Japan through to the knockout stage but still looking to find their game

VANCOUVER – Japan became the first team to book their place in the knockout stage at the 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup with a 2-1 win over Cameroon at B.C. Place Stadium on Friday night.

They'll be the first to tell you they've been far from dominant in their two wins at the tournament though, which is indicative of the high standard they hold themselves to as the defending World Cup champions.

Japan pressed hard from the opening kick and it didn't take long for their aggressive play to be rewarded. Aya Sameshima opened the scoring in the sixth minute and Yuika Sugasawa made it 2-0 in the 17th. From there, with the lead in hand, Japan was comfortable sitting back and defending just as they had done in their 1-0 win Monday against Swizterland.

To their credit, Cameroon did not let the early deficit get them down. Gaelle Enganamouit was particularly lively up but Les Lionesses Indomitable could not find the back of the net until Ajara Nchout netted a consolation marker in the 90th minute.

Cameroon directed 20 shots toward goal but only three of those shots were on target. Much of their frustration was directly tied to how organized and resilient Japan is at the back.

"We played against the current champion of the World Cup," said Cameroon's coach Enow Ngachu. "The Japanese team defends very well and we expected to have difficulties in front of goal."

That's the kind of respect this Japanese side commands and it's how they get results even when they're not at their best.

"The game was pretty intense," said Japan's coach Norio Sasaki. "We persevered ... We were successful in defending. We made chances on both flanks early on and scored goals and that was the key, but we have to think a bit more about how to carry the game in the second half."

"We couldn't really manage to play our own game," said Aya Miyama. "I feel like we need a higher level of awareness and also we need to be more organized."

Considering how the rest of the big teams have not exactly been lights-out to start the World Cup either, grinding out these two wins could prove extremely valuable to the Japanese.

Germany, the world No. 1, crushed Ivory Coast 10-0 in their opening game, but followed that up on Thursday with 1-1 draw against Norway where they were extremely wasteful in front of goal. The U.S., gold-medallists at the 2012 Olympics, settled for a disappointing 0-0 draw with Sweden on Friday. Canada also left their game Thursday against New Zealand with a 0-0 draw as the hosts have failed to impress through two games.

With their spot atop Group C already assured, Japan closes out round-robin play against winless Ecuador on Tuesday and will have the opportunity to rest key players and prepare for the round of 16. Cameroon and Switzerland, both with a win and a loss so far, face off in the other Group C finale.

Japan was better against Cameroon than they were against the Swiss and they hope to continue improving as the tournament rolls on. Once they find their game, watch out world, the champs will not go away quietly.

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Israel Fehr is a writer for Yahoo Canada Sports. Email him at israelfehr@yahoo.ca or follow him on Twitter. Follow @israelfehr