Japan go ahead of Scotland in world rankings
Greig Laidlaw insists there is no such thing as “minnows” in Rugby World Cups anymore in the week that Scotland were overtaken by hosts Japan in the world rankings, writes Duncan Smith.
The Brave Blossoms’ famous win over Ireland has seen them move up to eighth, with Scotland down to ninth. The two nations will meet in a potential quarter-final “playoff ” in their last Pool A match in Yokohama a week on Sunday.
Ireland, who came into the tournament at No 1, drop to fourth after their humbling by the Japanese. “You can’t take anyone lightly these days. Each team is getting better and better,” said Laidlaw
Pts 1(1) NEW ZEALAND ............................. 90.98 2(2) WALES ...................................................... 88.87 3(3) ENGLAND ............................................. 88.13 4(4) IRELAND ............................................... 85.93 5(5) SOUTH AFRICA ............................ 85.75 6(6) AUSTRALIA ...................................... 83.52 7(7) FRANCE .................................................. 81.38 8(9) JAPAN ..................................................... 80.70 9(8) SCOTLAND ....................................... 80.62 10 (10) ARGENTINA ............................... 76.79
in Kobe today, where Scotland have remained since their 34-0 win over Samoa for part of the buildup to Wednesday’s clash with Russia in Shizuoka.
Scotland will then face Japan just four days later, the opposite of 2015 when the Asians had a similar gap from their seismic win over the Springboks in Brighton to facing Vern Cotter’s side at Gloucester and were beaten 45-10.
The fixture structure for this tournament was altered to ensure that tier-one nations face the occasional quick turnaround after it was deemed unfair that they would normally get a week or so between each game, while the tier two nations were given more challenging schedules.
Laidlaw, meanwhile, was one of the Scotland players who were given a rapturous welcome by local children as they paid a visit to Meishin Elementary School in Kobe.