Japan vs Samoa Prediction & Betting Tips - Rugby World Cup

Prediction published on 26/09/2023, 13:45  by Devesh Jaganath | Modified on 28/09/2023 at 07:00 in Rugby World Cup Prediction

Japan and Samoa will face off in week four of the 2023 Rugby World Cup on Thursday. This is a crucial match in Pool D between the sides that are in third and second place, respectively. While England look like they will go on to claim first place in the pool, both these sides, along with Argentina, are still in the running for second place. Japan's five points so far came in their opening match of the competition, where they beat Chile 42-12. Against England, The Brave Blossoms pulled the score to 13-12 early in the second half. However, they were outclassed in the latter stages as England ran out 34-12 winners. Still, they would have taken several positives from that match, and a win here will put them in a very good position. Japan have won two of their three World Cup matches against Samoa and will fancy their chances of another here. 

While Japan held the advantage over Samoa at World Cups, the Samoans have been the most dominant side across all competitions. In 17 meetings, Samoa have won 12 while Japan have won five. That includes beating them in the Pacific Nations Series last July. Like their opponents, they beat Chile convincingly in their first match, claiming a 43-10 victory. However, they were handed their first defeat of the tournament last weekend, losing 19-10 to Argentina. Despite losing that match, Samoa were extremely impressive and made a late surge but came up just short. They also missed out on a losing bonus point.