Samoa’s biggest battles aren’t on field

The sound of song swept through the corridors of the Hakatana mori Stadium as the Samoan players trickled back into their dressing-room after the captain’s run yesterday morning here in Fukuoka.

The melodic, traditional airs were pitch-perfect, soft and impossibly gentle even as they escaped the throats of enormous men who present such a present danger to Ireland tomorrow. The smart money was on Ed Fidow, the winger who picked up a pair of yellow cards against Scotland in Kobe, leading the chorus.