Jones praises effort of team

YOKOHAMA (May 26) – Japan coach Eddie Jones said his team were heading in the right direction despite the disappointment of losing to Tonga in their IRB Pacific Nations Cup opener.

“I am disappointed but with the result but not disappointed with the effort of the players,” he said following the 27-17 loss at Nippatsu Mitsuzawa Stadium.

Jones admitted his side had got off to a poor start but said he was pleased with the effort shown in the second half.

“We took the ball forward and defended a lot better and it was real credit.”

However, he admitted that on the day his side were second best.

“Tonga deserved to win. But they had just one opportunity that they didn’t finish, while we had four. But that’s top level rugby. And we will learn from it. Apart from Hirotoki Onozawa we have a really young back line that can play at the next two World Cups. They need to learn from matches like that. You can only get experience through hard results like that.”

Takashi Kikutani echoed his coach’s comments, saying the team had played well in the second half but that their reaction and speed hadn’t been up to scratch.

Like Jones, he said Japan’s problems were at the breakdown and in receiving kick-offs.

Jones praised the Tongan defensive effort saying, “We had difficulty getting quick ball and lost our shape in attack.”

He was full of praise for the scrum, however, though he did add that the Japanese players just need to back themselves a bit more.

“We need to hit harder so we really put them on the back foot.”