World unites behind Japan's q'final battle with South Africa

The Brave Blossoms may have been considered long-shots coming into the Rugby World Cup, but their run to the quarterfinals won the hearts of many foreign fans who were right behind them as they took on South Africa on Sunday evening.

For many fans visiting Japan to follow their team around, the Brave Blossoms became their "second side" due to the local team's inspirational style of play that took them to the knockout stage of the tournament for the first time.

"We all came here in support of Japan. We are really optimistic for the game (against South Africa), I think the way they play, their style of rugby is really good," said Arun Johar-Gupta, a fan from London, who is traveling in Japan with his father and friends.

"Basically, England is our No. 1 team and Japan is our No. 2 team. I think it is the same with pretty much the rest of (the foreigners)," he said ahead of the game.

(Arun Johar-Gupta (C) poses for a photo with South Africa fans.)

He turned up to the match with a Japanese jersey painted on his torso because he was unable to find an actual jersey in his size, and had been swamped by requests for photographs from many Brave Blossom and Springbok fans ahead of the match.

He admitted prior to Japan's famous win over South Africa at the 2015 World Cup he had not paid too much attention to them but said they have again proven well worth a watch at this World Cup.

Many fans from Japan and abroad wearing the Brave Blossoms' red-and-white jersey gathered near Tokyo Stadium (Ajinomoto Stadium) hours before kickoff to have a beer or prepare for the match, which was one of the most talked-about games at the tournament so far.

Japan defeated Ireland, Scotland, Samoa and Russia to finish on top of Pool A, setting up a quarterfinal clash against South Africa who finished second in their pool behind New Zealand.

(Ian Miller)

Ian Miller, an American who owns a bar in the Nagano Prefecture ski town of Hakuba, also emphasized the impact of the World Cup and how Japan have become the No. 2 side for foreign fans.

"I think awareness of rugby has increased. I love seeing rugby grow in Japan (due to the World Cup)," he said, adding that he has now thrown his full support behind Japan with the United States knocked out at the pool stage.

Ian Bays, who was in the crowd for more than 10 games at the World Cup, including Japan's three pool games, said he was impressed with the team's speed, which he compared to three-time champions New Zealand, and their spirit of "trying their best until the end."

The 59-year-old, who attended the Japan game on Sunday with his wife and friends, predicted the Springboks would be a tough team to beat with their physicality at a level the Japanese have yet to encounter at the tournament.

(Ian Bays (R))

But he hopes Japan's strong run will give momentum to the sport here and provide the impetus for World Rugby to find a way to have them play more internationals, especially with Tokyo's Super Rugby side the Sunwolves losing their place in the competition at the conclusion of next season.

Bays' prediction proved true, with the Brave Blossoms, led by head coach Jamie Joseph, going down 26-3 to the Springboks who now move on to play Wales in the semifinals.

"We love the Japanese spirit (of rugby) so I hope they do their best. Their performance really united the whole nation," said Johar-Gupta.