THIS FELT LIKE a landmark day for Ireland’s progression under Greg McWilliams, Niamh Briggs and co.
For all the concerns about the Japanese humidity and the speed of the hosts’ attack, it was the tourists who brought the heat and obliterated their opponents.
Nine tries, including a hat-trick off the rolling maul by hooker Neve Jones, tell most of the story. What might easily be forgotten is that Ireland started this game by falling 15-0 behind, and the 57-22 victory is their biggest ever comeback — their previous best being a recovery from 14-0 down against the same opposition in the 2017 World Cup.
The inauspicious start gave way to a masterclass from all 23 involved, punctuated with the final kick of the game by superb debutante out-half Dannah O’Brien who, forced to drop-kick her ninth conversion attempt after the ball fell off the tee, split the posts from hand.
The hosts were took a three-score lead on the quarter-hour mark through the boot of Ayasa Otsuka, who kicked a penalty shortly after left wing Komachi Imakugi touched down for Japan’s second try.
Remarkably, from that point onwards, Ireland bent the game to their will.
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Their set piece was virtually flawless and a rolling maul resulted in their putting their first points on the scoreboard, Neve Jones crashing over for her first of three tries in the seventeenth minute. Teenager O’Brien slotted her conversion.
Five minutes later, from a visitors’ scrum, Enya Breen dummied off first phase and found a hole in the Japanese defence. The inside centre fed first-cap fullback Méabh Deely who burst into the hosts’ 22′ and popped a perfectly timed pass for Aoife Doyle to touch down in the left-hand corner.
Virtually the rest of the first half was a midfield arm-wrestle, but one in which Ireland were slowly beginning to assert dominance at the breakdown and in the collision.
It was a captain doing captain things who broke that particular deadlock: Nichola Fryday won a jackal-turnover penalty near halfway and O’Brien booted Ireland into Japan’s 22′. From there, a clinical backline move put outside centre Aoife Dalton through the hosts’ rearguard for what felt like a crucial score. With O’Brien’s conversion, Ireland took a 19-15 lead into the dressing room.
They picked up where they left off after the interval, Jones again dotting down from the lineout maul to push the lead to two scores.
Ireland had well and truly hit their stride and on 52 minutes, you knew the drill as soon as they set up a lineout from the Japanese 5′. Jones crossed for her third, Ireland’s fourth, and O’Brien’s conversion made it 31-15.
Five minutes on, a peach: Enya Breen’s flat, exquisite pass on halfway split the Japanese defence and invited fullback Deely to take one all the way to the house. O’Brien added the afters.
Japan replied via Makoto Lavemai from the quick tap — and Ireland were napping on their own line, there — but McWilliams’ side proved that only a blip when replacement prop Chloe Pearse turned defence into attack on 68 minutes. The UL Bohs woman charged down a clearing kick, controlling the ball well with her own feet before touching down.
Over went another sub, Molly Scuffil-McCabe, two minutes later: in for Ailsa Hughes at scrum-half, the Railway Union woman picked from the base of a ruck and backed her pace to sprint for the line from all of 60 yards, riding a last-ditch high tackle in order to score. O’Brien’s boot took Ireland’s tally out to 50.
On 77 minutes, the 18-year-old out-half dropped a sumptuous kick into the path of right wing Natasja Behan, who collected it brilliantly on the hop and made her way into the Japanese 22′. Ireland built the phases and were inches away from what might have been their most universally impressive try of the day, only for the otherwise brilliant Breen to spill the ball over the line as she reached for chalk.
From the resulting scrum, however, Ireland won a free-kick for an early shove by Japan and sub hooker Emma Hooban eventually went over after an assault on the Japanese line.
Ireland’s state of flow was accentuated by O’Brien drop-kicking her final conversion and splitting the posts.
Japan’s state of shellshock was demonstrable.
The tourists took the first test in Fukuroi city, Shizuoka with their best display under McWilliams. They’ll head to Tokyo for the second test imbued by a complete performance, and evidence that their work in the searing heat all week has paid off in spades.
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Ireland scorch hosts Japan in sensational nine-try display
THIS FELT LIKE a landmark day for Ireland’s progression under Greg McWilliams, Niamh Briggs and co.
For all the concerns about the Japanese humidity and the speed of the hosts’ attack, it was the tourists who brought the heat and obliterated their opponents.
Nine tries, including a hat-trick off the rolling maul by hooker Neve Jones, tell most of the story. What might easily be forgotten is that Ireland started this game by falling 15-0 behind, and the 57-22 victory is their biggest ever comeback — their previous best being a recovery from 14-0 down against the same opposition in the 2017 World Cup.
The inauspicious start gave way to a masterclass from all 23 involved, punctuated with the final kick of the game by superb debutante out-half Dannah O’Brien who, forced to drop-kick her ninth conversion attempt after the ball fell off the tee, split the posts from hand.
The hosts were took a three-score lead on the quarter-hour mark through the boot of Ayasa Otsuka, who kicked a penalty shortly after left wing Komachi Imakugi touched down for Japan’s second try.
Remarkably, from that point onwards, Ireland bent the game to their will.
Their set piece was virtually flawless and a rolling maul resulted in their putting their first points on the scoreboard, Neve Jones crashing over for her first of three tries in the seventeenth minute. Teenager O’Brien slotted her conversion.
Five minutes later, from a visitors’ scrum, Enya Breen dummied off first phase and found a hole in the Japanese defence. The inside centre fed first-cap fullback Méabh Deely who burst into the hosts’ 22′ and popped a perfectly timed pass for Aoife Doyle to touch down in the left-hand corner.
Virtually the rest of the first half was a midfield arm-wrestle, but one in which Ireland were slowly beginning to assert dominance at the breakdown and in the collision.
It was a captain doing captain things who broke that particular deadlock: Nichola Fryday won a jackal-turnover penalty near halfway and O’Brien booted Ireland into Japan’s 22′. From there, a clinical backline move put outside centre Aoife Dalton through the hosts’ rearguard for what felt like a crucial score. With O’Brien’s conversion, Ireland took a 19-15 lead into the dressing room.
They picked up where they left off after the interval, Jones again dotting down from the lineout maul to push the lead to two scores.
Ireland had well and truly hit their stride and on 52 minutes, you knew the drill as soon as they set up a lineout from the Japanese 5′. Jones crossed for her third, Ireland’s fourth, and O’Brien’s conversion made it 31-15.
Five minutes on, a peach: Enya Breen’s flat, exquisite pass on halfway split the Japanese defence and invited fullback Deely to take one all the way to the house. O’Brien added the afters.
Japan replied via Makoto Lavemai from the quick tap — and Ireland were napping on their own line, there — but McWilliams’ side proved that only a blip when replacement prop Chloe Pearse turned defence into attack on 68 minutes. The UL Bohs woman charged down a clearing kick, controlling the ball well with her own feet before touching down.
Over went another sub, Molly Scuffil-McCabe, two minutes later: in for Ailsa Hughes at scrum-half, the Railway Union woman picked from the base of a ruck and backed her pace to sprint for the line from all of 60 yards, riding a last-ditch high tackle in order to score. O’Brien’s boot took Ireland’s tally out to 50.
On 77 minutes, the 18-year-old out-half dropped a sumptuous kick into the path of right wing Natasja Behan, who collected it brilliantly on the hop and made her way into the Japanese 22′. Ireland built the phases and were inches away from what might have been their most universally impressive try of the day, only for the otherwise brilliant Breen to spill the ball over the line as she reached for chalk.
From the resulting scrum, however, Ireland won a free-kick for an early shove by Japan and sub hooker Emma Hooban eventually went over after an assault on the Japanese line.
Ireland’s state of flow was accentuated by O’Brien drop-kicking her final conversion and splitting the posts.
Japan’s state of shellshock was demonstrable.
The tourists took the first test in Fukuroi city, Shizuoka with their best display under McWilliams. They’ll head to Tokyo for the second test imbued by a complete performance, and evidence that their work in the searing heat all week has paid off in spades.
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