JAPAN XV Team Announced for Second NZU Clash
The JRFU have announced the JAPAN XV side to face New Zealand Universities in the second and final fixture of their two-match series. Kicking off at 14:00 JST on Saturday, June 24 at Crasus Soccer and Rugby Field in Oita City, the match will see a JAPAN XV side brimming with confidence following their commanding 78–28 victory in their opening clash last Tuesday.
The coaching team have made several changes for the return match, with 11 new players named in the matchday 23. Of the 12 players retained from the first match, five move from the bench into the starting line-up. In the forwards, only Number Eight Tenta Kobayashi retains his place in an otherwise refreshed pack, while Number 10 Shinya Komura moves from the bench into the starting playmaker role.
Having also fallen to Japan U20 52–45 in their first tour match, NZU will be eager to finish on a high and restore some pride before returning to New Zealand. They’ll however be facing a highly motivated JAPAN XV outfit, with many players looking to catch the eye of Brave Blossoms Head Coach Eddie Jones to stake a claim for selection ahead of the upcoming home series against Wales.
The match will be streamed live from 13:50 JST and available via catch-up on J Sports On-Demand. A delayed broadcast will also be shown on J Sports 1 from 23:00 JST on Monday, 26 May.
JAPAN XV Team List:
| No | Name | Club Team | Graduate | Height cm | Weight kg | DOB |
| 1 | Taishi TSUMURA | RICOH BlackRams Tokyo | Teikyo Univ. | 173 | 108 | 2001/4/30 |
| 2 | Shoma SAGAWA | Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Sagamihara Dynaboars | Nihon Univ. | 180 | 103 | 2002/1/20 |
| 3 | Shohei OYAMA | RICOH BlackRams Tokyo | Keio Univ. | 186 | 115 | 1998/11/15 |
| 4 | Reijiro YAMAMOTO | RICOH BlackRams Tokyo | Meiji Univ. | 191 | 110 | 2002/3/18 |
| 5 | Kyo YOSHIDA (C) | Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Sagamihara Dynaboars |
Teikyo Univ. | 188 | 108 | 1995/6/30 |
| 6 |
Keito AOKI | TOYOTA VERBLITZ |
Teikyo Univ. | 187 | 110 | 2002/6/14 |
| 7 | Akito OKUI | TOYOTA VERBLITZ |
Teikyo Univ. | 178 | 105 | 2001/9/17 |
| 8 | Tenta KOBAYASHI | Kwansei Gakuin Univ. | Kyoto Seisho HS | 185 | 105 | 2003/11/27 |
| 9 | Asahi DOEI | YOKOHAMA CANON EAGLES | Kyoto Sangyo Univ. | 170 | 73 | 2003/1/9 |
| 10 | Shinya KOMURA | TOYOTA VERBLITZ |
Teikyo Univ. | 180 | 92 | 2002/5/28 |
| 11 | Kosho MUTO | Kwansei Gakuin Univ. | Kwansei Gakuin HS | 174 | 83 | 2004/3/23 |
| 12 | Charlie LAWRENCE | Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Sagamihara Dynaboars | Hamilton Boys’HS. | 171 | 90 | 1998/5/27 |
| 13 | PJ LATU | RICOH BlackRams Tokyo | Daito Bunka Univ. | 188 | 105 | 2000/10/24 |
| 14 | Yuichiro WADA | TOYOTA VERBLITZ | Doshisha Univ. | 178 | 88 | 1999/8/30 |
| 15 | Kotaro ITO | RICOH BlackRams Tokyo | Meiji Univ. | 177 | 86 | 2001/11/15 |
| 16 | Naoto YASUTSUNE | Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Sagamihara Dynaboars | Waseda Univ. | 171 | 98 | 2003/2/5 |
| 17 | Sojiro OTSUKA | Kwansei Gakuin Univ. | Kwansei Gakuin Senior HS | 178 | 110 | 2004/7/5 |
| 18 | Kanzo SCHINCKEL | Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Sagamihara Dynaboars |
Ryutsu Keizai Univ. | 187 | 125 | 1999/8/20 |
| 19 | Shu YAMAMOTO | RICOH BlackRams Tokyo | Kindai Univ. | 190 | 96 | 1999/6/1 |
| 20 | Taishiro KIDO | TOSHIBA BRAVE LUPUS TOKYO | Meiji Univ. | 186 | 103 | 2002/7/26 |
| 21 | Rikuto NAKAYA | Doshisha Univ. | Osaka Toin HS | 180 | 102 | 2005/4/15 |
| 22 | Sena HOSOYA | SHIZUOKA BlueRevs | Waseda Univ. | 162 | 63 | 2003/3/16 |
| 23 | Chisu LEE | Korea Univ. | Osaka Chosen HS | 180 | 82 | 2004/11/6 |
(c) Captain
New Zealand Universities 2025 Spring Tour to Japan
Friday 16 May
Japan U20 vs New Zealand Universities
52-45 (W)
Oita City
Tuesday 20 May
JAPAN XV vs New Zealand Universities
78-28 (W)
Beppu City