Japan U20 Side Named for Final Pool B Match Against Scotland
The JRFU is delighted to announce the Japan U20 side to face Scotland in their final Pool B match at the 2026 World Rugby Junior World Championships in Georgia this Tuesday, July 7. Kicking off at 15:30 local time in Kutaisi, the match will play that evening at 20:30 JST.
Japan enter the match yet to taste victory after having succumbed to Italy 41-25 in their second-round fixture and also losing to New Zealand in their round-one clash. Scotland meanwhile sit on one victory and one defeat after having dispatched Italy in their first match and then going down to New Zealand last Thursday in round-two.
Head Coach Naoya Okubo has made wholesale changes to his matchday-23 in order to rotate and rest players ahead of the semi-finals and play-offs. Six players come into the side alongside another six who retain their positions from the Italy match. The remaining 11 have been rotated within the matchday squad, particularly in the tight-five which faced a stern test fronting up against the massive Italian pack last Thursday.
Backrower Akihiro Tsubone retains the captaincy and will be looking drive his team forward in what promises to be another tough day at the office for the Japan U20.
Commenting ahead of the match, Japan U20 Head Coach Naoya Okubo said:
“Against Italy we enjoyed more than 60% possession, a figure unprecedented for Japan U20 in any international match to date. While this points to our progress, the fact that we were unable to convert this possession and territorial advantage into points is an area for improvement. Against Scotland, we need to improve the stability of our lineout and our tackle success rate to continue our development and give us a chance to get the victory.”
Fans in Japan looking to catch the match can tune in live to J Sports Two from 20:20 on Tuesday, July 7 or can stream the match live or watch via catch-up through J Sports On-Demand.
Following their final Pool B match against Scotland Japan will play an additional two games as part of the semi-finals and play off matches to decide their final placing in the 16-team competition.
Running from June 27 to July 19, the 2026 World Rugby Junior World Championships brings together the world’s best U20 national teams to fight it out for the right to be crowned 2026 Junior World Champions.
| No. | Name | Club Team | Height (cm) | Weight(kg) | DOB |
| 1 | Keigo ARUGA | Teikyo Univ. | 171 | 102 | 2006/7/18 |
| 2 | Koshi TSUMURA | Teikyo Univ. | 176 | 96 | 2007/6/20 |
| 3 | Kanta KAWAGOE | Kwansei Gakuin Univ. | 181 | 110 | 2006/9/22 |
| 4 | Masato YANASE | Kwansei Gakuin Univ. | 184 | 102 | 2006/6/28 |
| 5 | Taiga YAMAZAKI | Keio Univ. | 189 | 103 | 2006/10/5 |
| 6 | Riku FUJIKUBO | Teikyo Univ. | 181 | 100 | 2006/7/17 |
| 7 | Kise SIN | Keio Univ. | 175 | 93 | 2006/5/17 |
| 8 | Akihiro TSUBONE (C) | Teikyo Univ. | 185 | 105 | 2006/3/14 |
| 9 | Keigo SATO | Chuo Univ. | 169 | 68 | 2008/2/24 |
| 10 | Yuki KOBAYASHI | Keio Univ. | 168 | 75 | 2007/2/19 |
| 11 | Isa FUKADA | Tsukuba Univ. | 172 | 80 | 2006/12/12 |
| 12 | Yura MORIOKA | Aoyama Gakuin Univ. | 178 | 81 | 2007/6/16 |
| 13 | Rio IWAKURA | Yamanashi Gakuin Univ. | 177 | 90 | 2006/8/5 |
| 14 | Gentaro SAKATA | Kindai Univ. | 172 | 72 | 2008/1/23 |
| 15 | Ryuto KOGA | Meiji Univ. | 184 | 86 | 2006/7/17 |
| 16 | Sota MIURA | Teikyo Univ. | 177 | 102 | 2006/10/2 |
| 17 | Songha RI | Doshisha Univ. | 178 | 103 | 2006/2/28 |
| 18 | Keitatsu MOTOYAMA | SHIZUOKA BlueRevs | 188 | 113 | 2006/12/26 |
| 19 | Masato HYAKUTAKE | Meiji Univ. | 187 | 108 | 2006/4/24 |
| 20 | Chikara FUKUDA | Kwansei Gakuin Univ. | 178 | 100 | 2006/11/28 |
| 21 | Kohaku SUDA | Hosei Univ. | 172 | 78 | 2007/12/14 |
| 22 | Takeru NIWA | Doshisha Univ. | 172 | 75 | 2006/10/1 |
| 23 | Shinnosuke UCHIDA | Tsukuba Univ. | 167 | 73 | 2006/7/6 |
(C) Captain