Italy grind out victory

Italy beat Japan 36-12 in their World Cup warm-up match in Saint-Vincent.

Two tries from Marko Stanojevic helped Italy to a 36-12 victory over a disciplined Japan team in their World Cup warm-up match in Saint Vincent. The Italians made a flying start, soaring into a 22-0 lead thanks to Stanojevic and a Kaine Robertson try, backed up by a penalty from David Bortolussi. But Japan, coached by former Italy boss John Kirwan, began to find their feet. Tatsukichi Nishiura touched down for a try that was converted by Kosuko Endo and then flanker Hare Makiri also scored a try which brought the score back to 22-12. The visitors could not make further in-roads against an Italy team that struggled for much of the second half. However, the hosts did put some distance between them and their visitors with two late tries. Andrea Lo Cicero and Mauro Bergamasco were the scorers with Bortolussi slotting both conversions to give coach Pierre Berbizier a comfortable victory margin.