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By Tom English
BBC Scotland
On Monday morning we awakened to the news of a typhoon going round the Western Pacific Ocean. The national agency known as in and it Typhoon Hagibis our innocence it had been nicknamed Hurricane Haggis and because it was believed it might damage the chances of making the World Cup quarter-finals of Ireland and raise the chances of Scotland.
Many Scots laughed . Nobody was laughing on Saturday because this thing started to growl its way from Yokohama, the venue (hopefully) for Scotlands monumental clash with Japan to determine that goes through and who moves out.
1 person was murdered in Chiba, three were still missing after a landslide in Gunma even before Hagibis made landfall at Shizouka Prefecture in local time on Saturday, 211,600 homes were without electricity and evacuation orders were issued to millions of families.
Planes were trained, trains haltedroofs were ripped off buildings, record rain was captured amid flooding. In its center, winds have been measured at 162kmph and gusting at 234kmph. Each day sombre news presenters stood depicting what they believed was the complete scale of this horror. You did not need to understand the language to get the gravity of the message.
About 6.20pm a earthquake with a magnitude of 5.7 hit offshore in Katsuura at Chiba. More than 60 miles away the tremor was felt in Yokohama where the Scotland staff are remaining. Scotlands beginning hooker, fraser Brown, tweeted that a video of his resort corridor moving and creaking from side to side.
On the floor of this Vista hotel, as dinner was eaten by guests, the construction swayed. Japan has such an history of natural disasters that its people are stoic in minutes. Food was brought by the team like nothing had occurred. To them, this was normal and there was nothing to be concerned about. To the tourists, it was eerie.
Sunday will bring the sunshine back into Yokohama – but can we have a game? The term is that World Cup organisers will have a site review around 6am (22:00 BST) and will announce a choice between 8am and 10am. Thats not a hard and fast deadline. Technicallythey can wait till six hours before kick-off – 1.45pm neighborhood (05:45 BST) – to make their call.
That was exactly what Scottish Rugby believed they went to perform. It is recognized that they realised when they read it on Friday 25, that a decision may come hours before. They are livid at the things they say is a lack of communication and information from World Rugby.
Relations between both bodies could be worse. Theres likely to be outcry in the SRU, if the game does not take place. This row operate and will operate. On the face of it the SRU may be limited in their options but only one thing is for sure – in case of a doomsday scenario they are not ready to move.
Without needing to be a hostage to fortune there have been indications late on Saturday in Yokohama that Hagibis, mercifully, was not going to wreak the terrible havoc predicted and that loss of life and damage to infrastructure would not be anywhere near the realms of the horrors of Kanto and Izu typhoon of 1958, a disaster that killed 1,200 people and one which Hagibis had been said to rival.
What all does it mean with Japan on Sunday for the almighty saga of all the denouement of Scotland? It is still too early to state. Nobody was at the stadium if the most heavy rain fell and if Hagibis was its most violent, therefore no one knows what damage is present there. Flooding is a major worry.
It might be called by the organisers off on security reasons, they might allow it to go ahead behind closed doors or, if the damage isnt significant, the series might go ahead in front of a potential audience. Nobody knows. Everybody is guessing before the group of inspectors do their work.
Scotland and Japan continue to prepare as they must, as if the game is a certainty. Despite Hagibis hubbub and the war of words involving Scottish Rugby and World Rugby with Jamie Joseph, the Japan trainer, throwing in his barbs too, this was a Evaluation that captivated the game. Its an unmissable affair for anyone whos ever picked up a soccer ball.
If we get a match, the television audience in Japan will be tremendous, in or around. The hosts will be the group with the support of a lot of the world, beyond Ireland and Scotland who have a vested interest in those losing. The tournament has been by japan. Their brilliantly conceived win on the Irish was the highlight up to now.
Remember that Scotland should take things out of the sport compared to Japan – and Scotland arent in the business of winning and going into the garden of stellar teams, never mind winning by a margin. Discounting the victory over Italy at the neutral venue of Singapore, in Townsends time they have have just managed three away wins against Tier One onwards – that is exactly what Japan realistically are now – and only one of them, Argentina at 2018, was from the margin of victory thatll cut it on Sunday.
They could win by less than seven points as long they have a bonus stage. Thats tough to see, yet.
Joseph complained that his boys are disrespected in places. Its tough to understand whether he meant it or if he simply explained it that his players believed that it , adding more fuel to their fire. It is not true. For this Japan side theres been nothing but admiration from Scotland.
They are a side that may play pace while maintaining precision, a team of work-rate and ability and ambition. Theirs is a chaotic brand of rugby. Fitness levels are sky high. They have not lacked for resilience. Japan established against Ireland that rate could be equally as powerful as electricity. The grunt of ireland wasnt any match for his or her energy.
Directed from the Michael Leitch, they are an fine side, hewn in Super Rugby in their Sunwolves experiences. If Scotland were to win with that margin of eight things that it goes down in just two years.
Scotland hauled Russia and also Samoa. Resistance, for sure, but Gregor Townsends team needed a toughness about them that impressed. Have they found something in youth? Sunday will tell. Darcy Graham is a personality. Fearless. Magnus Bradbury is constructing on his guarantee. Jamie Ritchie is revealing what a belligerent player he is. Blade Thomson is living up to the hype, however that is their Test. That is where they sink or swim.
Yes, we sofa everything from the understanding that it was Samoa and Russia, but the mindset was a million times better than it was against Ireland. With Scotland you feel that getting the right mindset is half of the battle. Theyve had it in matches and a classic can ensue should they have it in Yokohama.
They think they are prepared also have flopped and when acknowledging that they have been down this road many times. This is an off game and we understand like when playing in another teams stadium with the stress on what Scotland are normally. Nostradamus could have given up predicting what this team was about to send from 1 week to the next, although at their best they can do so.
Theyll travel to perform a team, if they get to travel to the stadium, however a team possibly burdened by expectation. The one true wish is that the sport is performed by needing to call it off, and the governing body of the sport do not further undermine their own credibility. The rugby world wishes to find this one. The expectancy, as well as the bets, are as large as the maximum skyscraper at Yokohama.
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