Rory Best believes a proper judgement on the fixture decisions made yesterday by World Rugby can only be made after the last pool games are negotiated this weekend.
Asked what the cancellation of two big pool encounters involving England, France, New Zealand and Italy does in terms of a positive legacy for the World Cup, Best echoed the comment of Joe Schmidt that safety is the primary issue.
"Ultimately, safety has to be paramount," said Best. "That has to come first.
"I can't really comment much on it until the dust settles. We're here at a press conference ahead of a Samoa game and we know we're going to play that game.
"To get a quarter-final we know what we have to do - regardless of what happens on Sunday. If we get the result we want, we're into a quarter-final. Whether we get to watch an 80 minutes to decide whether we top the pool or not, that remains to be seen.
"All we're focusing on is the Samoa game. If we get to the final whistle and get a performance and a result then we'll look at what's happening.
"I suppose we'll talk about legacies after that. For us it's about making sure we get to a quarter-final."
Asked if he had sympathy for the players in the Japan v Scotland game, with no decision on whether it's going ahead in Yokohama on Sunday until that morning, Best said that the immediate frustration was for the players whose games were already cancelled.
"Scotland v Japan, there’s no decision on it," said the veteran.
"From our point of view, that makes it easier because we go out, we play our game (against Samoa tomorrow).
"You assume the game goes ahead on Sunday and if it doesn’t, you cross that bridge when you come to it.
"Joe touched on the guys who are playing potentially their last World Cup game, potentially their last ever game for their country – being denied that opportunity is incredibly frustrating.
"But at the same time I’m sure decisions weren’t necessarily taken lightly".
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