The Wallabies are not concerned Japan’s searing heat and lingering typhoon will play a part in their preparation or Test match as they look to face old foes in Les Kiss’s debut as coach.
Australia will take on Japan in the first of two Tests on Saturday night at Hanazono Rugby Stadium in Osaka, although conditions are not expected to be easy to play in.
Temperatures are tipped to stay in the high 20s to mid-30s degrees Celsius all week as the country grapples with a heatwave.
To make matters worse, Typhoon Dolphin is bringing wind gusts of up to 216kph and heavy rainfall ahead of hitting the Southern Japanese Ryukyu Islands on Friday, about 1,500 kilometres south of Osaka.
But Queensland hooker Josh Nasser is treating the conditions as just another day in Australia.
“Obviously it’s pretty warm over here, but I grew up in Brissy. We get some pretty hot summers as well. So humidity’s up, temperatures up, but it’s no different to some of the conditions we get back home,” he told reporters on Monday.
“In the wet, the ball gets slippery, things tighten up a little bit. But I think we’ve got a big focus on just still trying to express ourselves.
“We play a fixture in Fiji each year, which we get pretty extreme conditions for.
“We’re really not hyper-focused on it. We’re just accepting that it will be hot, and then sticking to our processes.”
Wallabies assistant coach Scott McLeod also warned of another typhoon that could affect Australia’s clash.
“Is that Eddie Jones?” he joked when a journalist asked about Typhoon Dolphin.
Jones, who led Australia to a dismal Rugby World Cup showing in 2023 before resigning, will coach his second game against the green and gold with the Brave Blossoms.
Former Wallabies coach Eddie Jones will face Australia for the second time as Japan’s coach. (AAP: Darren Pateman)
Nasser expects his presence to add extra spice to the fixture, especially as the master agitator took over the Japanese side just six weeks after resigning and was forced to deny that he had been in talks with Brave Blossoms officials during the World Cup.
Jones will not be the only Australian on the opposition, with former Queensland lock Harry Hockings along with Ben Gunter, Jack Cornelsen, Dylan Riley, Michael Stolberg and Tiennan Costley all options to play.
The Wallabies have been humbled by Australians featuring for different national teams in the past, most notably Canberra-born Mack Hansen when he scored a stunning first-half hat-trick to help Ireland win 46-19 last November.
“They’ll be fired up to prove a point against us, I’m sure. [There’s] nothing too strange about seeing them there, but it’ll be a good battle,” Nasser said.
“A couple of them are my good mates. Harry Hockings is one of my best mates.
“[I haven’t spoken to him] on the rugby front, but I’m sure I’ll catch up with him for a beer after the game.”
The reunions will all culminate in Kiss’s first match in charge of the national team since Joe Schmidt departed following the Wallabies’ rousing 57-10 victory over Italy on July 18.
AAP
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