Brave Blossoms Side Named to Face Fiji in PNC Final
Head Coach Eddie Jones has named his team to take on Fiji in the Pacific Nations Cup 2025 Final this Saturday, 20 September, at America First Field in Salt Lake City, Utah. Kicking off at 19:35 local time, the match will play at 10:35 on Sunday morning in Japan.
Jones has made five changes to the side that beat Tonga 62–24 last weekend in Denver, with several players ruled out through injury. Having lost 17–41 to Fiji in last year’s final in Higashiosaka, Jones will be hoping his young team can go one better this time around. While the Brave Blossoms come into the match in strong form and full of confidence, it will be a big test for the world’s 13th-ranked team against the ninth-ranked Fijians and current PNC Champions.
Commenting on the team selection, Brave Blossoms Head Coach Eddie Jones said:
“We’ve had a really good preparation for the final and we’re delighted to announce a really strong team that’s come out of a strong squad. The most impressive thing for me as coach to come out of this PNC has been the depth of the squad and the competition we’ve had for places.
“We’ve had a few knocks and injuries from the last game and from training, so there are a few changes, but we’re confident that the team can play cohesively, with connection, drive and tactical discipline. Our aim is to win the final against a very good Fijian side.”
The Pacific Nations Cup Final will be broadcast live in Japan on J Sports 2 from 10:15 JST on Sunday, September 21 and streamed live and via catch-up on J Sports On-Demand.
| No. | Name | Club Team | Graduate | Height cm | Weight kg | DOB | Cap |
| 1 | Kenta KOBAYASHI | TOKYO SUNTORY SUNGOLIATH | Waseda Univ. | 181 | 113 | 1999/6/2 | 3 |
| 2 | Hayate ERA | Kubota Spears Funabashi TOKYO-BAY | Teikyo Univ. | 172 | 106 | 2001/9/18 | 4 |
| 3 | Shuhei TAKEUCHI | TOKYO SUNTORY SUNGOLIATH | Kyushu Kyoritsu Univ. | 183 | 115 | 1997/12/9 | 18 |
| 4 | Jack CORNELSEN | SAITAMA Panasonic WILD KNIGHTS | Univ. of Queensland | 195 | 110 | 1994/10/13 | 23 |
| 5 | Warner DEARNS (C) | TOSHIBA BRAVE LUPUS TOKYO | Ryutsu Keizai Univ. KASHIWA HS. | 201 | 117 | 2002/4/11 | 26 |
| 6 | Faulua MAKISI | Kubota Spears Funabashi TOKYO-BAY | Tenri Univ. | 187 | 112 | 1997/1/20 | 18 |
| 7 | Kanji SHIMOKAWA | TOKYO SUNTORY SUNGOLIATH | Waseda Univ. | 188 | 105 | 1999/1/17 | 17 |
| 8 | Amato FAKATAVA | RICOH BlackRams Tokyo | Daito Bunka Univ. | 195 | 118 | 1994/12/7 | 17 |
| 9 | Shinobu FUJIWARA | Kubota Spears Funabashi TOKYO-BAY | Tenri Univ. | 171 | 76 | 1999/2/8 | 15 |
| 10 | Seungsin LEE | KOBELCO KOBE STEELERS | Osaka Korean HS. | 176 | 86 | 2001/1/13 | 23 |
| 11 | Haruto KIDA | Kubota Spears Funabashi TOKYO-BAY | Ritsumeikan Univ. | 176 | 90 | 1999/4/9 | 1 |
| 12 | Charlie LAWRENCE | Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Sagamihara Dynaboars | Hamilton Boys’HS. | 170 | 89 | 1998/5/27 | 3 |
| 13 | Dylan RILEY | SAITAMA Panasonic WILD KNIGHTS | Bond Univ. | 187 | 102 | 1997/5/2 | 33 |
| 14 | Tomoki OSADA | SAITAMA Panasonic WILD KNIGHTS | Waseda Univ. | 179 | 90 | 1999/11/25 | 20 |
| 15 | Ichigo NAKAKUSU | RICOH BlackRams Tokyo | Keio Univ. | 174 | 84 | 2000/6/1 | 2 |
| 16 | Kenji SATO | SAITAMA Panasonic WILD KNIGHTS | Waseda Univ. | 177 | 108 | 2003/1/4 | 3 |
| 17 | Ryosuke IWAIHARA | YOKOHAMA CANON EAGLES | Meiji Univ. | 184 | 115 | 1996/10/6 | 1 |
| 18 | Keijiro TAMEFUSA | Kubota Spears Funabashi TOKYO-BAY | Meiji Univ. | 180 | 108 | 2001/9/3 | 14 |
| 19 | Tiennan Costley | KOBELCO KOBE STEELERS | International Pacific Univ. | 192 | 102 | 2000/6/14 | 8 |
| 20 | Akito OKUI | TOYOTA VERBLITZ | Teikyo Univ. | 178 | 105 | 2001/9/17 | 1 |
| 21 | Kenta FUKUDA | TOKYO SUNTORY SUNGOLIATH | Meiji Univ. | 173 | 83 | 1996/12/19 | 3 |
| 22 | Yuya HIROSE | Kubota Spears Funabashi TOKYO-BAY | Meiji Univ. | 182 | 94 | 2001/4/7 | 2 |
| 23 | Shogo NAKANO | TOKYO SUNTORY SUNGOLIATH | Waseda Univ. | 186 | 100 | 1997/6/11 | 9 |
*(C) Captain
Brave Blossoms PNC 2025
Saturday 30 August
Japan vs Canada
57-15 (W)
Pacific Nations Cup 2025 (Pool B)
Yurtec Stadium, Sendai
Saturday 6 September
USA vs Japan
21-47 (W)
Pacific Nations Cup 2025 (Pool B)
Heart Health Park, Sacramento
Sunday 14 September
Japan vs Tonga
62-24 (W)
Pacific Nations Cup 2025 Semi-Final
DICK’S Sporting Goods Park, Denver
Saturday 20 September
Japan vs Fiji
Pacific Nations Cup 2025 Final
America First Field, Salt Lake City
Brave Blossoms 2025 Match Schedule
Saturday 25 October
Japan vs Australia
Lipovitan D Challenge Cup 2025
National Stadium, Tokyo
Saturday 1 November
Japan vs South Africa
Lipovitan D Tour 2025
London
Saturday 8 November
Ireland vs Japan
Autumn Nations Series
Dublin
Saturday 15 November
Wales vs Japan
Autumn Nations Series
Cardiff
Saturday 22 November
Georgia vs Japan
Venue TBC