Thursday's RWC Pool D clash between Japan and Samoa at Stadium de Toulouse is set to be a hotly contested affair.
Japan v Samoa
28 September
Stadium de Toulouse
Japan 14/10 | Draw 20/1 | Samoa 6/10
There’s likely to be very little separating these two outfits come close of play in Toulouse. The Brave Blossoms aren’t the same side that won the hearts of supporters at their own 2019 showpiece, with Jamie Joseph’s team failing to recapture the magic of four years ago.
They followed up their opening 42-12 defeat of Chile with a disappointing 12-34 loss to the English and, ahead of a clash against Argentina in the final round, this could well mark their final shot at bagging another win.
The same could be said of the Samoans, who were downed 10-19 by Los Pumas in a dreary old affair in round two after they beat Chile 43-10 first up. A date with England on the final matchday should be a bridge too far.
The Pacific Islanders head into this one as favourites but it could easily go either way. Seilala Mapusua’s outfit narrowly triumphed in the last head-to-head between the sides in July, winning 24-22 in. In total, the teams have met 17 times with Samoa coming out victors on 12 of those occasions.
That in mind, Japan on the plus is the way to go here.
Verdict: Japan (+3.5) 9/10
