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Watch: All Blacks captain Kieran Read shakes his head in disgust at Steve Hansen’s latest zinger

October 11, 2019

Hansen said the uncertain nature of Sunday's game is what makes sport so thrilling.

Steve Hansen believes Sunday's win-or-go-home World Cup match between Scotland and Japan has the makings of an all-time classic, but there's no point asking him who he's picking to win.

A local reporter asked the All Blacks coach what he thinks the result will be if the game in Yokohama isn't cancelled by Typhoon Hagibis' impact but all he got was Hansen's latest cheeky answer.

"If I knew the answer to that, I wouldn't be sitting here," Hansen said.

"I'd go straight down to the TAB and put a packet on."

Hansen, knowing full well he couldn't do that or he'd suffer the same fate as Wales assistant coach Rob Howley, who was sent home at the start of this year's World Cup for a potential breach of betting rules, gave a more serious answer shortly after.

"Sport is so unpredictable at times - you would think Japan with the way they've been playing would win the game but you've got another team who have got a really emotional reason to win it because they have to.

"It could go any way."

Hansen's biggest hope for the match is that it goes ahead after World Rugby announced two games had been cancelled this weekend, including the All Blacks' final pool game against Italy, due to the threat from Typhoon Hagibis.

"All I hope is that they get to play and it's a really wonderful game of rugby because it'll make something positive out of a weekend that hasn't been so positive."

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