Dewi Lake and Steve Tandy demand improvement after Wales beat Japan

Wales captain Dewi Lake and head coach Steve Tandy expressed disappointment with their team's performance despite a 28-21 Nations Championship victory over Japan in Cardiff. Speaking after the match, both said the bonus-point win did not disguise shortcomings, with Lake admitting the players had failed to deliver on commitments made when they assembled in camp, BBC Sport reported.

Watch the highlights: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HfctNHtGORk

Lake said the squad wanted to improve and would hold one another accountable. His criticism came after Josh Adams scored twice, alongside tries from Archie Griffin and Louis Rees-Zammit, to secure Wales' second victory in four matches in the competition. The result left Wales fifth in the northern hemisphere standings, with the captain arguing that parts of their display had fallen short.

The captain nevertheless stressed the importance of winning for a group that has experienced prolonged losing runs, including a record sequence of 18 successive Test defeats. He said the result would help build confidence and trust between players. In front of 52,425 spectators, Wales earned only their fourth victory in Tandy's 13 Tests as head coach; two have been against Japan.

Tandy likewise separated his satisfaction with the result from his assessment of the rugby. According to BBC Sport, he had expected a stronger showing in some areas and said improvements were needed. He pointed to Wales' ability to break the defensive line and create openings as positives, but felt the team had not been decisive enough in turning those opportunities into rewards.

Japan coach Eddie Jones described the defeat as a missed chance to claim a first victory over Wales in Cardiff. Although proud of his young side, he said they had not taken sufficient advantage of Welsh errors. Jones identified three opportunities his players failed to convert and said Wales had generated more points from their visits to attacking territory.

Jones also questioned referee Paul Williams' interpretation of the breakdown, highlighting a penalty against Japan for failing to support body weight and disputing the consistency of that ruling. His complaints did not change his broader assessment: Japan had needed to be more clinical to turn the opportunity into a win.