While there is no doubt that the 2019 World Cup was a great tournament for Japan as a nation and the Brave Blossoms as a team, the two years that have since passed have not exactly gone to plan.

The domestic and international rugby programme was severely hampered by the pandemic as Japan shut down sports leagues and closed its borders. But the lack of any long-term plan for grassroots rugby, the age-old problem of conservatism and the continuing power struggle between the corporations and the Japan Rugby Football Union (JRFU) have all led to a dark cloud replacing the euphoria that followed the final whistle the last time Japan played Scotland.

Back in January 2020, in the aftermath of the World Cup, the world