Jamie Joseph, Japan’s head coach, talked about planning for the Ireland game over two years ago. Eddie Jones took England on tour to Italy in July and August to have a dry run for the big show in Japan and the red rose also played short turnaround fixtures to replicate what they would face in the real thing. Planning doesn’t often get the headlines but it is crucial to deliver the foundations of the performances you want and with the four semi-finalists, by the end of the World Cup, playing a total of seven games in various destinations at various times of the day, you need to have done more than just your due diligence.
Now we are beginning to get to the pointy end of the group stage, comfort gained from confidence that the route planned is the right one is crucial. It is an area of high performance I love.
Written by Ben Ryan
This news first appeared on https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2019/oct/02/best-laid-plans-flexible-rugby-world-cup under the title “Best-laid plans need to be flexible as Rugby World Cup reaches crunch time | Ben Ryan”. Bolchha Nepal is not responsible or affiliated towards the opinion expressed in this news article.
