lead. Skipper and scrumhalf Maxime Lucu put the result out of immediate reach for Japan just before the half-hour mark, darting over the line after a strong, contact-breaking run from Lamothe to secure France’s fourth try and the all-important bonus competition point.
Japan refused to wilt under pressure, though, and crossed for a second try four minutes before halftime to cut France’s lead to 28-15 going into the break, keeping their hopes of an upset alive.
Those hopes faded quickly in the early stages of the second half, as France scored two quick tries to pull away out of sight. Jalibert notched his second try of the match in the 43rd minute, adjusting his running angle to take a short inside pass from Lucu and cross near the posts for an easy score. Lamothe followed suit eight minutes later, touching down after another sustained period of pressure from France’s powerful forward pack to push the score to 42-15.
The final 20 minutes saw a shift in momentum after Jalibert was sent to the sin bin for a high tackle in the 58th minute. While Japan was unable to convert their one-man advantage into any points during the 10-minute power play, they successfully halted France’s scoring run. A late Japanese try was disallowed by officials in the 63rd minute, and the home side failed to put any more points on the board in the final half-hour of the hot, humid Tokyo evening.
For Japan, the result leaves them with a 1-2 record after the first phase of the Nations Championship, having opened the tournament with a 27-10 win over Italy before dropping consecutive matches to Ireland and France.