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Weaponised Japan scrum on revenge mission after previous Bok humbling

By Alex Shaw
Keita Inagaki has been one of the most consistent loosehead props in world rugby over the last four years. (Photo by Ken Ishii/Getty Images)

For the second Rugby World Cup in the row, Japan are boasting one of, if not the most efficient and influential scrum at the tournament, despite regularly giving up sizeable weight advantages to their opponents.

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In England in 2015, it was Eddie Jones and Marc dal Maso’s swift set-piece that prioritised quick ball and would hook down channel one, with the No 8 shifting over to be between the flanker and feed-side lock, that set the Rugby World Cup alight. It was a vital component behind Japan’s now famous victory over South Africa and loosehead prop Keita Inagaki and hooker Shota Horie were both excellent proponents of it.

Four years later and Japan are once again preparing to play the Springboks, albeit this time under the tutelage of Jamie Joseph and former international front row Shin Hasegawa.

Whilst the challenge will be a considerable one once again for the Japanese pack, it’s not one that they should be shying away from, having taken on and triumphed against the Irish and Scottish forwards in recent weeks, despite having faced their fair share of struggles against South Africa in the Rugby World Cup warm-up game.

“That showed what happens when we don’t do what we’re intent on,” said Hasegawa.

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“We’ve played four games since but there has never been a game we’ve been satisfied with our scrums throughout the 80 minutes. We need to have scrums that don’t give them a gap to exploit.

“I thought what was important was how many messages I can get across to the players, but Jamie [Joseph] said I was being too perfect. He said, let them do more by themselves, which will ingrain autonomy among them.

“He doesn’t actually say anything about the scrum in training. Now the players can adjust themselves during games. Sometimes I send a message across but they are already talking about it, so we’re heading in the right direction.”

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Just as they did under dal Maso four years ago, however, the Japan scrum will not be coming into the game without an idea of how to disrupt and counter the much heavier Springbok pack.

“Details. We have all the patterns to deal with different situations and the players understand them. We’ll get stronger,” concluded Hasegawa.

Japan and Hasegawa have previously prepared for heavier packs by their starting eight practising against 10-man scrums, something which captain Michael Leitch heralded following Japan’s win over Ireland earlier in the pool stages. The starting tight five in that eight will largely pick itself heading into the contest with South Africa.

Inagaki, one of the heroes of Brighton, has been ever-present in Japan’s starting front row at the tournament, bringing technical proficiency to each of the four pool games. He has been spelled by the distinctive shock of blonde hair of Isileli Nakajima who, although he doesn’t bring the same prowess at the set-piece, offers an enviable physical presence as a ball-carrier. Given Nakajima only recently made the transition to the front row, that shouldn’t come as much of a surprise.

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Horie was given a brief rest against Samoa, though the 33-year-old hooker has started the other three games of Japan’s Rugby World Cup so far and he will almost certainly be front and centre when Joseph announces his team to play South Africa. A lot can change in four years and the Springboks are certainly a different proposition to the one that showed up in Brighton in 2015, but the combination and effectiveness of Inagaki and Horie is unchanged and as formidable as ever.

Where the Japan scrum will face some uncertainty is on the tighthead, with Jiwon Koo, who started the crunch games against Ireland, Scotland and Samoa, leaving the field on Sunday with what looked like a rib injury. Should he be unavailable as expected, that will open the door for Asaeli Ai Valu, with the Panasonic Wild Knight set to join his club teammates Inagaki and Horie in the front row.

In the second row, James Moore, another ever-present so far for Japan, will likely pack down alongside one of Luke Thompson or Wimpie van der Walt. In the games against Ireland and Scotland, Thompson was the man chosen to partner Moore and the 38-year-old has rolled back the years so far at the tournament. They may not provide the most ballast of any second rows in international rugby, although the Japan scrum has not been hurt as a result.

Once again, the Brave Blossoms will look to avoid engaging in a physical arm wrestle with the South Africans, in what would be a move that would play into all the strengths of Rassie Erasmus’ squad. Some of the personnel may have changed since that famous night in Brighton, but the game plan won’t have. As it has throughout this tournament for Japan, it will be all about pace, tempo and an eagerness to move their opponents around.

From a scrum perspective, Hasegawa is likely preparing his charges to get the ball in and out as quickly as possible, not only to negate South Africa’s brute strength upfront, but also to unleash the threats of Kenki Fukuoka and Kotaro Matsushima out wide, a tactic that not only saw off the Boks in Brighton, but also Ireland in Shizuoka much more recently.

Watch: Fans are divided over where Japan’s future should reside in international rugby

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Trevor 2 hours ago
Will forgotten Wallabies fit the Joe Schmidt model?

Thanks Brett.. At last a positive article on the potential of Wallaby candidates, great to read. Schmidt’s record as an international rugby coach speaks for itself, I’m somewhat confident he will turn the Wallaby’s fortunes around …. on the field. It will be up to others to steady the ship off the paddock. But is there a flaw in my optimism? We have known all along that Australia has the players to be very competitive with their international rivals. We know that because everyone keeps telling us. So why the poor results? A question that requires a definitive answer before the turn around can occur. Joe Schmidt signed on for 2 years, time to encompass the Lions tour of 2025. By all accounts he puts family first and that’s fair enough, but I would wager that his 2 year contract will be extended if the next 18 months or so shows the statement “Australia has the players” proves to be correct. The new coach does not have a lot of time to meld together an outfit that will be competitive in the Rugby Championship - it will be interesting to see what happens. It will be interesting to see what happens with Giteau law, the new Wallaby coach has already verbalised that he would to prefer to select from those who play their rugby in Australia. His first test in charge is in July just over 3 months away .. not a long time. I for one wish him well .. heaven knows Australia needs some positive vibes.

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Bull Shark 6 hours ago
Jake White: Are modern rugby players actually better?

Of the rugby I’ve born witness to in my lifetime - 1990 to date - I recognize great players throughout those years. But I have no doubt the game and the players are on average better today. So I doubt going back further is going to prove me wrong. The technical components of the game, set pieces, scrums, kicks, kicks at goal. And in general tactics employed are far more efficient, accurate and polished. Professional athletes that have invested countless hours on being accurate. There is one nation though that may be fairly competitive in any era - and that for me is the all blacks. And New Zealand players in general. NZ produces startling athletes who have fantastic ball skills. And then the odd phenomenon like Brooke. Lomu. Mcaw. Carter. Better than comparing players and teams across eras - I’ve often had this thought - that it would be very interesting to have a version of the game that is closer to its original form. What would the game look like today if the rules were rolled back. Not rules that promote safety obviously - but rules like: - a try being worth 1 point and conversion 2 points. Hence the term “try”. Earning a try at goals. Would we see more attacking play? - no lifting in the lineouts. - rucks and break down laws in general. They looked like wrestling matches in bygone eras. I wonder what a game applying 1995 rules would look like with modern players. It may be a daft exercise, but it would make for an interesting spectacle celebrating “purer” forms of the game that roll back the rules dramatically by a few versions. Would we come to learn that some of the rules/combinations of the rules we see today have actually made the game less attractive? I’d love to see an exhibition match like that.

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