Allan Bateman secured Wales’s first score after just six minutes with Neil Jenkins converting the additional two. Robert Howley gained Wales’s second but Jenkins was unsuccessful with the conversion. A penalty try was awarded soon after the twenty minute mark; Jenkins regained his composure to stretch the Welsh lead to 19-0.
Wales were caught dozing in the last twenty minutes of the first half. Japan secured their first try of the game through wing Daisuke Ohata. The lucky conversion, taken by Keiji Hirose, landed on the crossbar and bounced over for the additional two points. Mark Taylor pulled a five pointer back for the Welsh with the reliable boot of the Pontypridd fly-half adding the conversion. The second Japanese try, the second in seventeen minutes, was then touched down by Patiliai Tuidraki. Though he missed the conversion Hirose added a penalty, again off the crossbar and over, before the half-time whistle pulling the score back to a respectable 26-15 before the interval.
Wales returned to the pitch rejuvenated and had a dazzling twenty-minute period after the restart. Scott Gibbs, Shane Howarth, Taylor and David Llewellyn all crossed the line; the outstanding Jenkins added all four conversions plus a penalty in between the Welsh try-scoring demonstration. Gareth Thomas added the final try and Jenkins secured his ninth success of the game.
Much had been surmised prior to the match of Jenkins passing the leading points-scorer in test rugby, Australian Michael Lynagh. In this match Jenkins succeeded in equalling Lynagh’s 911 points total, but had not surpassed it. He would have to wait until the match with Samoa until he achieved this personal record.
The sixty-four points haul had been the third-best achieved by Wales. Though the Welsh win was never in doubt the Japanese side, consisting of former All Blacks Jamie Joseph, Rob Gordon and Graeme Bachop, always looked ready to attack. The try-scorer Ohata looked dangerous on the wing, as predicted by Henry before the game. Although Wales put in a brilliant performance in the second half Japan still had enough energy to launch one last counter-attack; French referee Joel Dume disallowed the Japanese try-score due to foul play.
With two wins from two Wales looked set to qualify for the quarter-final stages for the first time since the inaugural competition in 1987. As Argentina had gained a win against Samoa, should Wales slip up against the Polynesians, as they had done in 1991, they could still top Pool D and progress without the need of a quarter-final play-off.
