WHEN the losing coach has a sour smile and the winning one is looking grim, you know you have witnessed something between a lucky escape and a travesty of justice. Which sums up Scotland’s win in the second test in Tokyo yesterday.

The defence creaked quite a lot but was broken only once while Japan gave away vital penalties, allowing first Henry Pyrgos and then replacement Greig Laidlaw to boot the Scots to victory. Japan did all the clever stuff but in the end were outmuscled and outstodged by a Scotland side that posed next to no attacking threat.

What got them the victory, in the end, was a masterclass from Laidlaw in particular in making sure his side weathered the storm. Then when they did break the siege on their line they got shots at goal for him to take Scotland from seven points behind when he came on to five in front at the end.

It could have been more. The tourists had a kickable penalty after the hooter signalled the end of the game but decided to kick the ball out and end proceedings rather than rub it in.

Japan’s coach Mark Hammett said: “I don’t think the best team won and talking to the Scottish coaches, they agree. At the end of the day the score is on the board and it will go down as a lost Test match and we are obviously very, very disappointed.

“I feel that perhaps in these two Tests we have been slightly disrespected as a team and what we can achieve. In all that attack, particularly in the second half, we did not get the reward. There was obviously a reason the ball was being slowed down. We worked really hard for that but did not get the outcome we believe we should have had.”

For Scotland’s Vern Cotter, Hammett’s former coaching colleague, it was more relief than anything – the second week running that has been the case.

“We weathered a very difficult first half, they flew into us and lifted the intensity from last week,” he said. “It took us a while to wear them down, but we are happy with the result. To be able to shift the team from one week to the next and get these guys to play and to get the win is important.”

The breakthrough was made by the home side in the first half when their adventurous approach saw them score one of the tries of the season.

Winning the ball on the right, they shaped to kick as everyone expected, but instead opened out with a loop move from their try-line. Wing Yasutaka Sasakura did the initial damage with a searing break up the left but what turned the move into a score was the speed and visions of the support.

When Sasakura was caught, the ball whizzed back to the right where centre Harumichi Tatekawa was lurking out wide ready to take the ball past the remnants of the Scots defence. He found stand-off Yu Tamaru in support to sent his half-back parter Keito Shigeno in for a glorious try.

Tamaru added the extras and also landed a couple of penalties either side of the try to keep his side out in front even though Scotland scrum-half and captain Pyrgos put over three of his own to mark his first Test experience as first-choice kicker, before handing over to Laidlaw for the final quarter.

Laidlaw quickly took control of the game. A couple of penalties and Scotland were within a point but really under the cosh in playing terms as Japan threw everything at their blue wall of defence.

There were moments when Scotland rode their luck – not least when Keisuke Uchita, Japan’s replacement scrum half, lost the ball going for the line – but somehow they held and on their first breakout won a scrum penalty that let Laidlaw kick them into the lead.

It was kick off and repeat, this time a huge kick straight down the middle from Stuart Hogg engineering the breakout and the penalty was for failing to release. Laidlaw did the rest.

Huw Jones won his first – and possibly last for a while – Scotland cap. The South Africa-based player said: “I hope to return for the Autumn Tests but I am not sure what will happen. I will have to check the dates for those and the rest of the Stormers fixtures.”

Japan: Try: Shigeno. Con: Tamura. Pens: Tamura (3)

Scotland: Pens: Pyrgos (3), Laidlaw (4)

Japan: R Matsuda (P Paea, 77); M Sa'u, T Bennetts (K Ono, 55), H Tatekawa, Y Sasakura; Y Tamura, K Shigeno (K Uchida, 62); K Inagaki, S Horie (T Kizu, 60), K Hatakeyama (S Kakinaga, 55), H Ono (K Yatabe, 65), N Kotaki, H Tui (R Holani, 60), S Kin, A Mafi.

Scotland: S Hogg (Glasgow Warriors); T Seymour (Glasgow Warriors), M Scott (Gloucester), P Horne (Glasgow Warriors) S Maitland (Saracens, S Lamont, Glasgow Warriors, 79); R Jackson (Harlequins, H Jones, Stormers, 57), H Pyrgos (C) (Glasgow Warriors, G Laidlaw, Gloucester, 48); R Sutherland (Edinburgh, G Reid, Glasgow Warriors, 41), S McInally (Edinburgh, F Brown, Glasgow Warriors, 41), M Low (Exeter, W Nel, Edinburgh, 41), R Gray (Toulouse), J Gray (Glasgow Warriors), J Strauss (Glasgow Warriors), J Barclay (Scarlets, T Swinson, Glasgow Warriors, 68), R Wilson (Glasgow Warriors, J Hardie, Edinburgh, 44).

Referee: M Mitrea (Italy)

Attendance: 33,073