Irish rugby bosses are demanding that a journalist refutes his claim that the IRFU was 'vehemently opposed' to the Japan v Scotland World Cup game being rearranged if necessary because of Typhoon Hagibis.
Sunday Times rugby writer Stephen Jones claimed that both the New Zealand and Irish unions were against any rescheduling for the game, and said that there was bad blood between the IRFU and their Scottish counterparts after Scotland didn't vote for the Irish bid to host the 2023 World Cup.
As it happens, the game will go ahead as planned at 11.45am Irish time in Yokohama.
An IRFU statement read: "The statement by Stephen Jones in today’s edition of The Sunday Times (October 14, 2019) referring to The Irish Rugby Football Union (IRFU) being ‘vehemently opposed’ to any rearrangement of the Scotland V Japan Rugby World Cup fixture is completely false and the inference within the article that the IRFU made representations to World Rugby on the matter is totally without foundation.
"The Irish Rugby Football Union calls on Stephen Jones to immediately withdraw this scurrilous and untrue allegation".
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