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Eddie Jones identifies key area Japan need to nail after RWC 2027 draw
By Jon Newcombe
Eddie Jones says Japan must master the aerial game if they are going to be successful at Rugby World Cup 2027, where the Brave Blossoms have been drawn in Pool E with France, USA and Samoa.
Opta’s stats reveal there have been seven more kicks per game on average when comparing this year’s November internationals to last year’s, a fact not lost on the Brave Blossoms’ boss.
“Kicking is going to be a massive part of the 2027 World Cup. There’s no doubt about that unless the laws change, but at this stage it doesn’t look likely,” he said.
“To kick effectively, win the ball back, and then attack quickly from there is going to be a key part of our game. Conversely, we need to be able to defend really well against kicks. Now, when a high ball goes up in the air and you get one-on-ones, the chances of a clean catch are only 30%. If we can develop a defensive system that gives us a better chance of retaining the ball than 30%, that will put us in a position to win more games. We want to keep developing our defence, which has been a remarkable improvement this year. Now the players have the confidence to defend against any team in the world.”
“When you play against a team like France, you’ve got to be able to defend well. Those two areas are going to be really important for us to develop a team that is really hard to beat at the World Cup.”
Jones feels his side have added a new layer to their attacking game, too. “What I was really impressed with this year is our ability to adapt our attack,” he added.
“We were able to play a fast-tempo attack, our ‘Cho-soku’ rugby. We were able to do that for 20 minutes in a game, and we weren’t able to sustain that for any longer. Whereas this year, we’ve been able to change our attack a little bit, become more adaptable, play a little bit of a different way. As a result, it’s made us much more competitive and a much harder team to beat, so we want to continue doing that.
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