WORLD RUGBY TOLD us from over a year out that there were โcontingency plansโ in place for the World Cup should Japanโs typhoon season threaten to have an effect on the 2019 tournament.
Today, with two games cancelled and others still under threat, it remains unclear what exactly those contingency plans consisted of.
As Italy captain Sergio Parisse lamented after he and his team-mates were denied the chance to face the All Blacks, there doesnโt appear to have been any Plan B.
Indeed, it looks as though World Rugby and Japan Rugby 2019 simply hoped that their greatest fear โ a typhoon or other natural disaster hitting the Japanese mainland โ would not come to pass.
The logistical nightmare of shifting six teams to new host cities seemingly made it impossible to spring into action a rescue plan at this late stage for the two cancelled games on Saturday and the key fixture under threat on Sunday.
Imagine trying to get several 31-man squads onto trains or planes, along with their large coaching and backrooms staffs, all their gear, then overseeing the transfer of various TV and broadcasting staff and equipment, then focusing on getting volunteers, medical practitioners, in-stadium workers, and much more ready in the space of a couple of days.
This simply wasnโt going to happen and World Rugby instead fell back on the idea of cancelling games in the projected path of Super Typhoon Hagibis.
At the press conference where they announced the two cancelled games, World Rugby reminded everyone that they had warned us that this was going to be the case for pool games affected by extreme weather conditions at this World Cup.
Simply put, most of us โ competing teams clearly included โ didnโt take notice or believe organisers would follow through on that promise.
It should be underlined that World Rugbyโs decision not to play the games in Yokohama and Toyota City on Saturday could save lives, so it is the right one at this point in time.
Typhoon Faxai struck close to Tokyo in early September, killing three people, injuring 40 more people, and generally wreaking havoc.
Hagibis, the 19th typhoon of this season, is said to be up to three times more powerful than Faxai, so this is no laughing matter. The cancellations could save the life of even one person, so this is the correct decision from World Rugby.
But, equally, the anger and frustration being directed at the sportโs governing body is completely understandable โ why was there no way at all for the games to be decided on the pitch?
Two of the biggest games in rugbyโs showpiece competition have been cancelled at late notice, with no long-term back-up plan in place, while the crucial Japan v Scotland fixture is in real danger too.
The potential for the Scots to be knocked out of the competition without even playing their final pool game, as Italy already have been, is crazy. While relocating all of the fans, TV crews, media, and everyone else may prove too difficult, World Rugby should find a way for that game to be played, even if it is behind closed doors.
The truth, however, is that this game is more likely to be cancelled, with World Rugby insisting that they will treat this fixture exactly how the others have been. If conditions donโt allow the game to be played at Yokohama Stadium on Saturday, World Rugby insist it will be called off.
Itโs not difficult to imagine the scale of devastation that Hagibis will leave in its wake, so the outlook is gloomy right now. Scotland will fight to the bitter end if World Rugby try to call this fixture off.
Whether or not the game goes ahead, the 2019 World Cup will be remembered as โthe one with the typhoonโ and these circumstances will give doubters of rugby, as well as outright anti-rugby folk, plenty of ammunition to justifiably discredit the sport.
The entire tournament has now been skewed, with some of the leading contenders having this weekend off to rest up before their quarter-finals. New Zealand, England, and France were all set to play in the coming days but can begin preparations for their quarter-finals instead.
One could guess that Joe Schmidt wonโt be best pleased in the event that Ireland secure their place in the knock-out stages.
Once we reach that point, it seems that World Rugbyโs contingency plans for any games affected by weather conditions would kick in and there could potentially be rescheduled or relocated fixtures if required. Again, the governing body will say they told us that would be the case beforehand.
Right now, though, the circumstances of cancelled games and the threat of more to come have left players, coaches, supporters, and so many others frustrated, angry, and confused.
World Rugby will be hoping for an incredible series of knock-out games to save this competitionโs legacy, though it will always be remembered for the incredible Hagibis weekend.
All of that said, being responsible for putting any lives at risk would be a far more damaging legacy for the World Cup than any cancelled games. In the face of a typhoon that could be one of Japanโs worst-ever, World Rugby will feel theyโve made the right call.
Ireland would be ideal to host a world Cup. No chance of games being canceled due to extreme weather. Iโm sure Scotland would agree and vote accordingly?
@This Is This: it isnโt like Scotland havenโt stabbed us in the back beforeโฆ
Why didnโt they switch the two cancelled games to where Namibia v Canada and USA v Tonga were being played, and play those games on Monday as they were both dead rubbers?
@Dermot King: as said, impossible task to move so many people at such short notice. My real question is who the feck in world rugby thought it was a good idea to leave the games must be played on the dayโ rule in
@Dermot King: The France-England is essentially a dead rubber as both have already qualified and will be facing quarter final opponents who are pretty equal; with the closeness of the Wales-Australia match testifying to that.
Nobody seriously believes Italy would beat New Zealand so that is also a dead rubber although it would have been a great send off of for the legendary Sergio Parisse.
The only issue is the Japan-Scotland game which surely could be refixed for Monday.
@WillKeepTheW: Plenty of time to move the Japan-Scotland game even if playing it behind closed doors and with minimal TV coverage.
@Patrick Jackman: Italy/New Zealand has to be considered on the same level of Japan/Scotland, as the outcome of either game can affect the final Pool standings โ it doesnโt matter that Italy wonโt beat NZ by more than 5 tries, that has to be decided on the pitch. World Rugby canโt take that game away from Italy, and hand an opportunity to Scotland/Japan. Sets terrible precedent and goes completely against โgrowing the gameโ. Very rough on the Italians.
Absolute shambles. Heads must roll after this
I followed rugby from a very young age. I remember the infamous Butcher bringing a gang of 11 year olds up to lansdowne road to watch us beat Argentina. For real fans the world cup is something we really look forward to. When possible spare up to actually attend the event. And thatโs only the fans what about the sacrifice players give to get to the games in peak condition. The frustration felt is not that the game is cancelled but the greed and lack of respect, a key pillar of the game, World Rugby have shown by selecting Japan at this time of the year. Itโs disgusting, frustrating and all the stats showed at a minimum 2 typhoons would hit Japan this month. The advantage the big 3 teams going to a QF is huge and takes from the competition!!
Well theyโll be getting out of their beds about now. What lies will they come up with about the contingency plan. Bet it will be silent on that front. The whole tournament is compromised
If they have cancelled two games already they will have to apply the same rules to the Scottish game now. It is an absolute disgrace that they canโt fly 50 odd people from each team to another location and play the games behind closed doors if needed. It would be rubbish for the fans and tv but at least the results would stand fairly . Itโs a better option then just cancelling them.
@Davedental: I agree have to be played complete joke now 2 of the strongest teams in the competition have a serious break for the quarter final.We will play a physical Samoa prob get few injuries and meet the all blacks then doesnโt seem fair
@Davedental: they want Japan to progress so the Scotland game will be cancelled
Really unfair in many ways we have New Zealand ,England and France going through without playing their final games avoiding Injuries and energy loss why not play the games tomorrow or Monday .
Contingency plan: โIs there anything to be said for another mass?โ
Surely world rugby could have had 3 or 4 planes on standby in case of a typhoon (as was used to ferry people home during the Thomas Cook liquidation). These could have been used to move the affected teams to new venues to play the games behind closed doors.
Underwhelming tournament to be honest , apart from our generosity in obliging the hosts with a win the tournament itself has been poor , maybe 3 semi decent games in a month of rugby
So which is it?
There are contingency plans.
Or.
We warned you this could happen.
Pretty easy fix really. RWC shouldnโt have been awarded to Japan.
The complaining about this is totally ridiculous. The logistics involved in moving all the teams possibly affected cross country is a massive undertaking. Throw in they donโt know exactly when and where the storm is going to hit so itโd have to be done short notice. Weโre talking about 1000โฒs of people and masses of resources. Far better to focus on keeping people safe.
@Eddie Hekenui: Surely the matches could have been rescheduled then, cancelling them only damages the integrity of the competition. Itโs not as if they wouldnโt have known well in advance of the tournament that this eventuality could come to pass.
Cancelling a game is not a contingency plan, itโs a cop out and a disgrace.
@Eddie Hekenui: Fewer than 100 people involved in each team. I make that one plane or one fast train. Nobody is suggesting the spectators can be moved to another location. I think they would prefer to watch on TV than have nothing to do. If they wanted to, they could do it.
@Sean: Itโs the rules everyone signed up for. They need all parties to agree to reschedule games and if they donโt then the games are off. They couldnโt know if a typhoon would hit and if it did hit when and where. Not something you can really plan for.
@Tanks a Minion: And what about the people who run the event in the stadium, the security required, transportation, accommodation, supplies and on and on and on? This isnโt 30 lads strolling down to their local park and kicking the ball around for 80 minutes.
@Eddie Hekenui: Itโs the Rugby World Cup not just some local volunteer run league, you canโt have cancelled games, no matter who signed up to it, these rules undermine the whole competition.
France v England for certain and potentially Japan v Scotland would both have a direct impact on the outcome of this tournament, to have them not contested is a farce.
They knew the risks associated with having the tournament at this time of year in Japan, there should have been measures put in place to protect the integrity of the contest in the event of extreme weather.
If they couldnโt do that then it should have been deemed either an unsuitable time or place to host the tournament.
@Sean: Itโs within the rules of the competition so you can have cancelled games. It happens regularly in a host of sports that events are cancelled or shortened which has an impact on the result. And similar clause will be in the rules of all events. Also itโs not like Japan is the only place that suffers inclement weather. If theyโd played the WC in Europe in either 2017 or last year they wouldโve run into weather issues at this time of year. Itโs the end of typhoon season and Japan hasnโt been hit by one this big so late in years. You canโt plan for that.
@Eddie Hekenui: Itโs the premier Tournament in World Rugby, teams build towards this in four year cycles, are you honestly telling me that games shouldnโt be rescheduled to ensure the integrity of the competition?
Iโm sorry thereโs no excuse for that, itโs not some local league as I said, if a game has to be pulled because of extreme weather, there needs to be several contingency plans to ensure the fixture is contested at the earliest available opportunitiy and the tournament is not undermined. Any rules to the contrary make a farce of the whole thing.
@Sean: Similar stuff is in the rules of every major sporting event. It just happened to come to the fore for rugby just as it did for the cricket World Cup during the summer. Games should be rescheduled where possible but they clearly arenโt possible for any number of reasons. Thereโs one game that has major ramifications and theyโre doing their best to make sure that goes ahead. Theyโre just not taking unnecessary risks for less meaningful games. Apparently NZ have said they wonโt reschedule the game, as is their right per the rules, and they canโt be forced to. Both Japan and Scotland have agreed to potentially rescheduling their game so that might be rescheduled. Keeping people safe is priority number 1.
@Eddie Hekenui: What does keeping people safe have to do with it? Iโm not suggesting a game is played in the Typhoon.
The idea that a team has a choice in rescheduling a game that has a direct impact on the outcome of a pool and thus the make up of the quarter final draw is nonsense.
Each team prior to the event have a set number of fixtures they must complete to progress within the tournament, to remove this obligation on certain teams damages the credibility of the competition.
Youโre defending the indefensible, there wonโt be a match played all next week, youโre telling me they couldnโt have a second fixture booked in case of a cancellation. The initial schedule could have even been spaced out to allow for any potentially rescheduled matches, they knew this sort of weather event was a distinct possibility.
@Sean: Keeping people safe means youโre not forcing people make unnecessary journeys and youโre allowing the police and other emergency services focus on their jobs instead of looking after a couple of meaningless in the grand scheme of things games. These games donโt happen in a vacuum. There is 1000โs of people involved in running them.
And Iโm not defending the indefensible. Force majeure/act of god is a clause in literally every contract let alone the rules of a competition. It may not fair but thatโs life.
@Eddie Hekenui: Ok, so call off the rest of the tournament then, because no more matches can go ahead, is that what your suggesting, because thatโs the logical conclusion if we follow your argument that a game canโt be rescheduled at a later date, as it would somehow be in conflict with peopleโs safety. By all means Rugby takes a back seat during the emergency situation but following on from that it will be business as usual, which is what will happen for the quarter finals.
Come on, they could have built an extra week into the scheduling of the tournament to allow for any possible rescheduled fixtures due to extreme weather, which they knew well in advance was a distinct possibility.
In any contract negotiation the likelyhood of a force major, will have huge baring on the construction of any clause in place, and contingency plans will always be a priority to ensure continuity of any service. Just like they should have been in place to safe guard the integrity of the competition. Itโs not like this is an unseasonable weather event for Japan.
@Eddie Hekenui:
I think I am right in saying that only the Japan V Scotland is the only game that means as much :: as both are trying to win the pool or to get into the Q/F:: If we win with bonus point we go through and do we win the group if their game is stopped ??
Can you image if it was our game that was stopped ::we would go crazy and if Japan goes through with the stoppage then World Rugby would get hit ::It would look like they got the host nation got a hand getting through :not a good sight !!
@Eddie Hekenui: get your point about the safety Eddie, but no one is saying the entire spectacle needs to be moved, fans, tv crews etc.
Any event planning professional worth their salt would ask โwhat do we do ifโฆโ about every possible happening. Itโs not unrealistic that the organizers could have had a university or club rugby field on standby somewhere in the country that is out of the areas usually hit be typhoons. Players, backroom staff, officials, medical teams. Thatโs all thatโs needed. Maybe 200 people. Play behind closed doors, or hey, maybe even a with a few cameras if manageable. Fans would be a lot happier watching in a pub or online rather than having your team knocked out without even being allowed to kick a ball.
Iโll just leave this thread with the comment of how much experience do you lads of hurricanes and running major sporting events? Itโs all well and good being critical, saying itโs a farce and throwing out what you think the solutions are when you have no actual experience of the above. The people on the ground who a) know whatโs involved in moving games, b) have looked into the solutions and c) have experience of these types of storms are saying cancelling games is the right thing to do so Iโm going to side with them. A storm this size isnโt a regular occurrence. In fact the Japanese are reporting the last storm this size to hit Japan hit in 1958 and killed 1,200 people. Winds are due to hit the country with gusts up to 220kmph (30km more than the highest wind speed ever recorded in Ireland) and waves of 40+feet. Planes are being grounded, trains are suspended and emergancy services are needed elsewhere. If World Rugby could safely move the games they would. This is the worst case scenario. It might not be fair but itโs reality and not a decision they wouldโve taken lightly.
@Eddie Hekenui: You continue to not address any points and just focus in on the Typhoon. Regardless of mine or anyone else in this threads personal experience, they still plan to play out the remainder of the tournament, donโt they? Therefore, they will be playing games at a later date in the afternmath of the Typhoon, so why not have included provisions in the scheduling to allow for rescheduled fixtures?
The severity of this particular storm doesnโt absolve the organizers from the fact that they knew extreme weather disrupting this competition was always a distinct possibility, the gripe people legitimately have is that contingency plans in the event of this are apparently non-existent.
Your blind faith and defence of World Rugby on this really is hard to fathom.
@Sean: Sorry for focusing in on the thing thatโs causing the disruption and listening to the people with the knowledge, experience and all the information. I, and World Rugby, should just listen to Sean from the 42 whoโs got all the answers. I presume youโve got loads of experience organizing and coordinating massive sporting events and dealing with the fallout of massive storms.
@Eddie Hekenui: Yeah because the concerns of fans who see clear evidence of a lack of forward planning damaging the credibility of the tournament are completely irrelevant.
Letโs assume no governing body has ever been negligent in their preparation for a major sporting event and letโs never hold their decision making under a microscope.
Keep avoiding the point that they could have allowed for an extra week in the scheduling to insure the integrity of the competition survived in the event of disruption.
shambles
terriblel world cup before this mess โ so many one sided boring games
200k watched an Irish rugby world cup game on tv which is abysmal
@tubbsyf:
Go to top of page go right or left pick a sport you are interested in click it :::then you know what ::::::::Piss off
โOutright anti-rugby folkโ otherwise known as half of the42โs commenters