Japan backed up their victory over Wales with a hard fought 16-13 win against IRB Pacific Nations Cup 2013 leaders Canada in Nagoya on Wednesday.
While the result does not put Japan in contention for silverware, it will further the ‘feel good’ factor surrounding Rugby in Japan as the nation gears up to host Rugby World Cup 2019.
Canada, undefeated heading into the Japan leg of the compelling tournament, still top the standings on 13 points but, having played all of their fixtures, face a nervous wait to see whether they lift the trophy at the first time of asking.
The result means that there are three teams in with a mathematical chance of claiming the silverware and Fiji, who beat the USA 35-10, are in pole position two points behind Canada, while a win for Tonga against Fiji in Tokyo on Sunday would see the title go to them.
A low-scoring draw would still give the Canadians the silverware.
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IRB Chairman Bernard Lapasset said: “Once again the IRB Pacific Nations Cup has delivered a feast of exciting, high-quality Rugby showcasing the increased standard of performance from Tier Two Rugby nations and underscoring the value of these IRB-funded events to Unions as a high performance platform.”
“There is no doubt that the addition of Canada and USA has added to the spectacle and I am looking forward to another compelling day of action in Tokyo on Sunday.”
Fans wishing to follow the action from the IRB Pacific Nations Cup finale on Sunday will be able to watch LIVE and FREE via www.irb.com/live/video.html starting with Fiji v Tonga in the winner-takes-all contest at 12:00 local time followed by Japan v USA at 14:10 local time.
The offering reaffirms the IRB’s committment to providing fans with all the action from its raft of competitions taking place in the June window. Highlights of the Junior World Championship are also available via the IRB’s YouTube offering.
Updates and information from all the matches will also be available via the @IRBmedia and @IRBjuniors twitter accounts.
