Squad named for Hong Kong clash

The Japan squad to take on Hong Kong in round two of the HSBC Asian 5 Nations shows three changes and one positional switch from the side that hammered the Philippines 121-0 last Saturday.

Takeshi Kizu is named at hooker ahead of Hiroki Yuhara, who drops out of the 23-man squad. Hendrik Tui is promoted from the bench to the back row in a role reversal with Ryu Koliniasi Holani — a move that also sees Takashi Kikutani shift from flanker to No. 8 — while Yuta Imamura comes in on the wing for the injured Hirotoki Onozawa.

“Given the condition we played really well last week and it showed how hard the players have been working,” head coach Eddie Jones said Wednesday in naming the squad. “We looked much better than we did in our opener last year and in the second half moved the ball really well.”

However, Jones said he wanted his team to build on that performance.

“I am hoping we can be really physical,” he said. “Of course we want to win the tournament, but we have some big games coming up and are preparing for them.”

Jones said the addition of Kizu would give his side a more physical approach at the rucks, while Imamura deserved his chance based on his performances at training.

Jones added that Kenki Fukuoka, who marked his debut last week with two tries, had suffered a slight injury to his hamstring and would remain in Japan to recover, allowing Yoshikazu Fujita the opportunity to return to the national squad.

The 19-year-old scored six tries on his test debut last year before suffering a serious knee injury that saw him miss the 2012-13 domestic season.

Upon returning to Japan from Hong Kong, the Brave Blossoms will setup camp in Tokyo ahead of their game against South Korea on May 4. They then travel to Dubai to play the United Arab Emirates on May 10.