By Sean Miyaguchi,
Saitama Wild Knights overpowered Brave Lupus Tokyo 36-24 in Saturday's top-of-the-table clash to remain the only unbeaten team in the Japan Rugby League One first division.
A 4-3 try-scoring advantage and four penalties from playmaker Rikiya Matsuda helped Saitama mentor Robbie Deans hand the first loss of the campaign to Brave Lupus coach Todd Blackadder, his fellow alumni of Super Rugby's Crusaders.
"We gave them a (head) start, but then we got on with the job," Deans said. "Both teams had their moments but you have to be happy with the outcome."
New Zealand No. 10 Richie Mo'unga put the visitors on the board with a try in the opening minute at Kumagaya Rugby Stadium, carving a path through the Wild Knight defense on a kick return.
The Wild Knights did not take long to even things up, with Lachlan Boshier scoring near the posts after the hosts opted for a quick tap from an offside penalty.
Japan No. 10 Matsuda and Mo'unga traded penalties for a 13-10 Saitama lead in the 23rd minute.
Mastering the windy conditions, Matsuda landed two more penalty kicks to give the Wild Knights a 19-10 halftime advantage.
The first came after captain Atsushi Sakate wrapped up Mo'unga with a crunching tackle that led to the All Blacks star being penalized for not releasing the ball.
Saitama appeared in control after five-pointers from Tomoki Osada and Kyohei Yamasawa put them up 29-10 early in the second half, but converted tries from Warner Dearns and Taufa Latu cut it to 29-22 with 10 minutes remaining.
A try from replacement Mark Abbott and Matsuda's conversion sealed the result with less than a minute left.
"I'm very happy with the way the team responded at the finish," Deans said. "We left the door slightly open for (Brave Lupus). They had momentum, they had confidence, but we turned the tide back."
Despite relinquishing their spotless record after nine rounds, Blackadder said Brave Lupus would "learn a lot" from the match.
"This was always going to be a really good contest between two really good sides," said the former All Blacks lock, who played under Deans at the Crusaders before coaching the Christchurch-based team.
"If anything, I think we'll take a lot of confidence from today."
In Saturday's other top-flight action, Tokyo Sungoliath defeated Hanazono Liners 34-14, Yokohama Eagles beat Shizuoka BlueRevs 34-17 and Toyota Verblitz held off defending champions Kubota Spears 31-27.
Related coverage:
Rugby: Steenkamp, Paltridge lead Dynaboars to upset over Spears
Rugby: Wild Knights put BlueRevs to the sword
Rugby: Brave Lupus handcuff Eagles, extend unbeaten run to 7 games
