Jones names squad for PNC
TOKYO (June 29) – Japan will take a 37-man squad to North America for this year’s Pacific Nations Cup.
Head coach Eddie Jones named the squad Monday at Japan Rugby Football Union headquarters in Tokyo though he pointed out that five players — Michael Leitch, Hendrik Tui, Keita Inagaki, Shinya Makabe and Craig Wing — were set to miss the opening game against Canada in San Jose on July 18 as they will remain in Japan to have their fitness assessed.
Jones also said he was unsure when Fumiaki Tanaka would join up with the squad as he was involved in next weekend’s Super Rugby final between the Highlanders and the Hurricanes.
Two players who will definitely miss the PNC are Amanaki Lelei Mafi and Male Sa’u, who are both rehabbing injuries. But Jones was hopeful the pair would feature in Japan’s Rugby World Cup warm-up games in August.
The only uncapped player in the squad is Tim Bennetts, whose three-year residency was finalized last month.
The main part of the squad will leave for North America on July 12, after another week of training in Miyazaki, to prepare for the opening PNC game against Canada.
The Brave Blossoms then take on the United States — who they will face in Pool B at the Rugby World Cup on Oct. 11 — in Sacramento six days later before wrapping up the round-robin stage against Fiji in Toronto on July 29.
The final and play-off games are set for Burnaby, British Columbia, on Aug. 3.
Japan National Team Squad Members
* FW：21 Names
| Name | Club Team | Graduate | cm | kg | D/O/B | Caps |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Justin IVES | CANON Eagles | Taieri College (NZ) | 196 | 105 | 1984/5/24 | 27 |
| Shoji ITO | KOBE STEEL Kobelco Steelers | Kyoto Sangyo Univ. | 191 | 100 | 1980/12/2 | 32 |
| Keita INAGAKI | PANASONIC Wild Knights | Kanto Gakuin Univ. | 183 | 115 | 1990/6/2 | 2 |
| Kazuhiko USAMI | CANON Eagles | Ritsumeikan Univ. | 197 | 111 | 1992/3/17 | 3 |
| Hitoshi ONO | TOSHIBA Brave Lupus | Nihon Univ. | 192 | 106 | 1978/5/6 | 87 |
| Shinnosuke KAKINAGA | SUNTORY Sungoliath | Waseda Univ. | 180 | 114 | 1991/12/19 | 3 |
| Takeshi KIZU | KOBE STEEL Kobelco Steelers | Tokai Univ. | 183 | 114 | 1988/7/15 | 33 |
| Hendrik TUI | SUNTORY Sungoliath | Teikyo Univ. | 189 | 107 | 1987/12/13 | 27 |
| Luke THOMPSON | KINTETSU Liners | Lincoln Univ. (NZ) | 196 | 108 | 1981/4/16 | 53 |
| Kensuke HATAKEYAMA | SUNTORY Sungoliath | Waseda Univ. | 178 | 115 | 1985/8/2 | 63 |
| Hisateru HIRASHIMA | KOBE STEEL Kobelco Steelers | Fukuoka Univ. | 180 | 110 | 1983/1/15 | 38 |
| Michael BROADHURST | RICOH BlackRams | Campion College (NZ) | 196 | 111 | 1986/10/30 | 16 |
| Hayden HOPGOOD | – | Shirley Boys HS (NZ) | 190 | 105 | 1980/7/30 | 7 |
| Ryu Koliniasi HOLANI | PANASONIC Wild Knights | Saitama Institute of Tech. Univ. | 188 | 112 | 1981/10/25 | 39 |
| Shota HORIE | PANASONIC Wild Knights | Teikyo Univ. | 180 | 105 | 1986/1/21 | 32 |
| Shinya MAKABE | SUNTORY Sungoliath | Chuo Univ. | 192 | 118 | 1987/3/26 | 29 |
| Masataka MIKAMI | TOSHIBA Brave Lupus | Tokai Univ. | 178 | 115 | 1988/6/4 | 26 |
| Tsuyoshi MURATA | NEC Green Rockets | Keio Univ. | 185 | 103 | 1988/12/15 | 3 |
| Hiroshi YAMASHITA | KOBE STEEL Kobelco Steelers | Kyoto Sangyo Univ. | 183 | 122 | 1986/1/1 | 39 |
| Hiroki YUHARA | TOSHIBA Brave Lupus | Ryutsu Keizai Univ. | 173 | 102 | 1984/1/21 | 20 |
| Michael LEITCH | TOSHIBA Brave Lupus | Tokai Univ. | 190 | 105 | 1988/10/7 | 38 |
* BK：16 Names
| Name | Club Team | Graduate | cm | kg | D/O/B | Caps |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Craig WING | KOBE STEEL Kobelco Steelers | Univ. of New South Wales (AUS) | 180 | 90 | 1979/12/26 | 7 |
| Keisuke UCHIDA | PANASONIC Wild Knights | Univ. of Tsukuba | 177 | 85 | 1992/2/22 | 10 |
| Kosei ONO | SUNTORY Sungoliath | Christchurch Boys HS (NZ) | 171 | 83 | 1987/4/17 | 24 |
| Ayumu GOROMARU | YAMAHA Jubilo | Waseda Univ. | 185 | 99 | 1986/3/1 | 47 |
| Harumichi TATEKAWA | KUBOTA Spears | Tenri Univ. | 181 | 94 | 1989/12/2 | 32 |
| Fumiaki TANAKA | PANASONIC Wild Knights | Kyoto Sangyo Univ. | 166 | 71 | 1985/1/3 | 44 |
| Yu TAMURA | NEC Green Rockets | Meiji Univ. | 181 | 92 | 1989/1/9 | 30 |
| Toshiaki HIROSE | TOSHIBA Brave Lupus | Keio Univ. | 173 | 82 | 1981/10/17 | 26 |
| Atsushi HIWASA | SUNTORY Sungoliath | 法政大学 Hosei Univ. |
166 | 72 | 1987/5/22 | 41 |
| Kenki FUKUOKA | Univ.of Tsukuba (4th Year) | Fukuoka HS | 175 | 83 | 1992/9/7 | 13 |
| Yoshikazu FUJITA | Waseda Univ. | Higashi Fukuoka HS (4th Year) | 184 | 90 | 1993/9/8 | 22 |
| Karne HESKETH | Munakata SANIX Blues | Univ. of Otago (NZ) | 178 | 98 | 1985/8/1 | 6 |
| Tim BENNETTS | CANON Eagles | Pennant Hills HS (AUS) | 185 | 90 | 1990/8/1 | – |
| Kotaro MATSUSHIMA | SUNTORY Sungoliath | Toin Gakuen HS | 175 | 88 | 1993/2/26 | 6 |
| Akihito YAMADA | PANASONIC Wild Knights | Keio Univ. | 181 | 90 | 1985/7/26 | 11 |
| Ryohei YAMANAKA | KOBE STEEL Kobelco Steelers | Waseda Univ. | 188 | 93 | 1988/6/22 | 3 |
|
|