Japan knew a draw would suffice to earn the runners-up spot in Group E and reach the second round, while Denmark needed all three points to leapfrog them into second place. Understandably, coach Takeshi Okada opted for the same side that impressed against Cameroon and the Netherlands. His counterpart Morten Olsen, meanwhile, made two changes to the side that had defeated Cameroon, bringing midfielder Thomas Kahlenberg in for Jesper Gronkjaer, and giving centre-back Per Kroldrup his FIFA World Cup debut in place of the suspended Simon Kjaer. 

The Japanese got off to a bright start, with Daisuke Matsui forcing a good save from Thomas Sorensen following a Yoshito Okubo cross from the left, before Makoto Hasebe shot just over the bar. At the opposite end, Jon Dahl Tomasson broke free on the left side of the area before dragging a low shot narrowly wide. Japan made the breakthrough after 17 minutes, when Honda fired home a superb free-kick from 30 yards into the left-hand corner of Sorensen's goal. 

Tomasson could have equalised soon after but he failed to connect with a lobbed pass from Christian Poulsen, and Eiji Kawashima did well to parry the ball away. Instead on the half-hour, the Danes fell further behind, Endo curling in a right-footed free-kick from 25 yards past the outstretched hand of Sorensen after Okubo had been fouled by Kroldrup. 

With the Danes struggling to take control in the middle of the park, Olsen responded by replacing veteran Martin Jorgensen with Jakob Poulsen. Christian Poulsen tried his luck with a free-kick from distance that Kawashima comfortably gathered, but Japan did not just sit back and on a breakaway, right-back Yuichi Komano tested Sorensen with a shot from an acute angle, the Stoke City custodian turning the ball over the bar. 

The second half opened with a scare for Denmark as Endo's looping free-kick was mishandled by Sorensen and bounced on to the right post behind him. For their part, Denmark had a couple of half-chances but neither Kahlenberg nor Tomasson could convert from close range. Jakob Poulsen then sent a shot straight at Kawashima, before Daniel Agger saw his free-kick punched away by the Kawasaki Frontale goalkeeper. 

Japan remained a threat on the counter-attack, with Okubo sending a curling shot at Sorensen. Denmark also had a glorious chance to halve the deficit, only for Tomasson to miscue his shot from close range after Dennis Rommedahl had broken into the area from the right. Denmark desperately needed a goal to get back into the game, and it finally arrived from the penalty spot after 81 minutes. Hasebe pushed Agger from behind inside the area, and Tomasson stepped up to take the resulting penalty. Diving to his right, Kawashima parried the effort but the Danish captain responded well to flick in the rebound for his 52nd international goal ? tying Poul Nielsen's all-time scoring record for Denmark. 

However, there was still time for the Japanese to seal their victory, as substitute Okazaki slid the ball into an empty net after Honda's clever footwork had beaten Rommedahl and Sorensen to set up their third goal of the night. It was the first time Japan had hit three in a FIFA World Cup match and Honda might even have added a fourth goal, but his shot sailed well over the bar just before the final whistle. 
 
 

• A조 (남아공,멕시코,우루과이,프랑스)

• B조 (아르헨티나,나이지리아,대한민국,그리스)

• C조 (잉글랜드,미국,알제리,슬로베니아)

• D조 (독일,호주,세르비아,가나)

• E조 (네덜란드,덴마크,일본,카메룬)

• F조 (이탈리아,파라과이,뉴질랜드,슬로바키아)

• G조 (브라질,북한,코트디부아르,포르투칼)

• H조 (스페인,스위스,온두라스,칠레)

With the Dutch already through and the Indomitable Lions consigned to elimination, some might have expected a game lacking in passion and excitement. As it was, any fears of an under-strength Netherlands side facing an unmotivated Cameroon proved groundless, with both coaches sending out their strongest XIs in front of a noisy capacity crowd. 

The Indomitable Lions were the first to threaten, with Aurelien Chedjou twisting into space 25 yards from goal and forcing a solid save from Maarten Stekelenburg after just three minutes. However, Cameroon's early promise steadily diminished and, with 19 minutes played, the Netherlands should have moved in front. 

Captain Giovanni van Bronckhorst split the Cameroon central defenders with a terrific lofted pass for Van Persie, but although the Dutch No9 controlled well on his chest, he fired in a tame volley on his weaker foot that Hamidou Souleymanou was able to gather comfortably. But the Dutch were getting closer, and after Souleymanou had again been called upon to deal with Rafael van der Vaart's curling free-kick, the unmarked Dirk Kuyt drilled a right-foot effort wide of the far post when he should really have hit the target. 

The Liverpool striker made amends five minutes later, however, when he was involved in a slick interchange on the right flank with Van der Vaart and Van Persie that ended with the latter being threaded through on goal. Again, the chance fell to his right foot, but this time the Arsenal striker was deadly, coolly slipping the ball between the legs of the advancing Souleymanou. 

The goal was Van Persie's first at South Africa 2010, and he might have doubled his tally five minutes into the second half after his pace and powerful running took him clear of the Cameroon defence. This time though, he was not able to outfox the keeper, with Souleymanou saving well from his powerfully-struck shot. 

Van Persie made way for Huntelaar soon after and this change coincided with a switch in the balance of power, as Cameroon took control. First, Samuel Eto'o was denied by an excellent saving challenge from Joris Mathijsen, then Landry Nguemo side-footed just wide and, finally, with the best chance of the three, Stekelenburg saved from Jean Makoun's unconvincing effort. 

Frustrated from open play, Cameroon finally made the breakthrough from the penalty spot, Eto'o placing an inch-perfect spot-kick high to Stekelenburg's right after Van der Vaart had handled inside the area. However, Van Marwijk still had a trump card to play in Robben, and after being introduced for his first taste of the 2010 FIFA World Cup™, the Bayern Munich winger provided the inspiration for his side's winning goal. 

In a typical display of skill and directness, Robben drove inside from the right, beyond Cameroon substitute Rigobert Song and curled a superb effort against the inside of the post. Fortunately for the Dutch, the ball rebounded fortuitously to another substitute, Huntelaar, and with Souleymanou stranded, the AC Milan striker made no mistake with a perfectly placed right-foot shot.