Sucked in? The biggest difference revealed by Kiss’ Wallabies
Les Kiss rejected the suggestion that the Wallabies got “sucked in” to a fast and furious spectacle in Osaka after posting his first win as Australia’s coach.
The Wallabies survived Miles Amatosero’s red card to hang on for a 35-32 win against Eddie Jones’ Japan on Saturday night.
A relieved Kiss gave a “well done boys” tick to his players before Stan Sport’s Morgan Turinui suggested the Wallabies might have played into Japan’s hands by engaging in a high tempo, erratic contest in the heat.
“I don’t think we got sucked in by them,” Kiss replied.
“I think we certainly need to just mix it up... a few more direct carries creates a bit more space for us. We probably pulled the trigger fractionally early once or twice, but they’re learnings, you know.
“I want the boys to back themselves, but we’ve also got to know how to temper it and manage the game when we need to.”
Kiss’ former mentor - Japan coach Eddie Jones - meanwhile lamented another one that got away.
Under Joe Schmidt, Australia beat the Brave Blossoms 19-15 in Tokyo last year.
“We let ourselves down with a few fundamental errors in the last 20 minutes where we had an opportunity to probably put Australia away, so I’m pretty disappointed, mate,” Jones told Turinui.
“But, you know, I’m really proud of how hard the players are playing, and you know, there’s a lot of development in this team.”
Jones noted some clear differences in the Wallabies game under Kiss.
“They want to play with greater passes, you know,” he said.
“Under Joe they went to very much half-field type attack, and today they tried to move the ball quicker, which I think Les likes to do, and that’s what he did at London Irish.”
Les Kiss and Harry Wilson of Australia celebrate. Getty Images
Experienced outside backs Harry Potter and Tom Wright crossed for the Wallabies in a first half that finished 14-14, while Japan scored tries through gun university student Ryunosuke Ito and powerful No.8 Faulua Makisi.
Winger Max Jorgensen, flanker Fraser McReight and replacement Taniela Tupou added to Australia’s tally after the break, while tries from Japan flyer Kazuma Ueda and captain Warner Dearns, and two penalties from fullback Takuro Matsunaga, ran the match to the end.
“That was tough, wasn’t it? Not just the conditions,” Kiss said.
“They’re a good team. They play fast and hard at home in their backyard. Probably offered a few too many opportunities for them. We’ll have a look at it. But overall, that’s a Test win. Well done, boys.”
Japan’s rookie playmaker Ito, elevated by Jones from university rugby straight to the national team, opened the scoring with a piece of individual brilliance, jinking past three defenders to touch down under the posts.
But the Wallabies hit straight back with winger Potter eventually capitalising on some sloppy Japanese handling to scythe infield and score.
After the much-needed early water break in the stifling conditions, Australia started to turn the screws.
The forwards pressed their physical advantage and the backs worked the ball wide allowing fullback Wright to find space to score.
The Wallabies looked likely to add to their tally before lock Amatosero was given a 20-minute red card for a high tackle on his opposite number Dearns.
Japan immediately capitalised on the numerical advantage, with the powerful Makisi shrugging off defenders on his way to a converted try that brought the scores level before halftime.
With the teams revitalised, the match began to open up with three tries within eight minutes of the restart.
First, it was 14-man Australia who pulled out some slick offloads to allow winger Max Jorgensen to wriggle over.
Brave Blossoms flyer Kazuma Ueda hit back, finding a weak shoulder and racing through a gap to score.
Then Australia flanker Fraser McReight piled over back down the other end.
Harry Wilson leads his team around the field. Getty Images
Japan’s Matsunaga became the first kicker from either side to miss the mark with his conversion, but he quickly redeemed himself with two penalty goals.
As the match tightened up in the final quarter, Australia showed composure to eventually break down Japan’s dogged defence, allowing replacement Tupou to power over.
Japan refused to give up and after being camped on the Australian line for several phases, captain Dearns managed to burrow through a pile of bodies to find the whitewash, though his side would fall just short.
