Rugby World cup 23 : Eng move to QF with Japan win over Samoa

  


Japan withstood an ominous  fightback by 14-man Samoa to win 28-22 in Toulouse in the latest game , tightening their grip on second place in World Cup Pool D and ensuring leaders England would reach the quarter-finals.



Japan looked more compact in both defence and  attack as they built a 17-point lead with a man advantage with 15 minutes to go. However  Samoa struck twice as Japan ended up clinging on to their World Cup hopes.



Japan can ensure they join England in the quarter-finals if they beat Argentina on the last day of pool matches on Oct 8. Samoa wrap up their campaign against England.



Japan took the lead after 13 minutes, swinging the ball across the field for flanker Pieter Labuschagne to smash through the remnants of the stretched Samoan defence by the left corner flag.


For the next 20 minutes, Samoa emphatically won the close physical battles, dominating the rucks and mauls and drawing a string of penalties but scoring only a 25th-minute penalty kicked by Alai D’Angelo Leuila. Rikiya Matsuda quickly replied for Japan .


Though Japan kept themselves ahead in the game, the nagging fight by the Samoans kept them on the toes till the end of the match as Japan just managed to protect their lead in a tough 28-22 win .


Meanwhile in an earlier match , Uruguay secured their first win at this year’s Rugby World Cup, fighting back to beat Namibia 36-26 in their Pool A meeting in Lyon.

Namibia led 14-0 early on and 23-12 soon after half-time, but were punished for ill-discipline as their bid for a first-ever World Cup win fell short.


Namibia after three heavy defeats looked the better side at the start as Uruguay looked ragged .


However at the backend Uruguay found a way to fightback and win as a fatigued  Namibia could not maintain their flying start .

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