TOKYO – While Japan notched just one win from five tests in October and November, head coach Eddie Jones believes his squad’s performance during the tough slate of matches showed they are making strong progress toward the 2027 Rugby World Cup.
The Brave Blossoms narrowly lost to Australia in Tokyo on Oct. 25 before embarking on their four-match European tour, which they opened with a heavy defeat to back-to-back world champions South Africa in London.
Jones’ men were competitive in the first half of a loss to Ireland and went down by a single point to Wales before concluding the tour Saturday with a victory against Georgia on Lee Seung Sin’s 81st-minute penalty.
The 65-year-old Australian tactician said the Brave Blossoms had demonstrated growth, underpinned by greater player depth, compared to his first year back in charge of the national team in 2024.
“We sat here this time last year, and the gap between where we are and where we want to be was huge,” Jones said. “There’s still a gap there, but I feel like in the 12 months that we’ve covered, we’ve closed the gap.”
The autumn tests against higher-ranked opponents represented a significant step up from the Pacific Nations Cup, in which Japan finished as runners-up in September, Jones said.
“When we play the top 10 countries in the world, we can’t physically impose ourselves on the opposition, so therefore it puts our movement skills, our fundamental skills, under more pressure, and at this stage we just need to keep improving in that area.”
Jones said the strong showing by Tokyo Sungoliath’s Kenta Kobayashi in the absence of Japan’s “first three or four choices” at loosehead prop, as well as the performance of young Saitama Wild Knights hooker Kenji Sato, illustrated the national team’s deeper talent pool.
The two forwards, who earned their first caps in August, started throughout the tour and went toe-to-toe with powerful opposing packs in the one-point loss to Wales and the 25-23 win over Georgia.
With two years left until the World Cup, the prospective team for the tournament in Australia is taking shape, but lack of depth in certain positions, such as lock, remains a concern.
Japan Rugby League One, featuring a growing number of top players from overseas, kicks off its season in December, and Jones will be keeping a close eye on his World Cup candidates.
“Now they’ve got to go back to their clubs and show that they can be better than the foreign players that the League One teams have been using,” he said.
AloJapan.com