Fiji and Japan both completed a perfect Asahi Super Dry Pacific Nations Cup 2024 pool stage as the Finals Series line-up was confirmed.
The Flying Fijians were made to work hard in Nuku’alofa before three second-half tries made sure of a 50-19 defeat of Tonga and top spot in Pool A.
Fiji will play USA in Saturday’s opening semi-final in Tokyo after the Men’s Eagles fell to a 41-24 defeat to Japan at Kumagaya Rugby Stadium.
Japan’s reward for a confident display is first place in Pool B and a semi-final against Samoa on Sunday. Tonga will take on Canada in the fifth-place play-off as the Finals Series gets underway at Prince Chichibu Memorial Stadium.
As the teams prepare for those matches we recap six things we learned from the weekend.
Japan look team to beat on home soil
Nothing is certain in sport – that is what makes it so engrossing – but Japan looked imperious as they played in front of their own fans for the first time in this year’s competition.
From the moment USA captain Greg Peterson knocked on the opening kick-off, there seemed little doubt which way the match would go. Yet, this was a victory built on the brilliance of the hosts rather than any Men’s Eagles mistakes.
Centre Dylan Riley, who scored the pick of the Brave Blossoms’ five tries with a slaloming second-half effort, was probably the brightest spark in cherry and white but there were plenty of reasons for Eddie Jones to be cheerful as he enjoyed the first home win of his second stint in charge.
Warner Dearns was again imperious in the second row, while Tiennan Costley had a match to remember at blindside. In the backs, meanwhile, Malo Tuitama continued the fine start to his test career and Shinobu Fujiwara complemented the astute Seungsin Lee in the half-backs.
With the Finals Series set to be played on consecutive weekends in Tokyo and Osaka, the hosts are looking every inch Pacific Nations Cup favourites.
Lee drives Japan forward
Although Riley has rightly hoovered up the headlines following a stunning display against USA, victory owed much to the calming presence of fly-half Lee.
It was Lee’s delicate chip over the American defence in the 14th minute that found the rampaging Riley, whose deft offload created the opening try for his centre partner Nicholas McCurran.
By that stage, Lee had already got the scoreboard ticking with a penalty and his nerveless accuracy from the tee was crucial at Kumagaya Rugby Stadium. The fly-half finished the match with 16 points, having been successful with all seven of his attempts at goal.
He also kicked 482 metres in open play – more than three times the distance of his opposite number Luke Carty – allowing Japan to play in the right areas of the pitch for the majority of the match.
Semi-final opponents Samoa will know that to be successful on Sunday they must find a way to disrupt Japan’s unflappable number 10.
Augspurger shines for USA
Despite their defeat, USA coach Scott Lawrence can still take heart from aspects of his side’s performance as they prepare to face Fiji on Saturday.
The introduction of replacement Moni Tongahuia in the second half helped the Men’s Eagles wrestle some momentum and it was no coincidence that they threatened a comeback with the flanker on the pitch.
Nate Augspurger was the player who capitalised, scoring a brace of tries in the space of seven second-half minutes.
The tries not only displayed Augspurger’s ability to finish but highlighted his work rate and knack of knowing when an opportunity is about to present itself. It should perhaps come as little surprise that he began his international career as a scrum-half.
Cause for Fijian concern?
There was much for Fiji coach Mick Byrne to be pleased with in Nuku’alofa as his side secured top spot in Pool A with room to spare.
Needing only one match point to make sure of their place in the semi-finals, the Flying Fijians wrapped up a try-scoring bonus point on the stroke of half-time. They then went on to score a further 24 unanswered points in the second half to confirm a comfortable victory.
That being said, there might still be a sense of concern in Byrne’s coaching staff about the manner in which they gave Tonga a potential route back into the game in the second quarter of the match.
Fiji had been imperious in the opening exchanges, running in three tries with barely 10 minutes on the clock and giving their hosts little more than scraps to live off. Yet, that changed as soon as Adrea Cocagi was shown a red card.
In the 20 minutes in which they were reduced to 14 players, Fiji struggled to cope with Tonga’s numerical advantage and allowed a 19-0 lead to be wiped out. In the end it mattered little as they regained superiority as soon as they were back up to 15, but it is something they will need to work on ahead of the semi-finals.
Future is here for Fiji
On a more positive note, there were some incredibly important performances from those in white at Teufaiva Stadium.
Hooker Tevita Ikanivere turned in a brilliant performance in his second match as captain. The added responsibility does not appear to weigh heavily and the impressive hooker danced his way through the Tongan defence to score his side’s second try less than five minutes in.
In the midfield, meanwhile, Olympic hero Iosefo Baleiwairiki was at his imperious best as he capped a brilliant all-round performance with two tries.
Baleiwairiki scored Fiji’s first and seventh tries in Nuku’alofa and ended the match with 173 metres gained from 15 carries; breaking through three tackles and making two linebreaks in the process.
As Philip Bendon noted on RugbyPass, it was a performance that suggested Fiji might have found the long-term successor to Waisea Nayacalevu in the number 13 jersey.
Pellegrini, Inisi give Tonga hope
It was not all doom and gloom for the hosts in Tonga. It might have been tough going for much of the contest, but ‘Ikale Tahi did not disgrace themselves by any measure.
Lotu Inisi, for example, continues to showcase his Super Rugby Pacific form on the test stage and contributed on both sides of the ball in Nuku’alofa, finishing the match with 10 carries and 12 tackles.
The only surprise where Inisi was concerned came in the fact that he was not Tonga’s outstanding performer on the day. That accolade fell to fly-half Patrick Pellegrini.
Coventry playmaker Pellegrini endured a difficult afternoon against Samoa in round two but was back to his mercurial best last Friday, conjuring a brace of assists with deft kicks as his confidence returned in abundance.
That they were still in the contest up until the final 10 minutes should also give Tonga heart as they prepare to face Canada in the fifth-place play-off this Saturday.
