Brave Blossoms Defeat Canada in Niigata
The Brave Blossoms defeated Canada 57-12 in their Lipovitan D Challenge Cup 2026 match at Denka Big Swan Stadium in Niigata on Saturday, extending their unbeaten run against their North American rivals to seven matches on the bounce.
In front of a passionate local crowd of just over 18,000 fans, Japan delivered a dominant performance from start to finish, never allowing Canada to gain a foothold in the match. Having not played in Niigata for 18 years, the Brave Blossoms were keen to put on a show. Things started well for the men in cherry red and white, touching down for their first try within five minutes of play.
While Canada never stopped trying all afternoon, they struggled to match the physicality of a dominant Japanese pack that controlled possession and consistently broke the gain line in attack. Japan’s backs also looked dangerous when given space, with rookie flyhalf Ryunosuke Ito continuing to grow into his role alongside captain Naoto Saito at halfback. Outside them, the likes of Yuya Hirose, Dylan Riley and debutant Inoke Burua provided plenty of attacking threat.
Much of the damage, however, was done up front. Prop Takato Okabe opened the scoring from a driving maul before hooker Mamoru Harada crossed for the first of his two tries. Ben Gunter added another as Japan’s forwards repeatedly punched their way across the gain line, while Hirose finished off a slick attacking move for the only try of the afternoon scored by a Japanese back. Kanji Shimokawa’s try on the stroke of half-time sent the hosts into the sheds with a commanding 31-7 advantage.
Canada’s first-half points came courtesy of an excellent piece of individual play from fullback Takoda McMullin. Receiving the ball in midfield, McMullin cut back against the Japanese defence and accelerated through the gap to score under the posts before adding the conversion himself.
The visitors continued to compete despite the growing deficit and were rewarded again midway through the second half. Captain Lucas Rumball won a breakdown penalty inside Japanese territory and Canada reacted quickly, with experienced centre Ben LeSage taking advantage of the unsettled defence to cross in the corner. It was a well-earned second try for a Canadian side that continued to look for opportunities to attack until the final whistle.
Japan nevertheless remained firmly in control. Harada grabbed his second try immediately after the restart before towering lock Harry Hockings crossed midway through the half. The introduction of Japan’s finishers maintained the intensity, with replacement prop Takumi Inaba marking his test debut with a try before Tiennan Costley completed the scoring after the siren. Japan finished with nine tries in total, eight of them scored by forwards.
While the scoreline reflected Japan’s superiority, there will still be areas for Head Coach Eddie Jones and his coaching staff to address. Handling errors disrupted a number of promising attacking passages and Canada were able to apply pressure at scrum time on several occasions. With the Pacific Nations Cup and a demanding international schedule ahead, Japan will know that greater accuracy will be required against stronger opposition.
Both sides will now make their way south to Osaka for the double-header Asahi Super Dry Pacific Nations Cup 2026 semi-finals at Hanazono Rugby Stadium in Higashiosaka on Saturday, September 12. Canada will take on Fiji at 16:00 before Japan face the USA with a 19:05 kick-off. Likely to be a sell-out, the last remaining tickets are still available via the JRFU’s English-language ticketing website at: https://quick.pia.jp/japan-rugby_en/.
Japan vs Canada Historic Math Results
34 games, 20 wins, 10 losses, 4 draws
5 September 2026: 57-12 (W) Niigata
30 August 2025: 57-15 (W) Sendai
25 August 2024: 28-55 (W) Vancouver, Canada
11 June 2016: 22-26 (W) Vancouver, Canada
18 July 2015: 20-6 (W) San Jose, USA
7 June 2014: 25-34 (W) Burnaby, Canada
19 June 2013: 16-13 (W) Toyota City
27 September 2011: 23-23 (D) Napier, New Zealand (RWC)
21 November 2009: 27-6 (W) Tokyo
15 November 2009: 46-8 (W) Miyagi
25 September 2007: 12-12 (D) Bordeaux, France (RWC)
29 May 2005: 10-15 (L) Tokyo
30 May 2004: 34-21 (W) Tokyo
8 July 2001: 39-7 (W) Tokyo
15 July 2000: 62-18 (L) Toronto
1 May 1999: 23-21 (W) Tokyo, Japan
20 June 1998: 25-34 (L) Vancouver, Canada
3 May 1998: 22-30 (L) Tokyo
14 June 1997: 42-18 (L) Vancouver, Canada
18 May 1997: 32-31 (W) Tokyo
13 July 1996: 51-30 (L) Vancouver, Canada
9 June 1996: 18-45 (L) Tokyo
11 May 1991: 49-26 (L) Vancouver, Canada
7 June 1986: 21-26 (W) Burnaby, Canada
18 April 1982: 16-6 (W) Tokyo
11 April 1982: 24-18 (W) Higashi-Osaka
12 May 1976: 38-7 (L) Burnaby, Canada
22 March 1970: 32-3 (W) Tokyo
13 April 1963: 6-33 (W) Vancouver, Canada
22 March 1959: 11-11 (D) Tokyo
15 March 1959: 17-21 (L) Osaka
11 February 1932: 38-5 (W) Tokyo
31 January 1932: 9-8 (W) Osaka
24 September 1930: 3-3 (D) Vancouver, Canada