Seeing double! Which team would I support for this match?!

Rugby in Japan was very much a minor sport when I first saw the national team in live action back in June 2005 as they were thrashed by Ireland. Things changed a decade later though on the back of that sensational last minute winning try against the mighty South Africa in the 2015 Rugby World Cup. It was perfect timing ahead of them hosting the 2019 tournament and the game has continued to grow and grow.

Whilst I do occasionally long for the old days when it was much easier to get tickets for Brave Blossoms matches (you could just pay on the gate!) I am delighted to have witnessed the growth in the team. I feel a close attachment to them and always want them to win with one exception. That is of course when they play my home country.

Meetings between England and Japan have not taken place too often during my rugby-watching lifetime. Of course England played on Japanese soil seven times in the 2019 Rugby World Cup but this test match was their first time to play the hosts in Japan since May 1979 when they played two matches which were not officially recognised to hold test match status. The first of those nearly saw the home team pull off a shock before a late converted try saved England’s blushes at a time when Japan were nowhere near the force they are today. Would last Saturday’s match at Japan National Stadium have a similar finale?

Still 4 hours till kick off!

The man who masterminded the aforementioned sensational win against the Springboks in 2015 was the Australian Eddie Jones. He was in charge of the Aussie national team when they lost the 2003 Rugby World Cup against England in Sydney. After the 2015 World Cup he was the England head coach for seven years before his Australia reappointment which culminated in a disastrous 2023 World Cup campaign. He is now back at the helm of Japan so he was very much at the center of any hype surrounding last weekend’s clash.

I was really up for the occasion and actually got to the stadium a mere four hours before kick off! There were already a few hundred supporters milling around and being there so early did mean it was easy to get some of the photo opportunities out of the way before the crowds arrived and the lines began to form and grow ever longer. I posed for a couple of cheesy shots in my Japan shirt but then switched to the England one for the rest of the day.

Having rained heavily pretty much non-stop the day before, the match day was thankfully a clear sunny one but with three hours till kick off I decided to take a break from the stadium surroundings so headed down the road to get some lunch and to just relax for a bit in the shade. It was a lot busier when I returned about 90 minutes before kick off!

A staff member was now on hand to take supporters pictures for them in front of the sign below whilst holding on to the match ball with the respective Blossom and Rose emblems on it.

Going into this test match, England had a 100% record against Japan (including two World Cup matches in 1987 and 2023) but this was probably the first to be contested for the Lipovitan D Challenge Cup!

About an hour before kick off I met up with my friends. First to arrive was Hiromi who was at the stadium for the first time. I thought she should walk around the stadium a bit so we headed to the photo spots. We then had to go and meet Mac who was actually in Nice (France) for the teams most recent match-up in last year’s Rugby World Cup group stages. He wanted to get a photo so back round we went again.

On our way inside Mac noticed an aquaintance he knew from previous Rugby World Cups. I also recognised him and was sure I met him 11 years ago when Japan played Samoa down the road at Chichibunomiya Rugby Ground. He did say he was there so it probably was the same guy!

It was quite muggy inside as we finally took our seats in the stand and not long after that the teams emerged from the tunnel for this history-making first official test match played between the sides in Japan.

The crowd all stood for the respective anthems, and Mac belted out the words for both of them loudly and passionately.

It was a strong start from Jones’ inexperienced side and indeed they dominated the first ten minutes or so but only managed to put three points on the board despite being so close to the try line.

England fought back after that and never really looked back. With four tries in the first half it really did seem like it was game over. The best of the four tries was right on half time as Marcus Smith’s wonderful kick found Henry Slade in space on the far side. You could say that Christmas came early for Slade!

The second half was much of the same with England scoring another four tries but  thankfully the Japanese got a couple of tries in quick succession amidst all that to make the score a little bit more respectable. They were great moments, especially the second one, and really brought the crowd to life when they’d been rather subdued because of the scoreline. Mind you, England did put more points on the board after that despite being a man short at one stage.

Rugby icon Michael Leitch was reinstated as captain for this match and he was naturally interviewed after the final whistle along with the England captain Jamie George and the respective coaches too.

Both sides went round the ground to thank the fans for their support with the England team receiving a huge round of applause from the home faithful when they bowed to the crowd.

The prestiguous trophy was finally presented to the England captain and shortly after that Mac and I made our way out (Hiromi had already left) and headed to the station whilst reflecting on all that we had witnessed that afternoon.

It wasn’t quite the contest we’d hoped for and, as expected, England kept up their 100% win rate against the Brave Blossoms. None of that mattered too much though as for us it was all about the occasion and personally I was just happy to have witnessed both sides compete in an international test match.

Final Score: Japan 17-52 England

Click here to read ‘The Highs & Lows Of Watching England’s First Match At The Rugby World Cup In Sapporo’

Click here to read ‘Twists & Turns Aplenty At Japan’s Title-Deciding Rugby Play-Off Final’

Click here to read ‘I Met An England Rugby Union Legend’

Click here to read ‘Rugby World Cup Fever Grips Japan For Six Memorable Weeks Of Action’