LAUTOKA, Fiji — Japan played its first-round game Saturday in the Pacific Nations Cup against Fiji at the Churchill Rugby Ground here in hot afternoon conditions.
Japan put pressure on the opponents in the first half and Fiji couldn't penetrate past the Japanese defense.
Fiji, however, earned a 30-15 victory.
It didn't start out on a high note for the hosts, though, as Fiji's youngest, emerging player, Taniela Rawaqa, missed a penalty kick in the third minute.
Lock Luke Thompson scored the first try by winning the ball on the line-out in the 18th minute, while Eiji Ando missed the conversion but scored a penalty kick from the 40-meter line in the 32nd minute.
Five minutes before halftime from a line-out at the 22-meter line, Luke Thompson passed the ball outside from the ruck that full back Goshi Tachikawa finished with a left-side try. Then Ando successfully converted.
Japan led 15-3 at halftime.
"The first half was a bit scary," said Fiji coach Ilivasi Tabua. "At halftime I told the boys, the first half is finished, we can learn from it. We need to concentrate on what's coming. In the second half, we could go back to our style, rather than being dictated by Japan."
The second-half story line followed Tabua's plea.
The Fijians gathered their strength after their initial surprise, showing a more focused and fast-paced game.
Rawaqa placed a penalty kick in the first minute, following Ando's no-touch kick miss in the 10th minute, which earned the Fijian team the chance for a quick, wide counterattack.
Rawaqa scored a try and successfully converted from a hard angle from the left-side line.
From the restarted kickoff, flanker Netani Talei earned the ball on a beautiful back pass and scored another try.