The former Highlanders coach returns to Tokyo tomorrow with both eyes firmly on guiding Japan through a second successful Rugby World Cup campaign.
Joseph is reluctant to be in the news for anything other than coaching Japan, out of respect for his employers and for the magnitude of the task that awaits him.
You will not be reading much at all about his feelings on the All Blacks coaching appointment process, on whether he is interested in coaching at Super Rugby level again, or on reports linking him to a role with a Japanese club.
Joseph and his coaching team, including another former Highlanders favourite in Tony Brown, will watch the League One semifinals this weekend then the final before naming a national squad.
The Cherry Blossoms play New Zealand A (twice), Samoa, Fiji, Tonga and Italy before the World Cup in France.
Joseph said the schedule needed to be solid to get the Japanese squad whipped into shape after a World Cup cycle so disrupted by Covid-19.
"We were a little bit behind in the first year because we played something like five games in two years after the World Cup, so that obviously wasn’t ideal," he told the Otago Daily Times yesterday.
"We’ve started to get a bit of consistent rugby, but it’s just that hard rugby we need, you know."
Japan was one of the great stories of the 2019 World Cup.
The host nation stunned everyone by winning all four pool games — including wins over Ireland, Wales and Samoa — to reach the quarterfinals for the first time.
Japan strikes England, Argentina, Samoa and Chile in its pool this time, and Joseph is excited about the challenge.
"We want to do what we did last time, for sure. Getting to finals rugby gives us an opportunity to take the team forward.
"We’re in a hard pool. Most tier 2 teams are in hard pools. It means we’ve got to win every game or potentially can lose one game, depending on how the draw pans out.
"It’s not easy, but it’s never going to be easy."
Joseph is off contract with Japan after the World Cup.
He described as "absolute rubbish" a Newshub report last week that he had signed to coach the Shizuoka club next season, and his coaching future was not a topic he wished to discuss.
"I’m contracted to Japan. It’s a big job with the big challenge of the World Cup, so that’s my focus."
Three New Zealand teams — the Crusaders, the Hurricanes and the Blues — will be looking for Super Rugby coaches next year with the elevation of, respectively, Scott Robertson, Jason Holland and Leon MacDonald to the All Blacks.
Joseph did not want to talk about whether a return to his home country was on the cards.
"I’m just really focused on doing my best for Japan. I’m contracted until December, and no doubt those jobs will have been filled by then."
He has not spoken in public since his bid for the All Blacks coaching job ended when Robertson was appointed, and Joseph does not intend to create a headline about the process.
"I’d rather not comment.
"They’ve obviously made the decision with Scotty and his coaches. The process is done and dusted, and I’ve got a job to do with Japan."
The man who guided the Highlanders to their Super Rugby title in 2015 has called on fans to have some patience as their team continues to struggle.
"It’s really difficult to observe a couple of games from the outside and then try to comment.
"They’ve had lots of changes. Lots of new coaches and players. Lots of inexperience. It takes time.
"It’s going to take Derms [coach Clarke Dermody] and his team some time. Quality guys, quality coaches — you just need to be a little bit patient."
