Asia Rugby Sevens Series 2016 – Round 2, South Korea: Preview
Dates: Saturday 24 and Sunday 25 September 2016
Venue: Incheon Namdong Asiad Rugby Stadium
Japan are the defending Asian champions, they have qualified for the World Rugby HSBC Sevens Series and they finished fourth at the Rio Olympics.
Although Japan were considered favourites to take the Hong Kong tournament, poor results in the pool stages put them out of contention for top honours on the second day in the knock-out stages. Ultimately, Japan won the Plate after beating Singapore 7-0 in the final.
Hosts Hong Kong defeated Sri Lanka 22-17 in the Cup Final to take their home tournament while South Korea beat China 33-14 in the third-place play-off.
Meanwhile, the Japan Women’s Sevens team made up for the failings of the men by defeating China 14-7 in the Cup final.
Japan are sending a young and relatively inexperienced men’s squad to South Korea for round two of the Asia Rugby Sevens Series 2016 in the hope of improving on the results in Hong Kong. Meanwhile, the Japan women’s squad is looking to make it back-to-back tournaments after claiming the title two weeks ago in Hong Kong in round one.
Men’s Pools
| Pool A | Pool B |
|---|---|
| Hong Kong | Sri Lanka |
| South Korea | China |
| Japan | Singapore |
| Chinese Taipei | Malaysia |
Pool A Games for Japan
Saturday, 24 September 2016
Game 1 (13:34): South Korea v Japan
Game 2 (16:08): Hong Kong v Japan
Game 3 (19:26): Japan v Chinese Taipei
The Japan Men’s Sevens Squad for South Korea
| Name | Club | DOB | Age | Hgt/Wgt |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jamie Henry | PSI Super Sonics | 11/03/1990 | 26 | 184/84 |
| Hiroki Hanada | Fukuoka University | 15/07/1994 | 22 | 183/92 |
| Kaisei Kasahara | Chuo University | 02/10/1995 | 20 | 180/88 |
| Kazuki Yamada | Ritsumeikan University | 16/02/1996 | 20 | 175/85 |
| Keiju Tsuruta | Doshisha University | 20/09/1996 | 20 | 172/78 |
| Kohei Toyota | Keio University | 08/04/1996 | 20 | 184/89 |
| Han Jon-Moon | Ryutsu Keizai University | 07/07/1996 | 20 | 183/90 |
| Saiki Uchida | Doshisha University | 05/11/1996 | 19 | 169/76 |
| Kosuke Naka | Kwansei Gakuin University | 06/05/1997 | 19 | 177/83 |
| Minato Goto | University of Tsukuba | 30/06/1997 | 19 | 186/93 |
| Ryo Kayutsuka | Ryutsu Keizai University | 30/07/1997 | 19 | 182/90 |
| Shintaro Yokose | Ryutsu Keizai University | 18/03/1998 | 18 | 166/70 |
Staff
Head Coach: Koichi Umeda (JRFU).
S&C Coach: Daisuke Sato (Tokoha University).
Team Doctor: Kiyokazu Gotanda (Kurume University).
Physiotherapist: Masahiro Furudate (Reniart Sports Conditioning Support).
Analyst: Shota Nakajima (JRFU).
Women’s Pools
| Pool C | Pool D |
|---|---|
| Japan | China |
| Hong Kong | Thailand |
| Singapore | Guam |
| Uzbekistan | Sri Lanka |
Pool C Games for Japan
Saturday, 24 September 2016
Game 1 (11:44): Japan v Singapore
Game 2 (14:40): Japan v Uzbekistan
Game 3 (17:36): Japan v Hong Kong