KOLBE LOVES JAPAN’S
“IT’S A STYLE I love to play as well.” Those were Springbok star Cheslin Kolbe’s words when asked about their quarter-final opposition’s exciting brand of rugby … not like he needs to convince anybody.
The Boks are gearing up for their last-eight battle against the hosts, one that can only be a good one considering how well the Brave Blossoms have done in the pool stages.
It’s their attacking game that has been their biggest weapon, and Kolbe, who can give a master class or two himself on balling with flair, says sticking to their strengths – regardless of how much he loves to let his feet and the ball do the work – will be important.
“Japan are playing exciting rugby. They are giving the ball a lot of air, and want to stretch your defensive structures,” he said.
“But we have our own structures and plan we want to implement, especially this weekend, and cut down their options to force them into some structure.”
The Boks’ 41-7 thumping of Japan in their final World Cup warm-up would have done a lot to lessen the talks of the Brighton Miracle of 2015, and when asked about the two-point defeat, Kolbe said: “If you compare rugby in 2015 and 2019, it has definitely CAPTAIN Alun Wyn Jones has toiled in the engine room of the Welsh line-up through the Rugby World Cup, playing his essential but unglamorous part in his team’s progress to the quarter-finals.
At the start of the tournament, when Wales beat Australia to take a commanding role in Pool D, Jones made a record 139th appearance for his country to add a further milestone to an almost unmatched 13year international career.
In the past decade, as Wales’ fortunes have turned upward after a period of decline, Jones has been a motivating power behind his team’s success.
Against France on Saturday, Wales will again turn to the veteran for inspiration.
“That’s just incredible, to play for Wales for 13 years,” said fullback Liam Williams, a relative novice who recently notched his 60th Test appearance.
“I’ve been here for seven years and it feels like I’ve been here for ages. It’s almost double me. He’s a great bloke and leads from the front. He speaks well and does his talking on the pitch. He’s a leader.”
Jones, who has also been captain of the British and Irish Lions, seems a relic of another rugby age.
With a receding hairline, the cauliflower ears of a typical second gone a different way – it’s not the same style of rugby that’s being played. Teams are more technical.
“Knowing we had the 2015 loss to Japan – I wouldn’t say it’s stuck in our head, but we know it happened. But it’s four years later and a new opportunity for us.”
On the friendly in Kumagaya, Kolbe added: “Playing them in September, we knew there was a bit of pressure because of what happened in 2015. But we knew we had a plan.
“We got the victory in that match, but if you look at Japan at the World Cup, they have evolved and improved their game in different departments – especially line-speed in defence, and a lot of attacking at the breakdowns.
“They have definitely worked on a few things.”
While there have been some polarising decisions and comments made during this World Cup, Japan coach Jamie Joseph’s opinion about his wingers cannot be questioned.
The New Zealander referred to his try-scoring wingers Kenki Fukuoka and Kotaro Matsushima as Ferraris, descriptions well deserved considering the blistering tries they’ve scored.
On facing Fukuoka, whom he played against during the 2016 Olympics with the Blitzboks in Rio, Kolbe said: “He is a very good player. He’s got a lot of speed, is really powerful and explosive.” rower, often battered and bruised at the end of matches, he seems unlike most image-conscious modern professionals. He is dogged and unrelenting, a giant in line-outs and powerful piston driving the Welsh scrum. He carries the ball tirelessly and with more energy when his teammates are tiring.
Jones turned 34 just before Wales’ first pool match against Georgia. His energy and enthusiasm, fundamentals of his leadership, remain undimmed.
In an interview with Britain’s Independent newspaper at the start of the tournament, Jones referenced Ice Guardians, a Netflix documentary about the “enforcers” of Canada’s National Hockey League, as a source of inspiration. Those players suffer an immense physical toll throughout their careers and none emerge unscathed.
“At the end of the documentary, one of the players is asked what they’d do differently if he had his time again and he replies: ‘I’d do it all again, I’d just go harder’. I loved that,” Jones said.
Welsh rugby has a long and rich heritage. The country’s roll call of stars is substantial, but Jones unquestionably takes his place in that pantheon.
“Alun Wyn is going to go down as a legend of the game in Wales,” coach Warren Gatland was quoted as saying. “People are going to recognise the contribution he has made to the game and what a competitor he is. How demanding he is of himself and others.
“The bigger the occasion, the bigger the challenge, the more he tends to thrive.”
Former Wales and British and Irish Lions captain Ryan Jones said the current captain “is arguably the greatest Welsh rugby player ever”.
“History will tell us when he smashes the cap records, and if he lifts a World Cup, he’s going to be held in the highest esteem of all,” he added. IRELAND must frustrate the All Blacks to the point of error if they are to win on Saturday and reach the semi-finals of the Rugby World Cup for the first time, according to 83-cap former Irish centre Gordon D’arcy.
A stunning upset defeat at the hands of host nation Japan in the pool stage means Ireland will meet the reigning champions in Tokyo in a quarter-final on Saturday – much earlier than coach Joe Schmidt would have calculated in his meticulous planning.
D’arcy faced New Zealand six times while representing his country and although the Irish came heartbreakingly close to winning at least two of those matches, he never tasted victory.
“The task of beating New Zealand is enormous. Each defeat is a game for the ages,” D’arcy wrote in a column yesterday.
“How can it be done? Simple. You frustrate them to the point of error. Every man has his breaking point. If the whistle of (referee) Nigel Owens … shrills on 80 minutes with big fat zeros beside the names of Beauden Barrett and Ardie Savea when it comes to offloading and line breaks, then victory will belong to Ireland.”
Ireland finally broke their 111year drought against New Zealand in Chicago in 2016 and D’arcy said the 2019 team must emulate at least part of the strategy from Soldier Field in the second row.
“What needs to happen is Ireland must frustrate the hell out of New Zealand, imprint the word ‘Ireland’ in their psyche forever more, and that starts in the same place they hurt them in Chicago,” he added.
“Iain Henderson and James Ryan need to overshadow (Brodie) Retallick and (Sam) Whitelock. They must overpower two of the biggest and most powerful men to ever wear the black jersey,” said D’arcy. “If Ireland are to smash the glass ceiling, the names Henderson and Ryan must ring out around the skinny alleyways of Shinjuku deep into Sunday morning.”
Flanker Peter O’mahony must also have a big game, and Ireland must convert all their penalties and concede as few as possible. Most of all, though, they must execute the clinical playing style that took them to a Six Nations Grand Slam and a second win over the All Blacks in 2018 – the last time New Zealand were defeated by a team from the Northern Hemisphere.
“In 2016, Ireland posted 40 points to beat them. Not sure this team can repeat those heights. It must be a different game. It must be a Test match of messy, ridiculously high levels of intensity. Give New Zealand precisely what (coach Steve) Hansen is expecting … no alarms and no surprise. Win it playing Schmidt’s rugby.
“Starve them of possession.
That is the only way.” –