A leap into the great wide open at Asia's first Rugby World Cup via NickMulvenney RWC2019
TOKYO - The leaders of the game have lined up all week proclaiming the ninth Rugby World Cup as “historic” and for once the hyperbole was not misplaced as the sport prepared to take a bold leap out of its comfort zone.
With only hosts Japan representing the region, though, thoughts of conquering the world’s most populous continent are still a pipe dream, but fans in China and India will at least be able to watch on television for the first time. Organisers are hoping Friday’s opening match between the hosts and Russia at Tokyo Stadium will set a Japanese viewing record for a single sporting event, surpassing the 25 million who tuned in to watch the Brave Blossoms defeat Samoa in 2015.
And after the last of the 48 matches on Nov. 2, the Webb Ellis Cup - named after the 1823 schoolboy who legend says picked up the ball in a game of what would now be called football - will almost certainly return to one of the sport’s heartlands.New Zealand’s mighty All Blacks, winners of the trophy three times including at the last two tournaments, are favourites and the benchmark by which other teams judge themselves.
They drew 16-16 with New Zealand in Wellington earlier this year, one of a couple of results - the other a loss to Australia - that resulted in the All Blacks’ decade-long reign at the top of the world rankings coming to an end.
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