Finland brought their 2016 rugby season to a celebratory end as they racked more than 50 points to beat Estonia and reclaim the International Rugby Partnership Shield at Myllypuro!
First and foremost, if you were not able to attend or watch the live stream, you can watch the game film here. You can find an alternative filming from WrcAtsu here.
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| Finland lock Karl Filtness secures a lineout near the Estonia try line. |
Kuopio's Jussi Viljanen, currently playing in the UK, had another strong performance, scoring 3 tries as well as penalty kick. Ossi Aro, Richard 'Bam' Hennessy, Samu-Petteri Pääkkä, Matti Keränen and Antti Lammi also crossed the line, with Lammi also slotting some tricky second-half conversions on a windy day. Coach Isaac Visser praised the efforts of all 23 players (who all got game time) in brief post on the Suomen Rugbyliitto's Facebook page.
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| The game in number: the respective lineups and action log from the game. |
What to be happy about:
- First and foremost, the result. Finland will be thrilled to have not only survived the first potential banana skin game, but to have also secured a vital bonus point.
- This was the most complete attacking game that I have seen from a Finland back line. Cast your mind back to the win over Bulgaria in the Spring and then re-watch the Estonia game: it's unrecognizable. The combination of Bam Hennessy, Tumppi Finell and Jussi Viljanen at 10, 12 and 13 was a big success.
- We have seen new faces performing well. Julius Kekäläinen has thoroughly deserved his place in the team and will look to build on solid performances. Phil Sleath, Samu-Petteri Pääkkö and Bam Hennessy all made good impressions against Estonia, with the latter two scoring tries. Combine these talents with the experience of players like Aaro Katainen, Tumppi Finell and Kosti Eskola and we're definitely in a good position to take the next step.
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| Centre Jussi Viljanen on races to his hattrick. |
What Finland will look to improve before Denmark in the Spring:
- Finland's set piece in the forwards did not go to plan. Credit to Estonia for disrupting the lineout (although at the same time, credit to Karl Filtness and Aaro Katainen for their smart reactions to the non-engagement at the mauls). More importantly the Finnish scrum, usually a safe area, came under far more pressure than expected. Scrum timing and lineout decision making and execution only come as a result of practice, so we'll be hoping to see a few camps over the Winter.
- Less of an improvement and more of a standard, Finland will need to be conscious of the off-season lull. We have a long break in rugby before the next game, which creates the danger in a decrease in match-fitness and game awareness. Denmark will be facing a similar problem, so it may come down to which side is more disciplined over the break.
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| How the group stands after 2 games each. |
