The "Rugby Test Match 2024 Autumn Nations Series," which will feature the best countries in the Northern and Southern Hemispheres, including Japan, will kick off on November 2nd, and WOWOW will broadcast all 21 matches live, as well as 10 matches, including two matches by the Japanese national team. Former Japan national team scrum half Fumiaki Tanaka, who retired in May this year, spoke about the highlights of this Nations Series.
--The Autumn Nations Series is finally about to begin.
It's an interesting match with a continuing rivalry of wins and losses. Personally, I think New Zealand is the most interesting rugby to watch. England plays a solid rugby style, kicking and putting pressure on the ball, but I think the Japanese national team can learn more from New Zealand's rugby.
--New Zealand missed out on winning The Rugby Championship from August to September this year (2nd place). What do you think of the new system?
I'm sure they're struggling a bit with the major changes in their members. Also, South Africa (who won consecutive games against New Zealand to win their first title in five tournaments) are more confident now that Brownie (former New Zealand national team and former Japan national team coach Tony Brown) has been there as coach, so I got the impression that New Zealand deserved to lose.
-- South Africa has won consecutive World Cups and also won the Rugby Championship this year. Has your impression of them changed?
Yes. They are no longer a team of just forwards, but their backs are also able to score tries, and I get the impression that they are actually passing the ball around to the backs.
There is a different kind of excitement to South African rugby than before, so I think the number of fans is increasing.
-- The series starts with England vs New Zealand, but are there any other matches or teams that you are looking forward to?
Right now I think Irish rugby is the most interesting, so I am really looking forward to Ireland vs New Zealand on November 9th. Ireland has established a style that could be said to be the perfect form of the rugby that Japan wants to play, and they are playing rugby that could be said to be perfect. Both teams have improved their game level, so I think the match between Italy and Argentina on November 10th will be a good one. Italy is playing a different style than before, as they did in their match against Japan in July. Argentina is also showing growth as one of the world's top teams.
Fiji, who played in a way that would put them in the top four in the world but were unable to break Japan's, will play Ireland on November 23rd, so I'm looking forward to seeing how that match goes. All of France's matches also look interesting. Not only the match against Japan on November 10th, but also France vs New Zealand on the 17th will be a match between the world's fourth and third ranked teams. I'm looking forward to it because it will decide which team is stronger.
-Amidst all of these strong teams, the Japanese national team will play France on November 10th and England on the 25th.
The current Japanese national team is definitely working hard, but there are still many cases where they don't get the ball when they should, and they can't stop the ball when they should, so it feels like they've reverted to the national team when I was young. Only they can improve the team, so I think they just need to work hard. Among them, CTB Dylan (Riley) plays like a god. I get the impression that they rely too much on his individual skills, but I hope that the Japanese national team will use him better as a team.
What do you think about the SH and SO (stand-off), which are the core of the "super-fast rugby" that the Japanese national team is promoting?
I think it's good to try out various combinations. However, although Haru (centre captain Tachikawa Michimichi) is a good player and has captaincy, there is the question of whether he can continue like this until the 2027 World Cup, so I think it would be good to give Lee Seung-shin, Matsuda Rikiya, and Takamoto Mikiya, who were not selected this time, a chance in the future.
As for the SH, Fujiwara Shinobu, who Tanaka-san highly praised, is becoming a regular starter.
He has really high ability, and even when watching the games, he makes great decisions. That's why I want players like him to challenge the world. That way they will be able to withstand pressure and their range of play will expand. On that point, Saito Naoto has played all over the world (currently playing for Toulouse in the French League TOP14) and is fully demonstrating his talents. I think he is having a very good experience.
--Also, this time, FL (flanker)/No. 8 Himeno Kazuki has returned to the national team.
--He is the captain for the 2023 World Cup, and I'm sure he will have a very positive influence on the team. Not only in terms of performance, but he is also a player who has experience in the World Cup and Super Rugby, so I think he will bring a lot to the other players.
--The Japanese national team will first play against France on November 10th.
There was a time when it was no longer the so-called "champagne rugby," but I get the impression that the original rugby is returning. They are a very difficult team to play against. I think the key to the game is still the set pieces. The other thing is defense. The current Japanese national team sometimes plays good defense, but sometimes they are caught off guard, so I think they have a chance to win if they can stay focused and defend well while being wary of penalties.
ーーWhat do you think about scrum half Antoine Dupont, who won a gold medal at the Paris Olympics as a member of the French sevens team and has returned to the 15-man national team squad?
He is a fantastic player with extremely high abilities. He made a spectacular comeback to Toulouse, and his speed in kick chasing, which he makes use of his experience in sevens, is a threat. I think it will be important for the Japanese national team to put him under pressure and not let him have the ball easily. Also, fullback Thomas Ramos has an accurate kick, so we need to be careful of penalties.
ーーHow do you want to develop the game as the Japanese national team?
I think it would be best to keep the score low. If the opponent doesn't take the ball, we have a higher chance of not losing, so the next step is to take it while we can. I want them to keep playing, but if they continue too much, they may lose their stamina and speed and end up losing the ball, so I want them to make an impactful attack.
ーーIn addition, the Japanese national team will play England on November 25th.
England plays solid rugby. However, it's not like they couldn't break through at all in the 2023 World Cup or in the match in June this year, so it will be important in this match to get the ball when you can. Another important thing is to deal with the opponent's high balls. The Japanese national team has been getting better at catching high balls recently, but I would like them to think more about how to attack from there and show it.
--This will be your third match in about a year since the 2023 World Cup.
I'm very jealous, but there's no point in going to the stadium just to play. I want them to play while pushing their bodies to the limit and only think about winning.
--Who are the players we should be particularly wary of?
Fullback Freddie Steward is a player who can kick, catch, run, and more, so we have to be careful. Of course, fly-half Marcus Smith is also a player who uses all kinds of skills to attack, and he beat us in the match in June. But they are just individual players, so if we respond as a team, it shouldn't be a problem. I have the impression that they often broke through the joints between the forwards and backs, so I would like the Japanese national team to communicate more when responding. If they don't win, the pride of the cherry blossom emblem will be increasingly damaged. I sincerely hope that they will be more conscious of this during the games.
--The Autumn Nations Series is a competition in which each country will fight for pride, so please tell us what you think are the highlights, Tanaka-san.
Each country has its own color, so I hope that you will see a variety of rugby and styles and find a country that you enjoy watching. If possible, I think watching rugby will be even more enjoyable if you pay attention to the Japanese national team and find your favorite team.
--Finally, please give us a message and expectations for the Japanese national team.
I want them to win. All we have to do is win. It doesn't matter which country we are playing against, if we can experience the joy of beating a team ranked higher than us, we will work harder, so I would be happy if we could win all the games in this series and share the joy with everyone.
*......The broadcast and streaming schedule for the "Rugby Test Match 2024 Autumn Nations Series" is as follows.
Week 1: England vs New Zealand = 11:55pm, November 2 (WOWOW Live, WOWOW On Demand) Scotland vs Fiji = 2:25am, November 3 (WOWOW On Demand) Week 2: Ireland vs New Zealand = 4:55am, November 9 (WOWOW Live, WOWOW On Demand) England vs Australia = 11:55pm, November 9 (WOWOW Live, WOWOW On Demand) Italy vs Argentina = 2:25am, November 10 (WOWOW On Demand) France vs Japan = 4:40am, November 10 (WOWOW Live, WOWOW On Demand) Wales vs Fiji = 10:25pm, November 10 (WOWOW On Demand) Scotland vs South Africa" = 12:55 AM, November 11 (WOWOW On Demand)
