Ten FGs in Japan's Rugby World Cup Squad

[Mulboyne]

The Rugby World Cup kicks off next month and the teams are now announcing their squads. 15 players take the field for a rugby union team, and you are also allowed seven substitutes, which means you name 22 players for any given match. The World Cup tournament rules restrict every team to a competition squad of 30 players which gives a certain amount of scope for rotation and dealing with injuries. Japan's coach, New Zealander John Kirwan, has included ten foreign players in his squad and, when asked about the number said "we need to use the foreign players to help our country get better". This has been translated into Japanese in a more delicate fashion. Kirwan wasn't pleased about the focus on foreign players, saying:

"I am getting pretty tired about the whole foreigner issue," Kirwan said. "We are following IRB rules and right now we need to use the foreign players to make Japan better. They are all very proud to play for Japan and some of them have lived here a very long time. Rugby is a great game that embraces all races. We need the balance of getting success and the JRFU [Japan Rugby Football Union] moving forward to create a base to ensure we have better Japanese players coming through."

Kirwan is right about IRB rules. The England rugby squad includes two South Africans, one New Zealander and a Samoan player, and might have included more imports. It's not unusual to see players selected who have qualified through residency. At the moment, Kirwan is bulletproof because he has guided Japan to some decent wins - they beat America at the weekend - and a better ranking than teams like Canada and Tonga who they will face in the Cup.

Yomiuri English report here.

[Screwed-down Hairdo]

The England rugby squad includes two South Africans, one New Zealander and a Samoan player, and might have included more imports.

Outside of soccer, where you are forced to play only Pommies in fear of being forcibly linked with the Sweaty Jocks, is there actually such a thing as an English sports team with any English players on it?

[Mulboyne]

Outside of soccer, where you are forced to play only Pommies in fear of being forcibly linked with the Sweaty Jocks, is there actually such a thing as an English sports team with any English players on it?

It's complicated.

In football, Britain plays as four nations - Scotland, Wales, England & Northern Ireland. The Republic of Ireland plays as a separate nation.

In rugby, we play as four countries but players from Northern Ireland qualify for Ireland and take the field alongside Republic of Ireland players.

In cricket, only England is a full ICC member so Scottish, Northern Irish and Welsh players can only play international Test cricket through the England team. The Republic of Ireland has status as a One Day cricket side - and has beaten England before - but any decent player tries to qualify for Test cricket as an England player. Republic of Irishman Eoin Morgan (which could easily be a Welsh name) is in the current England team and will captain England against Ireland in a one day international match on Thursday. Cricket has similar residential qualifications as rugby so two of our best players are actually South African.

In the Olympics, England, Wales, Scotland & Northern Ireland compete as Great Britain. Except in football, where Great Britain has not fielded a team since 1960 but may do at the London Olympics. There's still an ongoing dispute about combining forces. Now that rugby is in the Olympics, Northern Irish players qualify for Britain but could also play for the Republic.

The national affiliation isn't only confusing in team sports. Northern Irishmen Graeme McDowell and Rory McIlroy have both won the US Open. Americans call them Irish but both are British. McDowell is a Protestant but is happy to call himself Irish and British. McIlroy is Catholic which would seem to align him more with the Republic but he's already said he's willing play for Britain when golf is included in the Olympics.

As Zola Budd showed, we're often not too fussy on such matters. Americans might remember her for taking out Mary Decker during the 1984 3000m Olympic final.

[Mock Cockpit]

Actually the Irish cricket team is an all-Ireland team like the rugby team.

[legion]

Kirwan's a good bloke.

He needs to root the "samurai" fantasy out of the rugby team. By "samurai" I mean run around for a while then give up and lose. The entire country needs to get over this mentality.

[Screwed-down Hairdo]

Kirwan's a good bloke. He needs to root the "samurai" fantasy out of the rugby team.

As Kirwan is a New Zealander, if he's going to root the team, I think it'd be better for him to train the members to obey his orders like sheep...

[Greji]

As Kirwan is a New Zealander, if he's going to root the team, I think it'd be better for him to train the members to obey his orders like sheep...

As a Kiwi, he runs a baaaad scrum!

[Mulboyne]

Kirwan has chosen six foreigners in his starting XV for Japan's first match against France. There are another two on the bench. Actually, Luke Thompson naturalized so you could make the case he shouldn't be included in that count.

1. Hisateru Hirashima
2. Shota Horie
3. Kensuke Hatakeyama
4. Luke Thompson
5. Toshizumi Kitagawa
6. Takashi Kikutani (c)
7. Michael Leitch
8. Ryukoliniasi Holani
9. Fumiaki Tanaka
10. James Arlidge
11. Hirotoki Onozawa
12. Ryan Nicholas
13. Koji Taira
14. Kosuke Endo
15. Shaun Webb

Replacements:

16. Yusuke Aoki
17. Nozomu Fujita
18. Hitoshi Ono
19. Itaru Taniguchi
20. Atsushi Hiwasa
21. Murray Williams
22. Alisi Tupuailai

[Pearse]

...In football, Britain plays as four nations - Scotland, Wales, England & Northern Ireland. The Republic of Ireland plays as a separate nation.

Come on, Mulboyne, Ireland is a separate nation. Don't lump it in with the UK or Britain.

[Mulboyne]

Come on, Mulboyne, Ireland is a separate nation. Don't lump it in with the UK or Britain.

I didn't. Read further and you'll see why I highlighted that distinction.

[Coligny]

Kirwan has chosen six foreigners in his starting XV for Japan's first match against France. There are another two on the bench. Actually, Luke Thompson naturalized so you could make the case he shouldn't be included in that count.

One of th3 few sports we are good at... (maybe because I'm not even sure we got a professionnal team, usually it's mostly amateurs)...

Interestingly... usually for the local match, nobody seems to really cares who will win as long as the game is fun... Often saw supporters cheering at the victory of the other team at the end of the game...(was living near a rugby field in Paris). Never seen more than 1 or 2 police cars to enforce parking restriction for rugby games... While armored wheeled vehicles and boarded shops were common for football games...

[Pearse]

I didn't. Read further and you'll see why I highlighted that distinction.

Of course the Republic plays as a separate nation. It is a separate nation.

[Mulboyne]

[Mock Cockpit]

Kirwan has them playing a good brand of rugby, definitely took it to the French today. And an FG scored all Japan's points too! I liked Kirwan's Japanese interview after the game too, real proper FG Japanese, made me cringe, just like mine it was.
I actually surprised myself cos I was barracking for the Japanese and was pissed off when they lost. Maybe cos my son plays rugby but I usually don't barrack for Japan in anything.

[legion]

Japan played well and for a while looked like they could beat the French, massive improvement on past outings in the world cup. The weren't afraid to get stuck in and didn't give up when the play turned against them. If the rest of the country can follow their lead there is hope for us yet.

As far as having foreigners in the team goes I think "so what", many of the other teams have players who are classed as "immigrants". Is this a sport or an exercise in concepts of racial purity and nationalism?

[Screwed-down Hairdo]

Japan is always happy with "honorable" defeats. Drives me up the fucking wall...I think every rugby game I've ever heard of Japan against one of the sport's powers has ended in an "honorable" defeat. If you're gonna stack the team with ring-ins, win for fuck's sake...

[Mulboyne]

J Sports is putting short match highlights up on YouTube. Here's the Japan game:

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[Mulboyne]

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Odd IBM advert during the rugby.

[Mulboyne]

Japan lost 31-18 to Tonga in a match they hoped to win. They've been playing some good rugby but just make too many mistakes at crucial moments to press home any advantage.

Here are some pictures of the crowd at the game:

[Mulboyne]

Japan targeted two wins at the World Cup but came back with one draw. Coach John Kirwan is under contract until December but has already said he won't be reapplying for his job. He probably wouldn't be reappointed anyway after those Cup results and a new coach will be selected shortly. The JRFU wants former Australian national coach Eddie Jones. Jones currently works in Japan with Suntory and is half-Japanese himself.

Planet Rugby has reported that some members of the JRFU, somewhat unsurprisingly, have criticized Kirwan for selecting so many foreign born players.

[Ganma]

He did the best he could with what he was given. It's unlikely a new couch will do any better. No doubt he'll go on to better things.

[Coligny]

huummm... le what !?

[Mulboyne]

Sport24: Fears for 2019 hosts Japan

Japan's winless exit from the Rugby World Cup raises a worrying question for the perennial Asian champions but minnows on the global stage: What will happen when they hold the event in 2019? "Isn't it shameful for Japan to host the 2019 Rugby World Cup?" asked a sports columnist in the popular local tabloid Yukan Fuji when the Brave Blossoms returned home after three defeats and one draw in New Zealand..."Wouldn't it be better to let South Africa or Italy, who lost the bid, to do it?" said the columnist, Mitsuo Kamiya. "Japan qualified for each World Cup without much effort because the level of Asian rugby is low. But we always felt empty in the end."

Ever since it started the World Cup has been hosted by traditional rugby powers in Europe and the southern hemisphere. But Japan's financial clout, along with its experience of holding one summer and two winter Olympics, and co-hosting a football World Cup, meant the sport's world body could not ignore its claims. "We have eight years to go but we cannot waste a single hour in strengthening our team and, at the same time, boosting the sport's popularity," said Japan Rugby Football Union vice president Nobby Mashimo. "If we had scored at least one win (in New Zealand), it would have pumped up the atmosphere. The tournament in 2019 is unlikely to become a success if we can't attract the kind of people who have ignored rugby," Mashimo told AFP.

The sport had its heyday in Japan in the 1980s and the early 1990s but has since declined in popularity while football has become big business following the launch of the professional J-League in 1993. Both trail baseball in terms of money and popular following. The professional rugby Top League was inaugurated in 2003 with deep-pocketed businesses bankrolling the venture. But gates are poor, with an average attendance of just 4 700 per match last year and no big improvement forecast. Of all the 2011 World Cup matches, only an opening pool match between Japan and France was broadcast live on Japanese terrestrial television, although a paid-for satellite channel aired matches live. "The best way to improve the situation is to have the national team win a match," Mashimo said.

John Kirwan, due to step down as Japan coach when his five-year contract expires in December, says the country needs tougher competition to progress...Kirwan and Mashimo agree that university rugby wastes the talents of many young Japanese players, as they play a limited number of matches under coaches who may not be thoroughly professional. "Amateurs become real amateurs in four years at university," Mashimo said. Munehiko Harada, a professor of sports marketing at Tokyo's Waseda University, said the priority was to develop new, better players. "I wonder who can do well where Kirwan failed," he said. "It may be not a matter of tactics but a matter of materials -- young players for future generations."

Former Australia coach Eddie Jones, who guided the Wallabies to the 2003 World Cup final and now coaches Top League side Suntory Sungoliath, is widely tipped to take over as coach from the New Zealander. Jones believes Japan need to develop a more effective, high-octane style. "You're not going to be top 10 in the world by playing orthodox rugby," he said.

[Ganma]

Jones believes Japan need to develop a more effective, high-octane style. "You're not going to be top 10 in the world by playing orthodox rugby," he said.

They could start by changing their name. Brave Blossoms. How gay is that!?

[Mike Oxlong]

They could start by changing their name. Brave Blossoms. How gay is that!?

Naw, it really, really fits.