England wore Japan down, then used a bizarre attempt to play untied and rolled to a 34-12 victory to claim their second successive Rugby World Cup victory on Sunday.

With Japan only trailing 13-12 heading into the hour mark, the odd try gave England some breathing space.

Flyhalf George Ford’s pass deflected back off prop Will Stuart’s arm and bounced forward off prop Joe Marler’s mohawk into the grateful hands of skipper Courtney Lawes who was strolling between the posts. Ford’s conversion made it 20-12.

“I thanked him (Marler). A bit of luck, sometimes it works out in your favor. I’m taking it,” said Lawes, who acknowledged that England are not fluent. “The conditions to move the ball were quite difficult, but you could see what we could do in parts. Let’s hope we can keep it up until the quarter-finals. We will have to.”

Moments after his try, Japan cut through England’s defense but knocked on the line in sight and the momentum was lost. England’s third attempt followed, when Ford sent a clever cross from right to left and full back Freddie Steward intercepted it and turned it over in the 66th.

But it wasn’t until the peak of full-time that England delivered a bonus point fourth try. Good work from right winger Jonny Mayo was finished off by center Joe Marchant who powered his way through.

“It’s a great team, Japan, they challenge you in different ways,” Ford said. “We knew it wouldn’t be until the third or fourth quarter before we could pull back a little bit. I’m just over the moon to get another win.”

Japan coach Jamie Joseph focused on the positives.

“We created a lot of chances, we just made too many mistakes,” he said. “England put us under a lot of pressure but there were times when I thought it was a real fight in hand, we just needed to take those opportunities and we didn’t.”

Steve Borthwick’s England are not playing well and not kicking too much, but they are in pole position to win Group D.

England’s first try in the 24th minute, thanks to more random touches, went to number 8 Lewis Ludlam. He was one of three changes from Borthwick in the side that beat Argentina 27-10 with 14 men for most of the game after Tom Curry’s red card. Ford scored all of England’s points then and added another 14 points against the Brave Blossoms.

Ford and his opposite number Rikiya Matsuda traded early penalties, with Japan full-back Semisi Masirewa limping off and injured both sides after being kicked.

Wet conditions south of Nice disrupted thinking and Ford claimed mitigating circumstances were: slippery hands.

“It’s really hard to play the ball in these conditions,” he said. “These late kicks, the ball is greasy.

England’s offside almost led to a try as Japan kicked forward but knocked on. Still, Matsuda’s penalty put Japan ahead 9-8.

Very briefly.

A kick from Ford pushed them back, Japan fouled their own catcher and passed the ball to England and Ludlam dug in to convert the score.

After Matsuda closed the gap after a sloppy mistake in May, Ford’s steady start put the Red Roses 13-9.

“It’s really hard to play the ball in these conditions,” he said. “These late kicks, the ball is greasy.

England’s offside almost led to a try as Japan kicked forward but knocked on. Still, Matsuda’s penalty put Japan ahead 9-8.

Very briefly.

A kick from Ford pushed them back, Japan fouled their own catcher and passed the ball to England and Ludlam dug in to convert the score.

After Matsuda closed the gap after a sloppy mistake in May, Ford’s steady start put the Red Roses 13-9.

A poor start to the second half gave no indication that either England or Japan could spark their attacking play.

It was grueling and gritty, with kickers ticking the scoreboard. Matsuda’s fourth penalty made it a one-point game once more with 25 minutes to play.

Then came a bizarre try from Lawes that changed the game.

Flanker Michael Leitch broke the Japanese record with his 15th Rugby World Cup cap, but otherwise there was little to cheer for.

England face Chile next Saturday in Lille, while Japan, who started slowly with a 42-12 win against Chile, play Samoa on September 28 in Toulouse.

Instant breakdown for Japan’s players when their tired bodies get up on Monday

Cooling in the sun.

“We’ve been going since June,” Joseph said. “So I’m sure the boys will enjoy a few days in the south of France.”