2014 Māori All Blacks tour of Japan

On 7 July 2014, it was announced by the New Zealand Rugby Union that the Māori All Blacks would play a three-match Asian Series, including two matches against the Japanese national team and a match against an invitational Asian Pacific Barbarians (APB) team - a side made up from top Asian and Polynesian players and coached by Tana Umaga.[1] The APB match was set to take place at the newly opened National Stadium in Singapore, but due to concerns over the safety of the playing surface at the stadium, the match was cancelled on 21 October 2014.[2] For Japan, the second a third meeting between the two teams goes ahead a scheduled with the 2013 tour coach Colin Cooper remaining as head coach.

2014 Māori All Blacks tour of Japan
Date1 – 8 November
Coach(es)New Zealand Colin Cooper
Tour captain(s)Charlie Ngatai
Top point scorer(s)Ihaia West (31)
Top try scorer(s)Jason Emery (2)
Nehe Milner-Skudder (2)
Tour chronology
Previous tour2013

Matches

edit

First match

edit
1 November 2014
14:00 JST (UTC+9)
Japan  21–61  Māori All Blacks
Try: Penalty try (2) 25' c, 73' c
Mafi 52' c
Con: Goromaru (3/3) 27', 53', 73'
Report[3]Try: Eves 7' m
Emery (2) 20' c, 34' c
Polwart 23' c
West 46' c
Milner-Skudder 55' m
Ngatai 63' c
Lowe 76' c
Con: West (6/8) 21', 24', 35', 47', 64', 77'
Pen: West (3/5) 14', 17', 40'
Noevir Stadium, Kobe[4]
Attendance: 21,234
Referee: Luke Pearce (England)
FB 15 Ayumu Goromaru
RW 14 Kotaro Matsushima
OC 13 Harumichi Tatekawa   60'
IC 12 Male Sa'u
LW 11 Akihito Yamada   53'
FH 10 Yuu Tamura   40'
SH 9 Atsushi Hiwasa
N8 8 Hayden Hopgood   49'
OF 7 Michael Leitch (c)
BF 6 Hendrik Tui
RL 5 Shoji Ito   53'
LL 4 Luke Thompson
TP 3 Kensuke Hatakeyama   64'
HK 2 Takeshi Kizu   70'
LP 1 Masataka Mikami   17'
Replacements:
PR 16 Keita Inagaki   17'
HK 17 Hiroki Yuhara   70'
PR 18 Shinnosuke Kakinaga   64'
LK 19 Shinya Makabe   53'
N8 20 Amanaki Mafi   49'
SH 21 Keisuke Uchida   60'
FH 22 Kosei Ono   40'
WG 23 Karne Hesketh   53'
Coach:
  Eddie Jones
FB 15 Robbie Robinson   56'
RW 14 Matt Proctor
OC 13 Jason Emery   54'
IC 12 Charlie Ngatai (c)
LW 11 James Lowe
FH 10 Ihaia West
SH 9 Chris Smylie   56'
N8 8 Elliot Dixon   49'
OF 7 Sean Polwart
BF 6 Blade Thomson
RL 5 Hayden Triggs   53'
LL 4 Tom Franklin
TP 3 Mike Kainga   59'
HK 2 Ash Dixon   22'
LP 1 Chris Eves   65'
Replacements:
HK 16 Codie Taylor   22'
PR 17 Joe Royal   65'
PR 18 Nick Barrett   59'
FL 19 Nick Crosswell   53'
FL 20 Dan Pryor   49'
SH 21 Jamison Gibson-Park   56'
FH 22 Marty McKenzie   56'
WG 23 Nehe Milner-Skudder   54'
Coach:
  Colin Cooper

Touch judges:
Angus Gardner (Australia)
James Leckie (Australia)
Television match official:
George Ayoub (Australia)

Second match

edit
8 November 2014
14:00 JST (UTC+9)
Japan  18–20  Māori All Blacks
Try: Yamada 38' m
Penalty try 47' c
Con: Goromaru (1/2) 48'
Pen: Goromaru (2/3) 54', 72'
Report[5]Try: Taylor 16' c
Milner-Skudder 22' m
Pryor 80' m
Con: West (1/2) 17'
Pen: West (1/2) 31'
Chichibunomiya Rugby Stadium, Tokyo[4]
Attendance: 20,515
Referee: Angus Gardner (Australia)
FB 15 Ayumu Goromaru
RW 14 Karne Hesketh
OC 13 Kotaro Matsushima
IC 12 Male Sa'u   73'
LW 11 Akihito Yamada   48'
FH 10 Kosei Ono
SH 9 Atsushi Hiwasa
N8 8 Amanaki Mafi
OF 7 Michael Leitch (c)   75'
BF 6 Hendrik Tui
RL 5 Shinya Makabe   65'
LL 4 Luke Thompson
TP 3 Kensuke Hatakeyama
HK 2 Takeshi Kizu   58'
LP 1 Keita Inagaki
Replacements:
PR 16 Yusuke Nagae
HK 17 Hiroki Yuhara   58'
PR 18 Shinnosuke Kakinaga
LK 19 Hitoshi Ono   65'
N8 20 Hayden Hopgood   75'
SH 21 Keisuke Uchida
FH 22 Harumichi Tatekawa   68'
CE 23 Ryohei Yamanaka   73'
Coach:
  Eddie Jones
FB 15 Nehe Milner-Skudder   65'
RW 14 Kurt Baker
OC 13 Matt Proctor
IC 12 Charlie Ngatai (c)
LW 11 James Lowe
FH 10 Ihaia West   58'
SH 9 Chris Smylie   72'
N8 8 Elliot Dixon
OF 7 Sean Polwart   46'
BF 6 Dan Pryor
RL 5 Blade Thomson
LL 4 Tom Franklin   6' to 16'   58'
TP 3 Mike Kainga
HK 2 Codie Taylor   72'
LP 1 Chris Eves   58'
Replacements:
HK 16 Joe Royal   72'
PR 17 Brendon Edmonds   58'
PR 18 Nick Barrett
LK 19 Hayden Triggs   58'
N8 20 Mitchell Crosswell   46'
SH 21 Jamison Gibson-Park   72'
FH 22 Marty McKenzie   58'
WG 23 Joe Webber   65'
Coach:
  Colin Cooper

Touch judges:
Luke Pearce (England)
James Leckie (Australia)
Television match official:
George Ayoub (Australia)

Asian Pacific Barbarians

edit
15 November 2014
14:30 SST (UTC+8)
Asia Pacific DragonsCancelled  Māori All Blacks
New Singapore National Stadium, Singapore
Referee: ARU Appointment (Australia)

Squads

edit

Note: Caps, ages and clubs are to 1 November, pre first match.

Māori All Blacks

edit

New Zealand Māori 27-man squad for the 2014 Japanese November Tour was announced on 21 October.[6]

On 26 October, Nick Crosswell, Mitch Crosswell and Hayden Triggs were added to the squad to replace the injured Shane Christie, Liam Squire and Joe Wheeler respectively.[7]

Player Position Date of Birth (Age) Club/province Iwi
Ash Dixon Hooker (1988-09-10)10 September 1988 (aged 26)   Hawke's Bay Ngāti Tahinga
Joe Royal Hooker (1985-05-31)31 May 1985 (aged 29)   Bay of Plenty Te Arawa / Ngāti Whātua
Codie Taylor Hooker (1991-03-31)31 March 1991 (aged 23)   Canterbury Ngāti Kahungunu / Muaūpoko
Nick Barrett Prop (1988-11-01)1 November 1988 (aged 26)   Auckland Ngāti Kahungunu
Brendon Edmonds Prop (1990-11-28)28 November 1990 (aged 23)   Hawke's Bay Ngāti Kahungunu
Chris Eves Prop (1987-12-11)11 December 1987 (aged 26)   Manawatu Tainui
Mike Kainga Prop (1991-01-28)28 January 1991 (aged 23)   Bay of Plenty Ngāti Kahungunu
Tom Franklin Lock (1990-08-11)11 August 1990 (aged 24)   Otago Ngāti Maniapoto
Hayden Triggs Lock (1982-02-22)22 February 1982 (aged 32)   North Harbour Ngāti Kahungunu
Joe Wheeler Lock (1987-10-20)20 October 1987 (aged 27)   Tasman Ngāi Tahu
Shane Christie Flanker (1985-09-23)23 September 1985 (aged 29)   Tasman Te Āti Haunui-a-Pāpārangi
Nick Crosswell Flanker (1986-04-03)3 April 1986 (aged 28)   Manawatu Ngāti Porou
Sean Polwart Flanker (1990-04-14)14 April 1990 (aged 24)   Auckland Ngāti Pūkenga / Ngāti Maru
Dan Pryor Flanker (1988-04-14)14 April 1988 (aged 26)   Northland Ngāpuhi / Ngāti Pikiao
Mitchell Crosswell Number 8 (1988-11-14)14 November 1988 (aged 25)   Taranaki Ngāti Porou
Blade Thomson Number 8 (1990-12-04)4 December 1990 (aged 23)   Taranaki Ngāpuhi
Liam Squire Number 8 (1991-03-20)20 March 1991 (aged 23)   Tasman Ngāi Tahu
Elliot Dixon Number 8 (1989-09-04)4 September 1989 (aged 25)   Southland Ngāpuhi
Jamison Gibson-Park Scrum-half (1992-02-23)23 February 1992 (aged 22)   Taranaki Ngāti Porou / Ngāi Tai
Chris Smylie Scrum-half (1982-03-22)22 March 1982 (aged 32)   Taranaki Ngāti Mutunga
Marty McKenzie Fly-half (1992-08-14)14 August 1992 (aged 22)   Taranaki Ngāti Tūwharetoa
Ihaia West Fly-half (1992-01-16)16 January 1992 (aged 22)   Hawke's Bay Ngati Kahungunu / Ngāti Porou
Jason Emery Centre (1993-09-21)21 September 1993 (aged 21)   Manawatu Ngāpuhi / Ngāti Maniapoto
Charlie Ngatai (c) Centre (1990-08-17)17 August 1990 (aged 24)   Taranaki Ngāti Porou / Te Whanau-a-Apanui
James Lowe Centre (1992-07-08)8 July 1992 (aged 22)   Tasman Ngāpuhi / Ngāi Te Rangi
Nehe Milner-Skudder Wing (1990-12-15)15 December 1990 (aged 23)   Manawatu Ngāti Porou / Tapuika
Matt Proctor Wing (1992-10-26)26 October 1992 (aged 22)   Wellington/Hurricanes Ngāi Te Rangi / Ngāpuhi
Joe Webber Wing (1993-08-27)27 August 1993 (aged 21)   Waikato Ngāti Ranginui
Kurt Baker Fullback (1988-10-07)7 October 1988 (aged 26)   Taranaki/Highlanders Ngāpuhi
Robbie Robinson Fullback (1989-08-22)22 August 1989 (aged 25)   Southland/Chiefs Ngāti Tuwharetoa

Japan

edit

Japanese 30-man squad for two uncapped matches against the Māori All Blacks.[8]

Note: Flags indicate national union for the club/province as defined by World Rugby.

Player Position Date of birth (age) Caps Club/province
Ryuhei Arita Hooker (1989-03-21)21 March 1989 (aged 25) 7   Coca-Cola Red Sparks
Takeshi Kizu Hooker (1988-07-15)15 July 1988 (aged 26) 28   Kobelco Steelers
Hiroki Yuhara Hooker (1984-01-21)21 January 1984 (aged 30) 16   Toshiba Brave Lupus
Kensuke Hatakeyama Prop (1985-08-02)2 August 1985 (aged 29) 57   Suntory Sungoliath
Keita Inagaki Prop (1990-06-02)2 June 1990 (aged 24) 0   Panasonic Wild Knights
Shinnosuke Kakinaga Prop (1992-12-19)19 December 1992 (aged 21) 0   Suntory Sungoliath
Masataka Mikami Prop (1988-06-04)4 June 1988 (aged 26) 21   Toshiba Brave Lupus
Hiroshi Yamashita Prop (1986-01-01)1 January 1986 (aged 28) 36   Kobelco Steelers
Shoji Ito Lock (1980-12-02)2 December 1980 (aged 33) 26   Kobelco Steelers
Shinya Makabe Lock (1987-03-26)26 March 1987 (aged 27) 27   Suntory Sungoliath
Hitoshi Ono Lock (1978-05-06)6 May 1978 (aged 36) 85   Toshiba Brave Lupus
Luke Thompson Lock (1981-04-16)16 April 1981 (aged 33) 48   Kintetsu Liners
Michael Leitch (c) Flanker (1988-10-07)7 October 1988 (aged 26) 37   Toshiba Brave Lupus
Hendrik Tui Flanker (1987-12-13)13 December 1987 (aged 26) 25   Queensland Reds
Ryuta Yasui Flanker (1989-12-06)6 December 1989 (aged 24) 2   Kobelco Steelers
Hayden Hopgood Number 8 (1980-07-30)30 July 1980 (aged 34) 1   Kamaishi Seawaves
Amanaki Mafi Number 8 (1990-01-11)11 January 1990 (aged 24) 0   NTT Communications Shining Arcs
Atsushi Hiwasa Scrum-half (1987-05-22)22 May 1987 (aged 27) 36   Suntory Sungoliath
Yuki Yatomi Scrum-half (1985-02-16)16 February 1985 (aged 29) 13   Yamaha Júbilo
Kosei Ono Fly-half (1987-04-17)17 April 1987 (aged 27) 22   Suntory Sungoliath
Harumichi Tatekawa Fly-half (1989-12-02)2 December 1989 (aged 24) 26   Kubota Spears
Kotaro Matsushima Centre (1993-02-23)23 February 1993 (aged 21) 4   Suntory Sungoliath
Male Sa'u Centre (1987-10-13)13 October 1987 (aged 27) 18   Melbourne Rebels
Yuu Tamura Centre (1989-01-09)9 January 1989 (aged 25) 25   NEC Green Rockets
Craig Wing Centre (1979-12-26)26 December 1979 (aged 34) 7   Kobelco Steelers
Yoshikazu Fujita Wing (1993-09-08)8 September 1993 (aged 21) 18   Waseda University
Karne Hesketh Wing (1985-08-01)1 August 1985 (aged 29) 0   Fukuoka Sanix Blues
Toshiaki Hirose Wing (1981-10-17)17 October 1981 (aged 33) 21   Toshiba Brave Lupus
Akihito Yamada Wing (1986-07-26)26 July 1986 (aged 28) 9   Panasonic Wild Knights
Ayumu Goromaru Fullback (1986-03-01)1 March 1986 (aged 28) 41   Yamaha Júbilo

Statistics

edit

Key

  • Con: Conversions
  • Pen: Penalties
  • DG: Drop goals
  • Pts: Points

References

edit
  1. ^ "Maori All Blacks to play three-match Asian Series including historic Singapore clash". All Blacks. Archived from the original on 14 September 2017. Retrieved 14 September 2017.
  2. ^ "NZ Maori clash with Singapore cut from tour". Stuff. 20 October 2014. Archived from the original on 12 November 2020. Retrieved 14 September 2017.
  3. ^ "Maori All Blacks blow over Brave Blossoms". ONE News. 1 November 2014. Archived from the original on 1 November 2014. Retrieved 31 August 2022.
  4. ^ a b "Maori All Blacks to play three-match Asian Series including historic Singapore clash". www.allblacks.com. 7 July 2014. Archived from the original on 10 July 2014. Retrieved 7 July 2014.
  5. ^ "Japan give Maori All Blacks huge scare". 1 NEWS NOW. Archived from the original on 14 September 2017. Retrieved 14 September 2017.
  6. ^ "2014 Maori All Blacks squad named". All Blacks. Archived from the original on 18 June 2017. Retrieved 14 September 2017.
  7. ^ "Three injury replacements called into Maori All Blacks squad". All Blacks. Archived from the original on 14 September 2017. Retrieved 14 September 2017.
  8. ^ "日本代表「リポビタンDチャレンジカップ2014」「リポビタンDツアー2014」メンバー". rugby-japan.jp. Archived from the original on 1 April 2015. Retrieved 14 September 2017.