Brave Blossoms Set to Line Up Against Fiji in PNC Final
Japan Head Coach Eddie Jones has named his Brave Blossoms side to take on Fiji this Saturday, September 19 in the Final of the Asahi Super Dry Pacific Nations Cup 2026 at Chichibunomiya Rugby Stadium in Tokyo. Kicking off at 19:05 JST, the match is the second fixture in a double header that also sees the USA line up against Canada in the third-place play-off from 16:00 JST.
Saturday’s match will see Japan and Fiji meet in the Pacific Nations Cup Final for the third consecutive year, with the Brave Blossoms looking to reverse defeats in the previous two title deciders. While Fiji ran out convincing 17-41 winners in 2024, the margin narrowed significantly last year, with Japan pushing the defending champions much closer in a 27-33 defeat.
Captained by halfback Naoto Saito, Jones has made just the one personnel change to the matchday 23 that defeated the USA 63-14 in last weekend’s semi-final in Osaka. Tomoki Osada comes into the starting side on the left wing, replacing Kazuma Ueda.
The remaining changes are all are positional adjustments in the forward pack. Jack Cornelsen moves from number eight into the second row in place of Michael Stolberg, who shifts to the reserves bench. Faulua Makisi moves from the bench to start at number eight, joining Ben Gunter and Kanji Shimokawa in the back row.
The remainder of the starting side is unchanged, with Sojiro Otsuka, Mamoru Harada and Shuhei Takeuchi continuing in the front row, while Harry Hockings partners Cornelsen at lock.
In the backs, Saito again partners young gun flyhalf Ryunosuke Ito in the halves, with Yuya Hirose and Dylan Riley continuing their midfield combination. Osada starts on the left wing, with Inoke Burua on the right and Sam Greene at fullback.
The reserves see Kenji Sato, Sena Kimura and Takumi Inaba providing front-row cover, with Stolberg and Esei Haangana completing the specialist forward replacements. The versatile Tiennan Costley provides cover across the back row and backline, while Shinobu Fujiwara is the replacement halfback and Samisoni Tua provides additional cover across the backs.
Commenting ahead of the match, Brave Blossoms Head Coach Eddie Jones said:
“Our aim this weekend is to win the Final and we’re 100% concentrated on that. It’s our third Final in a row so it’s a great opportunity for this team to grow. If you look at the number of caps, it’s probably one of the most experienced teams we’ve had this year. We’ve got good experience and toughness in the team, and we’re looking forward to a really physical and fast performance against Fiji.”
Fans looking to catch the double-header action live can pick up tickets via the JRFU’s English-language ticketing website at: https://quick.pia.jp/japan-rugby_en/.
The match will be broadcast live in Japan from 19:00 on Nippon TV and J SPORTS 1 from 18:35. It will be streamed live and available via catch-up on Hulu from 19:00, J SPORTS On Demand from 18:35 and DAZN from 18:51.
| No. | Name | Club Team | Graduate | Height cm | Weight kg | DOB | Cap |
| 1 | Sojiro OTSUKA | Kwansei Gakuin Univ. | Kwansei Gakuin Senior HS. | 178 | 110 | 2004/7/5 | 7 |
| 2 | Mamoru HARADA | TOSHIBA BRAVE LUPUS TOKYO | Keio Univ. | 175 | 101 | 1999/4/15 | 18 |
| 3 | Shuhei TAKEUCHI | TOKYO SUNTORY SUNGOLIATH | Kyushu Kyoritsu Univ. | 183 | 120 | 1997/12/9 | 30 |
| 4 | Jack CORNELSEN | SAITAMA Panasonic WILD KNIGHTS | Univ. of Queensland | 195 | 110 | 1994/10/13 | 36 |
| 5 | Harry HOCKINGS | TOKYO SUNTORY SUNGOLIATH | Univ. of Queensland | 208 | 124 | 1998/7/28 | 9 |
| 6 | Ben GUNTER | SAITAMA Panasonic WILD KNIGHTS | Brisbane Boys’ College | 195 | 120 | 1997/10/24 | 24 |
| 7 | Kanji SHIMOKAWA | TOKYO SUNTORY SUNGOLIATH | Waseda Univ. | 188 | 105 | 1999/1/17 | 28 |
| 8 | Faulua MAKISI | Kubota Spears Funabashi TOKYO-BAY | Tenri Univ. | 187 | 112 | 1997/1/20 | 27 |
| 9 | Naoto SAITO (C) | TOKYO SUNTORY SUNGOLIATH | Waseda Univ. | 165 | 73 | 1997/8/26 | 35 |
| 10 | Ryunosuke ITO | Meiji Univ. | Univ. Tochigi HS. | 172 | 77 | 2004/11/20 | 7 |
| 11 | Tomoki OSADA | SAITAMA Panasonic WILD KNIGHTS | Waseda Univ. | 179 | 90 | 1999/11/25 | 26 |
| 12 | Yuya HIROSE | Kubota Spears Funabashi TOKYO-BAY | Meiji Univ. | 182 | 94 | 2001/4/7 | 9 |
| 13 | Dylan RILEY | SAITAMA Panasonic WILD KNIGHTS | Bond Univ. | 187 | 102 | 1997/5/2 | 45 |
| 14 | Inoke BURUA | KOBELCO KOBE STEELERS | Ryutsu Keizai Univ. | 178 | 100 | 1999/5/30 | 2 |
| 15 | Sam GREENE | JR EAST GREEN WARRIORS TOKATSU | Brisbane Grammar HS. | 178 | 85 | 1994/8/16 | 9 |
| 16 | Kenji SATO | SAITAMA Panasonic WILD KNIGHTS | Waseda Univ. | 177 | 108 | 2003/1/4 | 11 |
| 17 | Sena KIMURA | TOSHIBA BRAVE LUPUS TOKYO | Tokai Univ. | 175 | 105 | 1999/6/24 | 4 |
| 18 | Takumi INABA | SHIZUOKA BlueRevs | Kindai Univ. | 175 | 110 | 2002/7/24 | 2 |
| 19 | Michael STOLBERG | TOSHIBA BRAVE LUPUS TOKYO | Anglican Church Grammar School | 202 | 116 | 1992/3/27 | 5 |
| 20 | Esei HAANGANA | URAYASU D-Rocks | St. Paul Catholic H.S. | 198 | 120 | 1999/4/21 | 3 |
| 21 | Tiennan COSTLEY | KOBELCO KOBE STEELERS | International Pacific Univ. | 192 | 102 | 2000/6/14 | 18 |
| 22 | Shinobu FUJIWARA | Kubota Spears Funabashi TOKYO-BAY | Tenri Univ. | 171 | 76 | 1999/2/8 | 20 |
| 23 | Samisoni TUA | URAYASU D-Rocks | Setsunan Univ. | 182 | 108 | 1995/5/24 | 7 |
(C) Captain