Rugby World UK – August 2019

hole and you wonder what will
happen to the new fans created by
the buzz surrounding the World Cup.
Of even greater concern is what will
happen to all the potential new players.
Much has been made of the introduction
of tag rugby in primary schools, but as
long as the number of rugby clubs in
junior high and high schools continues
to decline and as long as there are no
age-grade club teams, most of the ‘new’
players will be lost to the sport. They
will have nowhere to play.
This is not helped by the fact the
Japanese education system basically
allows teenagers to play only one sport
year round, and as such many children
will have to make some tough decisions
if they are to play rugby post-2019.
As an example, my 15-year-old son
played tag rugby when he was at
primary school. Of the 90 kids in his
year, only two are still involved in rugby
and they both have a considerable
commute to their schools of choice.
Gilpin has said: “The work we are
doing now with the JRFU is about
long-term planning. It’s about funding
development officers and having a
strategic plan in place for the next ten
years that takes everything into account,
from elite professional rugby down to
grass roots and development and
continued investment in that.”
The evidence so far hardly breeds
optimism, but what is encouraging
is the way rugby fans in Japan have
taken to the Rugby World Cup.

HERE HAVE been well
over 5.5m applications
for the 1.8m seats and
Shimazu expects all 48
games to be sold out.
With the Webb Ellis Cup now in Japan,
more and more people are realising the
tournament is taking place – no mean
feat given the Japanese government
has, until recently, spent more time
advertising and introducing legislation
for the Tokyo 2020 Olympics. That’s
despite the fact as many as 500,000
foreigners are expected to travel to
Japan for the World Cup, with the
Japanese economy to benefit by as
much as 216.6bn yen (£1.58bn).
In addition to the 12 host cities, the
coveted trophy will visit Hiroshima and
Kyoto. In August, Mount Fuji will also
play host to the cup as Hiroyuki Tanuma,
who played for Japan in the 1999 and
2003 tournaments, will lead a group of
players from Nippon Sports University
to the summit wearing the shirts of the
20 teams taking part in the tournament.

Certainly travelling to the various host

cities (outside Tokyo), you get a feeling

that something is in the air. World Cup

posters and manhole covers bearing the

RWC logo are ubiquitous and many of

the locals are not only aware of the

tournament but keen to talk rugby.

That is not to say everyone is happy,

with some training camp venues angry

at the strict rules in place for the World

Cup. At present, municipalities that will

host official team camps are prohibited

from publicising training locations and

schedules for security reasons. The

local governments have asked for the

rules to be reviewed so they can give

their residents as many opportunities

as possible to see the players of the

teams they are hosting and help

promote a welcoming atmosphere.

“The World Cup could be over without

our residents knowing their city hosted

a national team,” said an official of Fuchu

in western Tokyo, one of many who

wants the confidentiality rules relaxed.

Of the 61 municipalities hosting

training and accommodation facilities,

19 wanted to announce training camp

details and ten of them were told it

would be impossible. Meanwhile, just

six out of 53 local governments that

asked to hold events with teams have

received a positive response.

This is in marked contrast to Kashiwa

and Kitakyushu, which will host

pre-tournament camps for the All Blacks

and Wales respectively. Both cities have

already held a number of events with

representatives from the two teams,

with the Kitakyushu fire engines now

adorned with Welsh dragons.

As one official of a local government

that succeeded in attracting a camp

before the tournament said: “We

couldn’t be selected as an official

Japan

T

Growth market

Super Rugby has brought

new fans to rugby in Japan

Youth project

A NZ training session

with Tokyo schoolchildren

Final countdown

A giant clock in Tokyo