Japan's big comeback win against Canada in Burnaby was one of the largest half time deficits any side has successfully overcome in international rugby history.
To be over two converted tries down at half time, and then still comeback to win is a rare thing in international rugby. Japan's astonishing second half comeback was only the 7th time in a full international it’s happened, the most recent before of course being New Zealand's epic recovery against Ireland in the final seconds.
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| The biggest comebacks from half time in international rugby |
Japan's comeback doubled the previous biggest half time deficit of 8 points they have successfully recovered from. The 16 point margin was equal to the famous game of two halves in the Heineken Cup final of 2011, when Leinster surged back to beat Northampton at the Millennium Stadium.
The Japanese comeback against Canada should rank up there as possibly the best win under Eddie Jones' reign so far, overtaking the win away in Georgia and the win against Wales. Even though it may not have been the absolute greatest performance pound for pound under Jones, the result, the way it was achieved and the fact it took place away from the home make it a big deal for the side.
It shows mental resilience and belief to comeback from 25-9 behind in a foreign environment, and the mental aspect of the game has been something which Japan has sometimes struggled with in the past. With this result, supplemented by another away win in the USA and it would leave Japan with some very handy momentum going into the big game against Italy in Tokyo.
Watched the entire match. Hell of a game. It's not like Canada went to pieces. Japan just played great rugby.
ReplyDeleteJapan is a phenomenon that defies logic.
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