Japan name squad for RWC warm up games

Jamie Joseph has named his Japan squad that will take him through the upcoming tests and RWC warm up games. The 36-member Brave Blossoms Squad will be supplemented by a 10-member Wider Training Squad in preparation for a monumental year that includes a five match domestic series, a World Cup warm-up against Italy and finally, Rugby World Cup in France.

Brave Blossoms

Japan Men’s National Rugby Team Wider Training Squad

Both squads will assemble for a training camp in Urayasu, in Chiba Prefecture, just outside Tokyo from June 12-30. They will then relocate to their training base in Miyazaki, on Japan’s southern island of Kyushu between July 3 to August 3. From Miyazaki, matchday squads will travel to and from the five host cities, for a series combining two non-capped matches and three full test matches.

The Japan XV will face the All Blacks XV at Chichibunomiya Rugby Stadium in Tokyo on Saturday, July 8 in the first of the two non-capped matches making up the Lipovitan D Challenge Cup 2023. This will be followed by a match between a full-strength Brave Blossoms side and the All Blacks XV on Saturday, July 15 at Egao Kenko Stadium in Kumamoto.

The Brave Blossoms will then play three test matches in the Lipovitan D Challenge Cup 2023 Pacific Nations Series, taking on Samoa on Saturday, July 22 at Sapporo Dome and Tonga on Saturday, July 29 at Hanazono Rugby Stadium in Osaka. They then return to Tokyo to play Fiji at Chichibunomiya Rugby Stadium on Saturday, August 5.

Comprised of 19 forwards and 17 backs, the Brave Blossoms Squad features nine uncapped players, including Kubota Spears winger Haruto Kida, who scored the decisive try in last weekend’s League One Final. He is joined by the uncapped Saitama Wild Knight’s duo of backrow-forward Shota Fukui and outside-back Tomoki Osada, both of whom also played in the League One Final.

In addition to the introduction of new talent, the squad also maintains a solid foundation of experience with prop Keita Inagaki (45 caps), hooker Shota Horie (68 caps) and talismanic backrow-forward Michael Leitch (78 caps) named among the forwards. While winger Kotaro Matsushima (47 caps), centre Ryoto Nakamura (33 caps) and halfback Yutaka Nagare (30 caps) add their experience among the backs.

The 10-member Wider Training Squad is split between seven forwards and three backs. It includes two uncapped front-row forwards from Suntory Sungoliath, hooker Shunta Nakamura and prop Kenta Kobayashi. Both players featured in last Friday’s League One Third-Place Playoff between Suntory and Canon.

Commenting on the squad selections, Brave Blossoms Head Coach Jamie Joseph said:

“As we approach the 100 days-to-go mark for France 2023, I am happy to announce the Brave Blossoms and National Team Wider Training Squads ahead of our camp in Urayasu next month. The players have been selected based of their ability and the consistency they’ve demonstrated across the League One season. We will now focus on working with them to bring the group up to test match standard, while also working to reforge a strong connection within the team ahead of what will be an incredibly challenging and exciting year. We have a lot of work to do as we prepare for our upcoming matches in Japan, and then onto Italy, before we head to France for the World Cup.”