We will be rusty but ready for the Lions
PAUL REES talks to Japan coach Jamie Joseph about Murrayfield date after 18 months with no internationals
Japan generated such interest and momentum during the 2019 World Cup they hosted that leading countries which before had regarded a home fixture against them as unappealing, both commercially and as an occasion, started wooing them.
Then the pandemic struck and when Japan face the Lions at Murrayfield in two months, it will have been 614 days since their last Test.
They lost their incoming tour last year, which included a fixture against England, and had to turn down an invitation to take part in the Autumn Nations Cup. As the World Cup bandwagon heads towards France does their head coach Jamie Joseph, who turned down a number of offers to remain in charge of the Brave Blossoms, fear that many of the gains made when his side qualified for the quarter-finals for the first time will have wilted?
“I have no fear that not playing will have cost us momentum,” said Joseph who has organised a three-week training camp, which will include a warm-up match against a team that will be made up of players based in Japan because of travel restrictions. “We will not lose access to the Tier One nations because World Rugby organises the two Test windows every year.
“What was unique about the years leading up to our World Cup was that teams wanted to visit so they could get a feel of the place, but my understanding through talking to our marketing department is that teams are continually ringing up to come to Tokyo and play. Covid has created a lot of harm across the world and Japan not being able to take part in the Autumn Nations Cup, disappointing though it was, was nothing compared to what others have gone through.”
The shape of Japan’s future hinges on the outcome of talks on a global calendar which World Rugby hopes will come into play after the 2023 World Cup. The involvement of the private equity company CVC with the Six Nations as well as the Gallagher Premiership and Guinness PRO14 has helped heal old divisions between club and country and the prospect of a schedule that reduces the overlap between domestic and international to a minimum looks, for the first time, more likely than not.
World Rugby’s council will next month hear a progress report on the talks which involve the clubs as well as players. The tour windows will remain in July and November after an attempt to join them together was abandoned because of concerns over player welfare, but the desire is for a tournament along the lines of the Autumn Nations Cup which would involve all the major Unions as well as Japan and Fiji, rather than friendlies.
World Rugby is also organising divisions to run underneath the Six Nations and the Rugby Championship, although it is unable to interfere in the make-up of the tournaments themselves with membership by invitation only. As well as proving during the World Cup, when they defeated Ireland and Scotland before being worn down in the second half of the quarter-final by South Africa, that they were a worthy opponent for the leading countries, Japan’s commercial clout matches any of them.
“Playing in the Rugby Championship would be the ultimate for us,” said Joseph, “but a lot of things have to start happening for that to occur. We have not played for 18 months and need to get back on the field. It would be remiss of me to make comments of what would be great for us given the length of time since we last played, but I stayed here because I have ambitions.
“Covid has put us on the back foot because as a squad we have not been together. I hope the worst is behind us, but it is still a day-to-day thing. What is exciting is that the support which we generated during the World Cup has not diminished. Japanese fans are very loyal and they’ve have been taking risks with Covid to support their teams in the Top League.”
Joseph is relieved to have a match to focus on again, even if with all that has happened in the last year he is not taking Japan’s first meeting with the Lions for granted. He earlier this month named a 52-strong training squad, which included 21 uncapped players, and he will prune it to 30 next month.
“It is crucial that we reconnect again,” said Joseph. “Watching the Top League, it is clear that the keenness and motivation of the players have not dimmed and that competition has improved significantly with a number of high-quality coaches and international players.
“The match against the Lions is a oneoff which means there is not the normal pressure of a Test series. It will be the first time they are come together so I imagine there will be a bit of rust. Games like this can be a bit messy, but the prospect of playing such a fixture and going to Scotland is exciting. I am looking forward to working with the squad again, having a look at the new guys and working on what we need to improve on.”
Joseph has named three Australians in his squad. Dylan Riley, a centre, plays for Robbie Deans’s Panasonic Wild Knights along with the back rowers Jack Cornelsen and Ben Gunter while their compatriot James Moore was in Japan’s World Cup squad. The Wallabies’ coach Dave Ronnie has expressed his concern that the cash-strapped game there could not compete with clubs in Japan who are supported by major companies.
“Every Union loses a number of players who choose to go elsewhere,” said Joseph. “Japan is a nice place to play rugby and set yourself up for the next stage of your life. The three lads I picked have just become eligible and they want to play Test rugby. Who knows if they would have made the Wallabies squad had they stayed there.
“James had played little rugby when he came here, but he showed good qualities and excelled at the World Cup. He would not have played for Australia. Certain positions will tend to be foreign heavy because Japan does not make 2m locks.”
Joseph is interested to see how Lions head coach Warren Gatland will pick his team after a Six Nations campaign which saw Wales go from fifth to first and swap places with England.
“It will be intriguing because Wales and Scotland did well while the two favourites, England and Ireland, lost a couple of matches. It should add a bit of spice and Gatty will have his work cut out.”
“Playing in the Rugby Championship would – be the ultimate for us” - Jamie Joseph