Jones names squad for Asia Rugby Championship opener

TOKYO (April 15) – The 23-man Japan squad to take on South Korea on Saturday in the opening game of the Asia Rugby Championship includes three uncapped players.

Head coach Eddie Jones named the side Wednesday shortly after the side arrived in Incheon.

 
Chihito Matsui starts the game on the wing, while forwards Kazuhiko Usami and Tsuyoshi Murata could also make their international debuts if they come off the bench.

 
“Matsui comes in from the sevens side and has got genuine speed and has really impressed me,” said Jones. “Usami had some experience in the squad last year and has trained hard under Steve Borthwick and Marc Dal Maso, while Murata has been in the squad sporadically over the last three years and gets his chance on the back of a lot of hard work.”

 
With Michael Leitch one of six players away on Super Rugby, Jones has asked Kensuke Hatakeyama to lead the side.

 
Hatakeyama packs down alongside Masataka Mikami and Takeshi Kizu in the front row, with Luke Thompson and Shoji Ito at lock.

 
The back row sees Justin Ives and Hayden Hopgood named at flanker with Ryu Koliniasi Holani at No. 8.

 
“It’s World Cup year so the first game is very important,” said Hatakeyama. “South Korea are a tough team and very physical and we need to use our advantage up front.”

 
In the backs, Atsushi Hiwasa and Harumichi Tatekawa line up at halfback with Yu Tamura and Karne Hesketh in the centres.

 
Matsui and fellow sevens player Yoshikazu Fujita are on the wings with Ayumu Goromaru at fullback.

 
In addition to Usami and Murata, the bench also contains Hisateru Hirashima, Hiroki Yuhara, Hiroshi Yamashita, Keisuke Uchida, Ryohei Yamanaka and former captain Toshiaki Hirose.

 
The Asia Rugby Championship is a new competition that takes over from the Asian Five Nations, a tournament that Japan won on seven occasions, winning all 28 games with a bonus point.
 

Following the game against South Korea in Incheon on Saturday, the Brave Blossoms play Hong Kong in Tokyo on May 2 and South Korea in Fukuoka a week later before closing out their campaign in Hong Kong on May 23.