AUSTRALIAN filmmaker Max Mannix helped coach the Japanese team that famously beat South Africa in Brighton at the 2015 Rugby World Cup.

Today marks the anniversary of the legendary match at the Amex.

Now Mr Mannix, who grew up playing rugby in Sydney, will unveil “The Brighton Miracle”, a film documenting the run-up to the victory ahead of the 2020 World Cup, which begins tomorrow.

“When Japan beat South Africa, everybody that I came across solely spoke of the game,” Mr Mannix said. “I felt there was a lot more to the story which is what inspired me to begin making the film. It was a story that was well outside the realm of rugby. There are so many elements that could relate to anybody.”

The film mainly focuses on Eddie Jones, who took on the Japan job five years after he quit as assistant coach of the South African team.

The head coach, now in charge of the England side, is played by Temuera Morrison, of Star Wars fame.

Mr Mannix said Mr Jones was determined to “beat the Boks”.

He said: “I had worked with Eddie and the team for three years.

“There was very specific training designed to beat the Boks.

“Eddie spoke every day about beating them.”

But despite the coach’s obsessive preparations, when the upset came Mr Mannix was in a state of disbelief.

“The reality was something else,” he said.

“It’s regarded as one of the greatest upsets in sport, so there was a degree of disbelief.”

The film also focuses on full-back Ayumu Goromaru, who scored 24 points in the victory.

“He was a player who had missed out on world cups in the past, it was his last chance,” said Mr Mannix.

“His story was ‘This is my one and only chance, how can I deal with it?’”

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