Japan has made a thing of slaying giants at World Cups.
In 2015, the Brave Blossoms defied the odds — as long as 80-1 with some bookmakers — to beat South Africa 34-32 in what was dubbed the “Brighton Miracle.” Even the Japanese players were in disbelief at the final whistle, drenching the turf with tears of joy and clutching one another with all their might as if to withstand the gravity of their achievement.
Then, four years later, Japan bested Ireland, the world’s No. 2 team at the time, in a bubbling cauldron of emotion at Shizuoka Stadium Ecopa. The 19-12 victory was a seismic moment in the sport’s history, kicking the competition into fifth gear and justifying the decision to hand Japan, then a Tier 2 nation, the task of hosting rugby's greatest showpiece.
Another giant now awaits in Nice, France, on Sunday. But it is an injured one.
An England team that has limped into the competition off the back of poor results, no discernible game plan and a discipline rap sheet that includes four red cards — not to mention the yellows — in its last five games. If once is a mistake and twice is a habit, then four times is bordering on full-blown addiction.
It would be foolish for Japan to rely on England’s inability to get to grips with World Rugby’s tackle laws, but the Brave Blossoms have the attacking talent and expansive play style to carve up an undermanned defense if given the opportunity. This will be a moot point if Japan continues to get in its own way, however. The stats against Chile — 11 bad passes, 15 turnovers conceded and 28 missed tackles — will read more like an epitaph against stronger opposition.
The narrative surrounding England suggests its victory over Argentina last weekend marked an inflection point.
There were catchy touchpoints to prop this up. George Ford channeling drop goal king Jannie de Beer to inspire England to victory. The seven-man English pack suffocating the opposition at the breakdown. A dogfight in cloying humidity on the Cote d'Azur that England simply never looked like losing. Surely this must spell a change in its bleak fortunes.
But though you would be hard pressed to fault England’s tactical nous last Saturday, the game also exposed its greatest weakness: With Ford kicking all 27 of his team’s points, England’s lack of creativity with ball in hand was laid bare.
Under Steve Borthwick, England games have often made for difficult viewing; they’ve become background noise in living rooms across the rugby world as both teams get dragged into bouts of kick tennis and rolling maul slugfests. Against Argentina, England put boot to ball 48 times, including 36 kicks outside of its own 22. Yes, the strategy worked, but it was dull as dishwater and there were no signs of a Plan B.
The Brave Blossoms need to set this game on their own terms. They will come out to play; to entertain is baked into their MO. But they have also taken a U-Turn since 2019. Following their exit at the quarterfinal stage of the last World Cup, they went nearly two full years without a competitive fixture. Since then, Japan has been beaten by every Tier 1 nation it has played, including a 52-13 hammering by England last November.
So, after a comfortable victory — even with a slightly underwhelming performance — against Chile in its opening game, it’s hard to pinpoint where this team is at. The blueprint of Japan 2019 is still there, but it’s a fading mirage; a specter of its once-high-octane efficiency.
When coach Jamie Joseph spoke to the press on Friday, he was as relaxed and pragmatic as ever.
“Stick to our game plan,” was the party line, but Joseph and his charges know they desperately need a big performance on Sunday. A loss won’t end their World Cup, but another drubbing effectively will.
Joseph expects England to punt the leather of the ball and has focused on receiving kicks in training all week.
“(Kicking) is a big part of their game,” he said. “We have got to be good enough to catch those balls under extreme pressure. It's going to be one of the big parts of the game that we have got to improve on.”
He also announced captain Kazuki Himeno would return to the starting lineup, which is a huge boost for Japan. One of the breakthrough stars of the last World Cup, Himeno is a powerful ball carrier and jackal specialist who looks like an even more complete player after his brief stint in Super Rugby with the Highlanders.
Himeno said he feels “fresh” and his fitness is “really good.”
“For this game against England, it’s going to be important that I perform well as a captain, so I’d like to show my leadership through my performance,” he added. “(We have) to be brave, not to be afraid, and to continue the way we play our game."
Japan needs its leaders to lead on Sunday. The players will look to Himeno and Michael Leitch, to Pieter Labuschagne, Yutaka Nagare and Kotaro Matsushima; men who carry the memories of Japan’s greatest rugby triumphs. And if they’re to succeed once again in the land of giants, that winning mentality needs to be rekindled, the self-belief has to be restored, every man must stand up and be counted.
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