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The Hong Kong China Men’s XVs representative team will play Japan XV at Kai Tak Stadium XV on Friday, 24 October 2025, with the ticket capacity limited to 8,000 for the first XVs rugby game to be played at the venue in a non-capped fixture.
This is the second encounter between the Japan XV and a Hong Kong China side this year following the signing of an MOU between the two unions back in March. In May, very different looking Japan XV and HKCR sides competed in Beppu City, which the Japanese won comfortably 64-12.
Hong Kong China have qualified for their first-ever men’s Rugby World Cup in 2027 since that game, and this is their first home match since that historic qualification. There has been an expansion of their full-time contracted XVs players and additions to the coaching staff as they ramp up for the tournament in two years’ time..
They are keen to impress in front of home fans and friends under a closed roof at a stadium which first hosted the Hong Kong Sevens in April this year.
Japan XV come into the match after suffering a heavy defeat to the Australia A in Osaka 7-71 last weekend. That Australian team did feature several Wallabies but the Japanese were disappointed with their performance and highlighted by a misfiring lineout, scrum and attack which only saw them rarely threaten the Australian try line.
A number of Hong Kong China players who starred in the Japan tour (where they lost to Japan Rugby League One Division 3 team Skyactivs Hiroshima 21-28 and beat LeRIRO Fukuoka 42-19) are in the matchday 23 squad on Friday.
HKCR Head of Technical Rugby Andrew Douglas explained, “We’re coming off of a good week in Japan. A lot of hard work was put in, and we have a lot more clarity now which breeds confidence. We enjoy playing. We play with width and speed, and it’s a brand of rugby people like to watch. It will be nice to see a big crowd and build some atmosphere now that we are in the palace
Hong Kong China captain Josh Hrstich, who is one of eight players from Hong Kong Football Club, said of the key learnings from the tour to Japan, "The potential learnings of the group and the amount of improvement we can see from week to week. In our pre-season, there was a massive focus on getting bigger, faster and stronger but we are getting some good rugby behind us.
It's been awesome to see how much our game has grown with the better level of competition within the group, and we are drawing more quality sides to play against. We are grateful for Japan XV to accept the challenge, and we know it will make us much better too."
Japan are those things too; fast, quick, strong. In their captain's run on Thursday, they were looking incredibly slick, well-drilled and with a range of tools to pry defences open.
Home side second row Kyle Sullivan was one of the standout performers in the team's Japan tour. He said, "I think when people hear Hong Kong China Rugby, they immediately think of Sevens rugby. But having this fifteens game here means a lot to the boys, and the XVs game moving forward and setting a marker moving towards that Rugby World Cup in 2027.”
Five players who made their first senior Men’s appearances on the tour to Japan have been included in match day 23 for the JAPAN XV tie: starting are 6’8” lock Max Murphy (with RFU Championship experience at Richmond), scrumhalf Brendon Nell, and wing Dylan McCann. James Rivers (who has two sisters who have represented HKCR) and scrum-half Eric Chui Wai Lap are among the reserves.
Some of the players to watch for those not familiar with the side, aside from the captain and Sullivan, are loose-forward Tyler McNutt, the experienced centre pairing of Ben Axten-Burrett and Tommy Hill, and Matt Worley, who is back in Hong Kong after several years in the RFU Championship.
On the bench, there is also a return for fly-half Gregor McNeish, who spent a season in Spain playing for Andorra VPC and a season in Scotland, captaining the Southern Knights in the Super 6.
The JRFU announced a JAPAN XV side that has seen five changes in the matchday 23, and the side is once again captained by flank Akito Okui from the Japan Rugby League One’s Toyota Verblitz.
Yoshitaka Yazaki from Waseda University scored a great try last week but is not in the squad; However, there is still university representation via Rikuto Nakaya from Doshisha Univ. The biggest representation of JRLO clubs is from Ricoh Black Rams Tokyo, who have five players in the matchday 23.
The second row features some large timber in the form of Fiji-born Epineri Uluiviti at 196 cm and 122kg, and Australian-born David Van Zeeland, who clocks in at 196cm and 116 kg.
Brave Blossom’s Assistant Coach and Acting Head Coach for the Hong Kong China fixture is Ippei Asad. Last week, against Australia A, it was Neal Hatley, but he is with the Brave Blossoms setup in Japan this weekend, where they take on the Wallabies.
Ippei Asad said, “Since our match against Australia A, there have been a few changes in the lineup due to injuries and some other reasons. Just like last week, it’s still a young squad, but it’s one full of promise, and personally, I have high expectations for them.
Over the past week we’ve identified a number of issues to work on, but the players and coaches are united in moving forward together, and we’ve been able to prepare well for the upcoming match against Hong Kong China.”
Hatley had said after the loss last week, “The good thing about rugby is that you get another chance, so next week there is a great opportunity for these young men to travel to Hong Kong and put in a good performance.”
Japan XV will be seeking a win and an all-around performance, but buoyed by a home crowd, Hong Kong China know the spotlight is on them as they head to RWC 2027, and the global rugby eyes will be on them to see how they can fare among the world’s best 24 teams.
They next take on the Brumbies A in Hong Kong on 8 November and travel to play fellow Rugby World Cup contenders Portugal on 15 November. This is the final scheduled Japan XV match for the year but the Brave Blossoms head to Europe for the November tour.
The match will be preceded by the 50th Anniversary Cathay/HSBC Hong Kong Sevens Long Lunch with special guest Springbok Rugby World Cup winner Bryan Habana, and former Hong Kong China player and now Canadian Rugby 7s Olympic silver medalist and RWC 2025 runner-up Flo Symonds.
