Sakura Fifteen Named to Face Wales in Historic JRFU Centenary Clash

The Sakura Fifteen will take on Wales this Saturday, October 24, as part of a special double header at Tokyo’s Chichibunomiya Rugby Stadium marking the Japan Rugby Football Union’s 100th anniversary. Head Coach Toshizumi Kitagawa has named his side for the 18:30 JST clash, which forms part of the Lipovitan D Challenge Cup 2026 and WXV Global Series. The match follows the Brave Blossoms’ afternoon encounter with Fiji which kicks off at 14:50 JST. Both Japan teams will take to the field wearing specially designed commemorative jerseys to celebrate this historic milestone in Japanese rugby.

Saturday’s match marks the first of two consecutive tests against Wales, with the teams set to meet again the following weekend in Kumagaya. Returning home following their recent tour of Europe, the Sakura Fifteen will be looking to build on the improvements shown during their matches against Italy and Ireland, as they continue their development under Kitagawa.

The match presents an exciting opportunity for two uncapped players, with Savannah Bodman named at number eight and Sophie Akiko Langford selected at outside centre. Their inclusion provides an opportunity to make their international debuts on a landmark occasion for Japanese rugby, while adding fresh talent to a squad looking to take another step forward in its development.

Kitagawa has retained much of the forward pack that featured against Ireland earlier this month. Hinata Komaki, Moe Nagaoka and Wako Kitano again combine in the front row, with Masami Kawamura and Yuna Sato continuing their partnership in the second row. Nami Asari and Sakurako Korai retain their places in the back row, where they are joined by Bodman.

In the backs, Captain Moe Tsukui continues at halfback alongside young flyhalf Sawa Harada. Uta Kataoka moves to inside centre, partnering Langford in midfield, while Sora Nishimura and Honoka Tsunokawa start on the wings. Maiko Nishi continues at fullback.

The side features a third uncapped player in reserve flyhalf Chihiro Ito, who will be looking to make her international debut from the bench. Adding to the occasion, Chihiro is the younger sister of Brave Blossoms flyhalf Ryunosuke Ito, who will start against Fiji earlier in the day. Should Chihiro take to the field, it will be a particularly special moment for the siblings, representing Japan’s two senior national teams on the same day and as part of the JRFU’s historic centenary celebrations.

Nijiho Nagata, Nami Yoshida and Juka Fuji provide front-row cover, with Otoka Yoshimura and Jennifer Nduka completing the forward replacements. Anan Seo and Mele Yua Havili Kagawa provide additional backline options.

With the Sakura Fifteen set to face Wales again on October 31 in Kumagaya, Saturday’s encounter offers an important opportunity to build momentum, while celebrating a historic milestone for Japanese rugby in front of their home supporters.

Commenting ahead of the match, Sakura Fifteen Head Coach Toshizumi Kitagawa said:

“I want to see the Sakura Fifteen play with speed and precision, taking the initiative and putting Wales under pressure from the outset. The key will be staying focused on what we need to do and executing our game plan consistently across the full 80 minutes.

“Playing alongside the Brave Blossoms as part of this historic centenary celebration is a fantastic opportunity to showcase the excitement and appeal of women’s rugby. I hope we can inspire more fans to follow the women’s game and, in doing so, introduce more people to Japanese rugby as a whole. This is a great occasion to build momentum and contribute to a new chapter in the history of Japanese rugby.”

The match will be broadcast live across Japan on BS Nippon TV from 18:29 and J SPORTS 1 from 18:15. It will also be streamed live on J SPORTS On Demand from 18:15.

Fans looking to catch the double-header action live can still pick up the last remaining tickets via the JRFU’s English-language ticketing website at: https://quick.pia.jp/japan-rugby_en/.

Sakura Fifteen Team List:

	Name	Team	Company	Height(cm)	Weight(kg)	DOB	Cap
1	Hinata KOMAKI	Tokyo Sankyu Phoenix	Sankyu Inc.	166	75	2001/5/9	24
2	Moe NAGAOKA	YOKOHAMA TKM	Mitsubishi Jisho Property Management Co., Ltd.	163	67	1999/6/7	10
3	Wako KITANO	MIE PEARLS	Sumitomo Wiring Systems	166	95	1999/9/8	29
4	Masami KAWAMURA	YOKOGAWA Musashino Artemi-Stars	NTT FACILITIES, INC.	173	75	1999/7/13	29
5	Yuna SATO	Tokyo Sankyu Phoenix	Sankyu Inc.	170	80	1998/9/11	33
6	Nami ASARI	YOKOGAWA Musashino Artemi-Stars	Hosei Univ.	171	62	2008/2/1	4
7	Sakurako KORAI	Tokyo Sankyu Phoenix	Sankyu Inc.	166	67	2003/4/9	28
8	Savannah BODMAN	Tokyo Sankyu Phoenix	Tokyo Athletic United General Incorporated Association Tokyo Athletic United	168	70	2002/2/16	0
9	Moe TSUKUI (C)	YOKOGAWA Musashino Artemi-Stars	LIBEST Corp.	153	54	2000/3/28	51
10	Sawa HARADA	Japan Univ. of Economics	Japan Univ. of Economics	165	63	2005/3/12	6
11	Sora NISHIMURA	MIE PEARLS	Choko Co.，Ltd.	167	67	2000/9/29	29
12	Uta KATAOKA	YOKOGAWA Musashino Artemi-Stars	Dic Solution Engineering Inc.	166	66	2004/4/23	3
13	Sophie Akiko LANGFORD	YOKOHAMA TKM	Medical Corporation Yokohama Mirai Healthcare System	169	75	2004/8/22	0
14	Honoka TSUNOKAWA	YOKOHAMA TKM	Totsuka Kyoritsu Yukari no Sato	164	63	2001/9/10	2
15	Maiko NISHI	YOKOGAWA Musashino Artemi-Stars	Graduate School	163	63	2004/1/27	4
16	Nijiho NAGATA	MIE PEARLS	SEIBUNSHA Co., Ltd.	162	80	2000/12/6	34
17	Nami YOSHIDA	YOKOHAMA TKM	Human Life care Yokohama	165	76	1999/4/13	8
18	Juka　FUJI	YOKOHAMA TKM	TMG Head Office, Yokohama Branch	171	85	2001/1/22	6
19	Otoka YOSHIMURA	ARUKAS QUEEN KUMAGAYA	Saitamaken Shinkin Bank.	174	83	2001/5/15	37
20	Nduka　JENNIFER	Hokkaido Barbarians Diana	Medical System Network	168	75	2000/10/18	23
21	Anan SEO	Tokyo Sankyu Phoenix	OSP HOLDINGS  CO.,LTD.	155	59	2001/7/16	6
22	Chihiro ITO	Waseda Univ. Rugby Football Club Women’s Team	Waseda Univ.	164	66	2007/7/15	0
23	Mele Yua HAVILI KAGAWA	YOKOHAMA TKM	Medical Corporation Yokohama Mirai Healthcare System	171	74	2001/9/29	11

(c) Captain