TOKYO, Oct. 5 -- Saturday at the Rugby World Cup witnessed three blockbuster games as the pool stage approached the final stage.
The first game of the day, Australia thrashed minnows Uruguay 45-10, while England ran in six tries against a 14-man Argentina team to win 39-10 and secure a place in the quarterfinals.
The final game of the day saw Japan gain a heroic, last-minute bonus point victory against Samoa to take them one step closer to an uNPRecedented quarterfinal appearance.
Japan, in front of a packed out Toyota stadium, got a last gasp fourth try in the 84th minute to seal a bonus point 38-19 victory.
Japan was pushed hard by Samoa all game, with the physical play of the Pacific Islanders forcing the Brave Blossoms into a number of handling errors. However, when the Japanese passes stuck, they showed electricity out wide.
The Japanese wingers of Lemeki and Matsushima made significant meters all game and were a handful for the wide defense Samoa. Despite only Matsushima scoring in the 84th minute, it was Lemeki who was awarded Man of the Match at the end of the game for the number of ball carries that changed the course of the game.
The opening stages of the game were defined by the exchange on penalties and it was only in the 27th minute, with the score stood at 9-6, that Japan got the first try of the game to increase their lead to 16-6.
However, Samoa stayed within touching distance of Japan through the sharp kicking of Henry Taefu. As the game moved on, Japan began to show more accuracy with their play, scoring in the 53rd minute from a well-executed rolling maul from the lineout.
With 10 minutes to go, Japan would have thought that they were safe from Samoa. Yet, a self-converted try from Taefu in the 72nd minute brought the score back up to 26-19 to keep Samoa within seven points on their rivals.
Just two minutes later the home crowd was wildly celebrating as Kenki Fukuoka touched down on the wing to make the game safe at 31-19.
As the gong went for the full time and with Japan chasing a bonus point, the Japanese pack overturned Samoa scrum five meters from the try line. Two big scrums later and Matsushima had stepped past two Samoan defenders to send the stadium into pandemonium.
In the afternoon kickoff in the capital, Argentina took on England to try and stay in the tournament, after a disappointing opening loss to France.
A 10th-minute red card for Argentina's Tomas Lavanini overshadowed the contest in the second game of the day as England strolled past the Pumas.
An early try for England in the eighth minute immediately put Argentina on the back foot, in a game described by Argentine head coach Mario Ledesma as their "World Cup Final."
This was a game that Argentina had to win to stay in the competition and with the pressure mounting in the first ten, frustrations boiled over and a high tackle on England captain Owen Farrell by Lavanini soon gave the South Americans a mountain to climb.
By the half time break, Argentina, already fatigued, only had a solitary penalty for all the hard work they were forced to put in to make up for England's extra man. The score at the break stood at 15-3, following two further England tries, however, missed conversion by Farrell, perhaps still feeling that high tackle, gave Argentina a slim opportunity to get back into the game in the second half.
Unfortunately for Los Pumas, England came out at the break firing. A converted try and a penalty put the game beyond Argentina at 25-3.
Scrappy England play gave Argentina an opportunity to, maybe, creep back into the game, however, they could only muster a single try during 20 minutes of solid resistance against the English.
The resistance of Argentina was truly broken in the final 10 minutes when England scored two more tries to finish of Argentina's World Cup and leave the final score at 39-10.
Australia scored seven tries in their mauling of Uruguay to win 45-10 in Oita.
From the very first minute until the 60th, Australia ran in try after try as they released their frustrations after falling to Wales last week. Uruguay, on the other hand, kept on fighting until the end, gain a consolation try three minutes from full time.
Dane Haylett-Petty and Tevita Kuridrani both scored two tries each, while 19-year-old Jordan Petaia, Genia and Slipper all got one each.
Uruguay could not cope with the quality and speed of the Australian play and was made to pay on a number of occasions for missing tackles and handling errors.
Despite being so utterly outclassed, Uruguay did manage a consolation try at the end and now despite being officially knocked out of the tournament will look back at their performances with pride. At least their historic win against Fiji that will live long in the memory.