Japan U20 Victorious in Their Final Junior World Championship Match
Japan U20 have wrapped up their 2026 World Rugby Junior World Championship campaign in style with a hard fought 34-26 win over Spain in their 13th Place Play Off match. While Japan walked away with a well-deserved victory, Spain were tough and tenacious throughout the match and can be proud of their performance.
From the opening whistle it was clear that both teams were desperate for a victory and had turned up to play. The Spanish drew first blood with a try in the fifth minute before the game turned into an arm wrestle with both teams throwing everything into their attack and defence. A Spanish penalty on the 19th minute gave them an 8-point lead before Japan finally crossed for a try 2 minutes later.
When Japan got their first points on the scoreboard, Spain also received their first yellow card of the day. Throughout the match, the referee went into his pocket to draw yellow on seven separate occasions, including two yellows for Japan which remarkably were their first across the entire tournament. Spain on the other hand had five players sent to the bin, with their lack of discipline hurting them at key moments in the match.
Going into the sheds at half time it was Spain who enjoyed a 12-18 lead. When the players came back onto the field, the arm wrestle continued. Japanese flyer, Shinnosuke Uchida scored his fifth try of the tournament from the right wing, before a 51st minute try to openside Yuta Otabe saw Japan wrestle back a 22-18 lead.
While Japan held the lead for the remainder of the match, a Spanish fightback saw them trailing by just three points with two minutes left on the clock. It was a nervous time for Japanese fans with the never-say-die attitude of the Spaniards threatening the Japanese defence constantly. It was only on the 78th minute when replacement back Kohaku Suda crossed for a try that Japan were able to close out the match.
Commenting after the fixture, Japan U20 Head Coach Naoya Okubo said:
“It was a very tough match against Spain, including seven yellow cards. I’m happy we were able to take our opportunities, managing to score tries when we had the chance. The key to our performance was that we could gain the upper hand at scrum time and with our mauls. Today’s result was the culmination of the effort of the entire team over these last few months, and I am really happy to see the progress of each and every player.”
Japan U20 Captain Akihiro Tsubone added:
“While we’re delighted that we managed to get the win today, and it was a positive experience for me personally as Captain, I think that in terms of our performance, there were too many individual errors. All of us felt frustrated by this – I certainly was. We are happy, but we want to use this as a learning experience and continue to improve.”