Japan Team Announced for Must-Win Wales Clash at U20 World Championships

Japan U20 Coach Rob Penney has today announced his team to take on Wales in Japan’s second match at the 2023 World Rugby U20 Championships in South Africa. Japan will be looking to make amends following a heavy loss in their opening match against France, going down 75-12 against the reigning World Champions.

Kicking off at 15:00 South African local time (22:00 JST) at the Danie Craven Stadium in Stellenbosch on Thursday, 29 June, the fixture is a must win match for both teams if they wish to progress further in the competition. Wales also lost their opening match to six-time tournament winners New Zealand, however their meeting was a much closer run affair, with one point separating the teams, for a final score of 26-27.

Penney has made eight changes to his matchday 23 as he looks for his side to bounce back following their disappointing showing against the French. Yoshiki Omachi maintains his captain duties at inside-centre, while the two try scorers from the France match, fullback Kosho Muto and replacement hooker Takashi Omoto both retain their positions from last Saturday. Yutaro Takahashi moves into the starting halfback role after coming off the bench on Saturday.

Following their match against Wales, Japan will travel to nearby Paarl to take on New Zealand in their final pool match on July 4.

Team List

No. Name
1 Sena HWANG
2 Kouta NAGASHIMA
3 Riku TOMITA
4 Yuzuki SASAKI
5 Harry WILLARD
6 Koki MIYASHITA
7 Tomoki KUSUDA
8 Taison MOGAMI
9 Yutaro TAKAHASHI
10 Kanjiro NARAMOTO
11 Yoshitaka YAZAKI
12 Yoshiki OMACHI (C)
13 Shota TAIRA
14 Renji OIKE
15 Kosho MUTO
16 Takashi OMOTO
17 Tomoki YUMBE
18 Kosuke SUGIURA
19 Bunsuke KURITA
20 Tenta KOBAYASHI
21 Taishin OHSHIMA
22 Genki IKUTA
23 Ryohei IMANO