When Dr. Syd Millar talks rugby, people generally stop and listen.

After all, this is a man who won 37 caps for Ireland and made three tours with the British and Irish Lions as a front-row forward.

If that wasn't impressive enough, he was also coach of the famous 1974 Lions team that recorded 21 victories and a draw in its 22 matches in South Africa -- with only a controversial refereeing decision allowing the Springboks to escape the ultimate humiliation of a first-ever whitewash with a draw in the final test.

And just for good measure, he is also the chairman of the International Rugby Board, and was once described as a man whose teeth were the softest part of him.

And as he himself admitted during a recent three-day visit to Japan, "the Irish like to talk a lot."

Having been in Hong Kong to oversee the draw for the forthcoming World Cup Sevens, Millar took the opportunity to "visit some old friends at the Japan Rugby Football Union."

He may have been here for only three days but in that time he oversaw the handing over of a check to the World Food Programme (a charity the IRB actively supports), watched the All Japan semifinal between Toyota Verblitz and Toshiba Brave Lupus, took a tour of International Stadium Yokohama and outlined his vision for the further development of the game he has served so well as player, coach and administrator.

Millar reiterated on a number of occasions that he was not on official World Cup duty -- "that will come later in May when Japan submits its bid (to host the 2011 World Cup)" -- and went to great lengths to explain that he would not talk about Japan's bid.

However, he did elaborate on what he thought a country needed to do in order to win the right to host what has become the third biggest sporting event in the world.

Millar said that a host needs to provide the appropriate commercial opportunities; modern stadiums; an infrastructure that would allow people to enjoy themselves to the full; a union capable of running the tournament; cities that would make the most of the opportunity; and a supportive government.

He also said that a great deal needed to be done by the IRB in ensuring there were no mismatches on the field.

"We have to give smaller nations the opportunity to compete against the larger nations -- we need to give those that have the ability the opportunity to compete."

Millar talked in particular of the huge gap that exists between club and international rugby, using the semifinal game between Toyota and Toshiba as an example.

"The standard was good for a club game but does not prepare players for international competition. Given the right competition (such as the European Cup or Super 12) Japan could do well, but coaches and players need the challenge of a level above club competition.

"It is essential that Japan and other countries allow their coaches to experience other rugby cultures and attend coaching courses overseas."

With England doing a lot to promote the game in Canada and the United States, Japan should, Millar said, look to Australia as a "big brother" and use its expertise in helping develop coaches and players.

With the IRB having put aside £30 million to further develop the game over the next three years, Millar is optimistic that the game can attain truly global status, particularly if Sevens is admitted into the Olympic movement.

"Rugby was part of the Olympics until 1924 and we want back in," he said.

"At the Commonwealth Games in 2002, the biggest audience was not for track and field but for the Sevens . . . it is an exciting spectacle that allows the smaller nations the opportunity to compete against the larger nations. We are very positive and expect we will get in."

The 2003 Rugby World Cup in Australia showed that rugby union today is big business, and Millar was confident that hosting the sport's "cash cow" outside the traditional strongholds of the game would simply make rugby even bigger.

"We had 1.9 million go through the turnstiles, a TV audience of 4 billion, and 90,000 overseas visitors to Australia, which had a good effect on tourism and the cash flow in the country," Millar said.

"But the reason it was so successful was that the Australian people bought into the concept. . . . Japan is a well-organized and disciplined country that operates very well and is very efficient. . . . Australians took great pride in hosting the World Cup and I am sure Japan will do the same if selected."

The three countries vying to host the 2011 Rugby World Cup -- Japan, New Zealand and South Africa -- must submit their tender documents to the IRB by the end of May.

An inspection team will then visit the three nations and make recommendations to the IRB council, which will announce its decision in November.