EDDIE Jones, the coach of Japan, has claimed his team will beat Scotland in Gloucester today because they are fitter, despite the fact they have had only four days to recover from their sensational win over South Africa in Rugby World Cup Pool B. A seasoned stoker of controversy, Jones also insisted the local crowd would back his team - who wear red and white, as do Gloucester - because of the traditional rivalry between England and Scotland.
“All the pressure is on Scotland,” Jones said at a press conference at Kingsholm, the 16,500-capacity venue for the match. “We can go in there free and easy, playing our rugby, enjoy the rugby - and that's what we intend to do. Get out there and play our game. If we are good enough we'll win it, if we're not good enough we won't win it.
“If you look at Scotland's scoring profile, they are very heavily a first-half scoring team. They get outscored consistently in the second half. We know we’re a fit team, so if we can stick with them in the first 30 mins and we’re in the game at half-time we’ll run them off their feet.”
Asked if he was saying his team were fitter than Scotland, the Australian continued:
“Definitely. Physically I think we’re pretty good. We’ve practised a few times over the last two or three years at four-day turnarounds, so the players are accustomed to it. “A lot of us have got a few knocks and bruises as you do when you play the Springboks.Mentally it’s hard for the players. When you’ve played a big game it’s always hard to come back down a bit. They had a good meeting today. The players’ minds seem to be in the right place, but we’ll see at 2.30pm tomorrow.
“People in Gloucester know their rugby, so hopefully we’ll get a lot of support from the local crowd. They normally wear red and white, so they can wear red and white tomorrow and support us. And we know the English don’t like the Scottish, so that’s another bonus for us.
“I think the pressure is definitely on Scotland. Scotland is one of the most established rugby countries in the world.
“People still think it was a fluke that we beat South Africa, so this is a great chance for us to show it wasn't and really front us as a serious rugby nation. Scotland are coming into it with perfect preparation. They’ve had two and a half weeks since their last game.
“They will come in absolutely 100 per cent. We're coming in off a four-day turnaround, so it's a really great chance to show it’s a serious rugby nation and that's all we’re looking for. Whether that makes us favourites or not, I'm not sure.”
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