Upsets are rare in Rugby World Cups, in rugby in general, really.
Real upsets, that is; I wouldn’t consider The Greatest Game Ever Played, when France came from behind to beat New Zealand in the semi-final of the Rugby World Cup of 1999 an upset, because France are a major rugby nation and capable of anything on their day.
Japan-South Africa in Brighton in 2015, now that was an upset. But it is a rarity in the game, and what happened to Japan four days later in Gloucester against Scotland was absolutely typical of what happens in rugby when an underdog takes on a bigger favourite.
Japan held their own for a half, even led coming up to half-time before Greig Laidlaw painstakingly kicked Scotland in front. As the game went on, Japan (unsurprisingly given their herculean efforts four days earlier) tired, Scotland’s fitness and power started to tell, and eventually it finished 45-10.
We’ve seen it twice already at this World Cup. Russia, on the end of some horrifying results coming into the tournament (losing to Jersey and Connacht) led hosts Japan in the opener. Fiji were a full two scores ahead of Australia 10 minutes into the second half.
On both occasions, the more established and favoured team sorted out their organisation and simply strode away to victory. Neither emerged with the credit, but scores of 30-10 to Japan and 39-21 to the Wallabies showed that despite initial struggles, they both won with something to spare.
Brighton was the ultimate rarity, a smaller and less practiced (although very skilful and very well-drilled) side beating a much bigger and powerful established rugby nation.
In rugby, certainly at the top level, almost always the bigger and more powerful side wins. Sneaking an early lead and defending it in the way of soccer really just doesn’t happen in rugby, the physical impact of the game and the gruelling nature of that means that the smaller side are always worn down in the end.
Luck plays a smaller part in rugby than most sports. Whether that’;s a good thing or not depends on your personal preference.
The chimes in the city
This is typhoon season in Japan, and while they’re not all as devastating as the word seems to suggest, there are quite a few that bring risk to people and property – they’re still clearing up the damage in Chiba to the north east of Tokyo a typhoon which hit just before the RWC teams began to arrive in the country.
The next on the list, Typhoon Tapah, has been sitting off the east coast for most of this week, and is expected to move in on Sunday afternoon with perfect timing to give Six Nations style conditions for Scotland against Ireland – well, at 24 degrees rather than four degrees, but you know what I mean.
There’s a prepared plan of public safety for the more devastating typhoons, and a 5 pm every day you get an example of this.
High above the rooftops of Shinagawa City, you hear an eerie and delicate tune playing from huge loudspeakers, loud enough to hear right across the busy and bustling southern suburb.
I wondered if it was a “school’s out” message or maybe a signal of the end of the working day.
It’s the Bosai Musen, or five o’clock chime, and it is regarded as a signal for “going home time”. But it’s also a daily test for the Municipal Disaster Management Radio Communication Network, which is there to broadcast warnings of impending danger of the weather or other natural phenomena.
It goes on all over Japan, and the tune varies from district to district. Apparently “Auld Lang Syne” is used in some districts, though sadly not Yokohama, venue for Scotland versus Ireland. Hearing that 15 minutes into the first half would have been nice.
