Borthwick: We can inspire like Japan
Steve Borthwick believes England can inspire the nation through their performances at the World Cup by replicating the spirit that lead to Japan’s “miracle” win over South Africa four years ago.
Japan’s 34-32 victory over South Africa at the 2015 World Cup was masterminded by Eddie Jones and Borthwick from Miyazaki, the coastal resort where England are now based.
Hailed as one of the biggest surprises in World Cup history, the feat was celebrated in the launch of a film called The Brighton Miracle in Tokyo yesterday.
Borthwick yesterday relived memories of plotting the Springboks’ downfall, a feat which captured the imagination of the Japanese nation and sparked a major surge in interest as the host country for this tournament.
“We have a gym downstairs under the car park here and it’s exactly where we had the gym four years ago,” Borthwick recalled. “At about 5 o’clock this morning I was walking down there and thinking to myself, ‘With Japan, this is where we started training, at 5.20am’. It was the time we would be walking there.
“On that training field and in that gym, we did an awful lot of work. The players were fantastic and the result came on the field when we arrived in England in 2015.
“The application of all of our players throughout all that prep has been exemplary – the same as it was four years ago, when I was coaching a different team.”
The passion for rugby in Japan was evident as members of the England squad visited a high school in Miyazaki yesterday, where they were greeted by 1,000 cheering schoolchildren and a brass band who played several hits including Queen’s We Will Rock You, while the players also took part in an archery session.
“I distinctly remember Eddie addressing the Japan team in 2014,” Borthwick recalled. “He said, ‘We can’t win the World Cup, Japan aren’t a good enough team, but we can be the team of the World Cup’.
“He said, ‘We can inspire a nation, we can make people want to play rugby in this country, we can create a new history for Japanese rugby. We can make the quarter-finals’.
“Did that team create a new history? Did they inspire people? I think everything I have seen when I have been out here since says, ‘Yes’. They were the team of the World Cup. We were a lot of people’s second favourite team.
“If I played a small part in helping players achieve things they had not imagined before; memories they have for the rest of their lives; if we helped inspire kids to play rugby, then I am very happy to have played a small part in that.”
It is a memory that the England forwards coach hopes will inspire Jones’ 31-man squad as they continue their preparations for the opening game against Tonga on Sept 22.
“I was 14 years old when I said, ‘I want to play rugby for England’,” Borthwick added.
“As a kid I would just dream of it. Our players would all have had, at some point, the same dream of playing for England. Now they are in the England squad.
“There are kids back in England saying this is their dream and we have an opportunity to inspire. It is a wonderful sport and a wonderful opportunity we all have to help others. I enjoy that.
“If I can play a small part in that, brilliant. We have prepared well. We are excited about the tournament. It is great to be out here in Japan. We will do our very best.”