Tomorrow night's Bledisloe Test in Yokohama is proving to be much more than a dead rubber between the All Blacks and Wallabies.
Despite the Bledisloe Cup being locked away for another year, Steve Hansen and his men have been able to both give and receive plenty in this week's build up to the contest.
There was some public relations tasks for the likes of Liam Squire today, who spent time with Tokyo school kids. He taught them a game they had never heard of, but it could help continue the revival of the sport in Japan.
Then there's the fact Japan hosts the Rugby World Cup next year, with Yokohama being a central component to the tournament.
The All Blacks have stayed in Tokyo this week for the game, which is about an hour away from Yokohama so it's given the team some important information heading into next year's event.
"One of two things we were worried about hasn't arisen so far, which is traffic, which hasn't been too bad," coach Hansen said.
"From a personal point of view, I know I've enjoyed it and I know the players are."
The coach also admitted another concern has well and truly been taken care of.
"The food's great. You don't need to bring a chef, do you?"
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