England put in a scintillating seven-try performance to defeat Japan at Twickenham in a perfect response to last weekend’s Argentina loss.
Three first-half tries from England underlined a ruthlessness that was sorely missing at Twickenham last weekend as they got their Autumn Nations Series campaign back on track.
Freddie Steward was exceptional throughout and went over early thanks to some brilliance from Marcus Smith.
The Leicester Tigers full-back’s tackle-breaking run led to Smith crossing in the corner before his club teammate Guy Porter benefited from a magical Jack van Poortvliet pass.
After half time, Porter then profited from Owen Farrell’s pinpoint grubber to get his second try, after Ellis Genge had muscled over.
Japan grabbed their only try of the match through Naoto Saito but a lull in the waves of the English attack gave way in the latter stages.
A penalty try from a driving maul was followed by an exhibition in attacking kicking with Smith completing what he started and grabbing his second.
Farrell stayed perfect from the tee as the home side showed exactly what they’re capable of, ahead of tough tests against the All Blacks and Springboks.
ENGLAND MAKE DOMINANCE PAY
England were off the mark early, Farrell slotting the simplest of three-pointers in the third minute after Ryohei Yamanaka was caught offside charging down Smith’s kick.
And it wasn’t long before their lead was extended to 10, lightning quick hands from Smith setting up Steward for an easy finish and his fifth England try, which Farrell superbly converted from a tight angle.
But the true source was England’s dominance at set pieces, with Genge winning two scrum penalties in five minutes to ensure Eddie Jones’ men stayed encamped in the Japanese half.
And unlike against Argentina, they made their possession count. Steward collected a kick midway through the half and burst through the middle of the Brave Blossoms’ defence.
Van Poortvliet was on hand to support and fed Joe Cokanasiga who was brought down on the five-metre mark before offloading to Smith to dive over in the corner.
Farrell added the extras and it was 17-0 by the 25th minute.
But Japan were starting to find gaps to surge into, captain Michael Leitch bursting forwards to bring the whitewash to within touching distance
And even though they didn’t get over, Yamasawa gratefully took the three when a penalty for offside came their way.
Two minutes later Jonny May had to make a try-saving tackle to prevent Dylan Riley collecting his own grubber after more powerful carrying from Leitch.
But the winger didn’t roll away and saw yellow before Yamasawa slotted the resulting penalty.
Porter got on the scoresheet on the stroke of half time, following a wonderous looping pass from Van Poortvliet to Sam Simmonds who wisely offloaded for the Leicester back to cross.
Farrell made it three from three conversions and handed England a healthy 24-6 lead heading into the break.
NO LET UP IN SECOND PERIOD
There was no letting up after the interval as the home side crossed twice in the first 10 minutes.
First, Ellis Genge battered his way past Gerhard van den Heever on the line, then Porter grabbed his second as he gleefully dived on an incisive Farrell kick.
England’s No.12 kept up his perfect record from the tee and the gap was 32 points with 28 minutes remaining.
But the Brave Blossoms hit back after Warner Dearns showed impressive handling to collect a ripped ball and composure to hand it to Saito who walked in under the posts. Replacement kicker Seungsin Lee added the extras.
The try heralded a short spell of Japanese territory and Farrell did well to beat Riley to a clever low kick in the 66th minute to prevent a certain try.
However, England’s set pieces came to the fore to put an end to an unlikely fightback when referee James Doleman awarded a penalty try for side entry into a lineout maul.
Then a breath-taking series of kicks, from Smith to Steward to Henry Slade ended in the Harlequins’ fly-half collecting and crossing under the posts.
Slade almost marked his 50th cap with a try in the dying seconds, but it wouldn’t dampen the mood inside a sated Twickenham which will see the All Blacks come to visit next.
