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By Tom English
BBC Scotland
On Monday morning we woke to a typhoon going across the Western Pacific Ocean bound for Japans information. The national meteorological agency called it Typhoon Hagibis and in our innocence it had been filmed Hurricane Haggis and since it was believed it might damage the prospects of making the World Cup quarter-finals of Ireland and boost the odds of Scotland.
Scots were laughing . Nobody was laughing on Saturday because something started to growl its strategy towards Yokohama, the venue (ideally ) for Scotlands monumental clash with Japan to determine who goes through and that goes out.
One person was murdered in Chiba, three were missing after a landslide at Gunma before Hagibis made landfall on Saturday at Shizouka Prefecture in local time, 211,600 homes were without power and evacuation orders had been issued to millions of families.
Planes were trained, trains haltedroofs were ripped off constructions, record rain was captured amid flooding. At its center, winds were measured at 162kmph and gusting at 234kmph. Each day sombre news presenters stood facing graphics depicting what they thought was the complete scale of this terror. You didnt need to understand the language to have the gravity of the message.
Around 6.20pm an earthquake with a magnitude of 5.7 hit offshore at Katsuura in Chiba. More than 60 miles off the tremor was felt in Yokohama where the Scotland team are remaining. Fraser Brown, the beginning hooker of Scotland, tweeted a movie of his hotel corridor moving and Immunology from side to side.
On the floor of this Vista hotel, as guests ate dinner, the building swayed softly. Japan has an astounding history of disasters that its people are stoic in these minutes. The team brought food like nothing had happened. To them, this was normal and that there wasnt anything to be worried about. To the tourists, it was eerie.
Sunday will bring back the sun into Yokohama – but will 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 decision between 8am and 10am. Thats not a hard and fast deadline. Technically, they can wait till six hours prior to kick-off – 1.45pm neighborhood (05:45 BST) – to create their call.
That was what Scottish Rugby believed they were planning to perform. Its known that they only realised that a decision might come hours before when they see it on Friday. Theyre livid at what they say is a lack of communication and information from World Rugby.
Relations between both bodies could scarcely be worse. There is likely to be ear-splitting outcry in the SRU, if the game does not take place. This row will run and operate. On the surface of it the SRU might be restricted in their options but one thing is for certain – in the event of a doomsday scenario theyre not minded to go quietly.
Without needing to be a hostage to fortune there were no indications late on Saturday in Yokohama that Hagibis, thankfully, wasnt likely to wreak the dreadful havoc called and loss of life and damage to infrastructure wouldnt be anywhere near the realms of the horrors of Kanto and Izu typhoon of 1958, a tragedy that killed 1,200 individuals and one which Hagibis had been said to rival.
What does it all mean for the saga of Scotlands denouement with Japan on Sunday? Its still too early to say. Nobody was if the most heavy rain fell and when Hagibis was its most barbarous, therefore no one knows what damage is present there. Flooding is a major worry.
The organisers may call off it on safety grounds, they may let it proceed behind closed doors or, the series might go in front of a capacity crowd, if the damage isnt important. Nobody understands. Everybody is imagining before the team of inspectors perform their job.
Scotland and Japan continue to prepare as they need to, as if the sport is a certainty. Even without the hubbub of Hagibis and the war of words involving Scottish Rugby and World Rugby using Jamie Joseph, the Japan mentor, throwing his barbs also, that was a Test that captivated the sport. Now its an affair for anybody whos ever picked up a soccer ball.
The tv audience in Japan will be enormous, in or around, if we get a match. The hosts are the team with the support of much of the rugby world, beyond Scotland and Ireland that have a vested interest in them losing. Japan have electrified the championship. Their brilliantly conceived win across the Irish has been the highlight so far.
Keep in mind that Scotland should take four more points out of the sport than Japan – and Scotland are not in the business of entering the garden of stellar teams and winning, not mind winning with such a margin. Discounting the victory over Italy in the neutral venue of Singapore, at Townsends time they have just managed three off wins from Tier One onwards – thats what Japan realistically are currently – and only one of these, Argentina at 2018, was by the margin of victory thatll cut it on Sunday.
They can win provided that they have a bonus stage. That is tough to see.
Joseph complained the other day that his boys have been disrespected in places. It is hard to understand whether he intended it or when he just explained it in the expectation that his players believed that it adding more fuel for their fire. It is not accurate, though. For this particular Japan side there has been nothing but admiration from Scotland.
They are a negative that may play at pace whilst maintaining precision, a team of ambition and work-rate and ability. Theirs is a new rugby. Fitness levels are sky high. They have not lacked for psychological resilience. Japan established against Ireland that rate could be as effective as electricity. Irelands grunt was no game for his or her energy.
Directed from the glorious Michael Leitch, theyre an fine side, hewn in Super Rugby from their Sunwolves experiences. If Scotland were to triumph with that magic margin of eight factors it goes down in just two decades.
Scotland routed Samoa and also Russia. Sub-standard resistance, for sure, however Gregor Townsends team needed. Have they discovered something in youth? Sunday will inform. Darcy Graham is a irrepressible personality. Fearless. His guarantee is being built on by magnus Bradbury. Jamie Ritchie is showing exactly what a player. Blade Thomson is currently alive up to the hype, but that is their Test today. That is the place where they swim or float.
Yes, we couch everything that it was Samoa and Russia, but the attitude was a thousand times greater than it was against Ireland. Together with Scotland you sometimes feel that obtaining the ideal mindset is half the battle. They have had it and should they have it then a classic could ensue.
They believe they are ready also have flopped and whilst acknowledging that theyve already been down this road many times before. This is an away game and we understand what Scotland are like when playing in another teams arena using the pressure on. Nostradamus could have given up calling what this team went to deliver from one week to the next, although at their best they can do so.
Should they have to travel to the stadium then they will travel in expectation to perform a team, however a team maybe burdened by expectation. The one true wish is that the game is played by needing to take off it and the governing body of the game dont further undermine their credibility. The rugby world wishes to observe this one. The stakes, and the anticipation, are as large as the maximum skyscraper at Yokohama.
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