All Blacks coach Steve Hansen said cancelling Saturday's World Cup match against Italy due to Typhoon Hagibis was a 'no-brainer' but he also had sympathy for the Azzurri after they were denied a chance to play for a place in the quarter-finals.
Italy's slim hopes of staying in the tournament were wrecked by Thursday's decision to scrap the Pool B match in Toyota. Both teams were awarded two points, meaning world champions New Zealand will move on as pool winners while Italy go home.
Hansen said that while having the match called off was frustrating, World Rugby had no other option.
"The reality is we can't control the weather," Hansen said.
"Do we charge on and put people's lives at risk, or do we lead and make a decision that's around making sure people are safe?
"It's a no-brainer."
CANCELED: England's game against France has also been cancelled. Picture: Aaron Favila/AP.
England's final first-round match against France was also called off due to the typhoon, the first World Cup fixtures ever to be cancelled.
Having already lost to South Africa, Italy's path to the quarter-finals would have involved the unlikely scenario of them beating the All Blacks for the first time.
Hansen said all teams had been aware of the procedure in the event of a typhoon striking Japan, which is why it had been important to take maximum points throughout the tournament.
HARTSEER: Italy’s Sergio Parisse. Picture: Ichiro Sakano/AP.
Italy captain Sergio Parisse pulled no punches in hiding his disappointment at the cancellation of the Pool B clash and said if the All Blacks needed to win to make the quarter-finals, the game would have gone ahead.
"It is difficult to know that we won't have the chance to play a match against one of the great teams," Parisse told reporters in Toyota City on Thursday.
"If New Zealand needed four or five points against us it would not have been cancelled."
Reuters