France just sent a massive warning shot to the rest of the rugby world. If you thought their grueling summer tour would slow them down, you were dead wrong. Playing in the suffocating heat and humidity of Tokyo, Les Bleus dismantled Japan 42-15 on Saturday. The bonus-point victory didn't just wrap up their southern hemisphere series with real style. It also catapulted them straight to the top of the Northern group in the inaugural Nations Championship, capitalising perfectly on Ireland's slip-up against the All Blacks in Auckland.
This wasn't a perfect performance. Far from it. But elite teams win comfortably even when they get a bit sloppy. France ran in six tries at the National Stadium, leaving a ragged Japanese defense completely gasping for air.
Les Bleus find their rhythm in the Tokyo heat
The game kicked off at a frantic pace. It took France less than sixty seconds to draw first blood. Hooker Maxime Lamothe crashed over from close range, with captain Maxime Lucu easily adding the conversion. Japan didn't pack up and go home, though. They fought back with real grit early on. Takuro Matsunaga slotted a neat penalty to open Japan's account before a brilliant, spellbinding break from Dylan Riley set up Kippei Ishida in the corner. For a brief moment, the Tokyo crowd believed an upset was brewing. Japan led 8-7.
Then the French machine woke up.
When France finds their stride, they're practically impossible to stop. Their footwork and sheer width completely shredded the hosts. Fullback Matthieu Jalibert, wearing the number 15 shirt, tore through a massive gap in the midfield to reclaim the lead. Minutes later, Alexandre Roumat powered over from a well-engineered forward move, showing exactly why he provides such crucial go-forward momentum. Before the half-hour mark, Lucu scored a try of his own, capping off a masterclass first half where he racked up 15 points through five clinical conversions and his own score.
Japan did pull one back before the whistle blew. Sojiro Otsuka touched down after a sustained period of pressure, bringing the score to 15-28 at the interval. But the mountain was simply too high to climb.
Jalibert pulls the strings as Japan crumbles
Any hopes of a second-half Japanese comeback died within two minutes of the restart. Jalibert slice open the defense again, latching onto a slick pass from Lucu to bag his second try of the match. Romain Ntamack, coming off the bench, stepped up to slot the extra two points.
Lamothe completed his own brace on the 50-minute mark, barrelling over to put France up 42-15. The match was over as a contest with thirty minutes still left on the clock.
Look at the stats. They tell the real story of where this game was won and lost. France beat an astonishing 34 defenders during the match. Japan missed 34 tackles. You can't miss that many tackles against a world-class backline and expect to survive. France simply targeted those defensive dog-legs and punished them relentlessly.
Jalibert was easily the best player on the pitch. He covered 89 meters from 14 carries and beat 10 defenders entirely on his own. It was a terrifyingly efficient display of attacking rugby. Yoram Moefana also caused havoc in midfield, racking up 50 meters before getting a well-earned rest, while Theo Attissogbe looked lethal out wide with 54 meters of his own.
Late discipline issues show room for improvement
It wasn't all sunshine for Fabien Galthie's men. France turned the ball over 14 times, which will definitely annoy the coaching staff. Their discipline also completely went out the window in the final quarter.
Jalibert saw yellow on 57 minutes for a cynical infraction. Later on, substitute Marko Gazzotti followed him straight to the sin bin in the 76th minute. France played chunks of the second half with 14 men. Japan, unfortunately, lacked the clinical accuracy to do anything about it. Young Japanese fly-half Ryunosuke Ito showed flashes of brilliance, making 46 meters, but three costly turnovers showed he's still adjusting to the brutal standards of test rugby.
Japan can take solace in their set-piece. Their scrum functioned at 100% and they lost only one lineout all afternoon. Ben Gunter worked himself into the ground, topping the match charts with 20 tackles and making 13 carries. But effort alone doesn't win games against top-tier tier-one nations.
The road ahead in the Nations Championship
This bonus-point win moves France to 12 points, sitting pretty at the top of the pile. Japan remains stuck in fourth place in the southern pool with just four points to show for their efforts.
France now turns their attention to a massive autumn schedule where they will host the formidable Springboks. If they want to stay on top, fixing that late-game discipline is an absolute must. Get your tickets early for the November internationals because this French side is playing some of the most entertaining rugby on the planet right now. Go check out the full replay on your local sports streaming network to watch Jalibert's masterclass in full.
