France beats Japan 42-15 in Nations Championship rugby as Lucu tallies 15 points

TOKYO — Matthieu Jalibert and hooker Maxime Lamothe scored two tries each and skipper Maxime Lucu tallied 15 points from five conversions and a try in an influential performance to lead France to a 42-15 win over Japan on Saturday in the Nations Championship.Japan matched France physically in the first half and trailed 28-15 at halftime but lost touch on the scoreboard after conceding two tries early in the second.It was a successful three-week tour for the Six Nations champion French, who were coming off a 42-26 win over Australia in Brisbane last week after opening the new 12-team tournament with a 34-32 loss to the All Blacks in New Zealand.Japan finished the first phase of the Nations Championship with consecutive losses to Ireland and France after opening the tournament with a 27-10 win over Italy.At the National Stadium in Tokyo, the French opened the scoring in the second minute when hooker Lamothe drove over after a close-range lineout.Japan gained a one-point lead with fullback Takuro Matsunaga kicking a penalty goal and then sparking a long-range counter-attacking try from his own quarterline that was finished in the left corner by winger Kippei Ishida in 15th.France regained the ascendancy over the next 20 minutes, rebounding with tries to fullback Jalibert in the 19th after sustained forward pressure, which resulted in a yellow card for Japan lock Harry Hockings, and No. 8 Alexandre Roumat in the 23rd.Skipper and scrumhalf Lucu darted over after a strong run into contact from his hooker Lamothe and touched down on the half-hour to score France’s fourth try, securing a bonus competition point.After narrowly missing a try …

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