Advertisement
The Japan Brave Blossoms are looking for improved performances and results, while Wales might take any win on offer to end their record-breaking losing streak going back to RWC 2023. So, who will prevail in sold-out test in Kitakyushu at the Mikuni World Stadium on Saturday, July 5?
This weekend is the first of two fixtures between the two in the Lipovitan D Challenge Cup 2025, with the second match taking place in Kobe on July 12. The matches are expected to be played in hot and humid conditions.
Currently, Wales is ranked 12th by World Rugby, and the Brave Blossoms are one place below in 13th, so there is an extra dimension to the game as teams start to eye their seedings before the Rugby World Cup 2027 pool draw - and even though both teams have already qualified, they need to start notching up wins while developing their squads which have both been under scrutiny.
Japan and Wales have faced each other 14 times, and the Brave Blossoms have only one win while the Welsh have 13 victories. The Kitakyushu match takes on significance as the Welsh used the city as their base training camp during the Rugby World Cup 2019.
Interim senior men’s head coach Matt Sherratt is in charge as a permanent replacement for Warren Gatland has still not been announced, and is supported by several former internationals turned coaches for this tour.
Sherratt said: “We had a very good build-up. We tried to give everyone a fair chance of selection. One of the key messages was it’s going to be a 23-man job. So, we’ve tried to spread the experience out in terms of getting some experience coming off the bench.”
The side is captained by hooker Dewi Lake and two players who will wear the Welsh jersey after missing the 2025 Guinness Six Nations due to injury, Sam Costelow at flyhalf and Ben Carter at lock, in a team that has a six-two split among the Wales replacements. One of those on the bench is Archie Griffin, who also missed the Guinness Six Nations due to injury.
The one potential new debutant from that bench is Hooker Liam Belcher. The coach emphasised that a number of players have worked their way back into the squad.
“Josh Macleod is an obvious one. He’s struggled with some injuries, had a real rollercoaster over the last three or four years, so him coming back in is massive. I think you could tell from the players’ reaction when Liam Belcher was selected how much he deserves it.”
Of what Sherratt is looking for against Japan, he explained, “I think an 80-minute performance, that physical edge and making sure that we transfer training into the game is going to be the biggest thing for us.
The Brave Blossoms’ defensive record in 2024 and the results were poor. They conceded 52 points against England, 42 points against Italy, and 64 points against the All Blacks before leaking 52 points and 59 points against France and England on the end-of-year tour.
Eddie Jones has selected talisman Michael Leitch as captain and confirmed he will lead the team for both games. The versatile backrow who can also play lock has amassed 87 caps, and Jones said of him, “I’m really pleased to name the team for this first test and delighted to name Leitch as Captain for the series. He’s the most experienced and influential player in Japan, and even in the short period we’ve been together, his presence has galvanized the team.”
Leitch said he was honoured to lead the side and commented on the conditions and the lessons learned from the JAPAN XV loss last week to the Maori All Blacks, admitting that their defence needs to be on point. “The focus is on defence. We will clarify our roles. We have spent a lot of time on that," he said, adding that they will try to use fast line speed and targeting better tackle accuracy against a physical Welsh side.
"We want to express our identity through our defence. Good defence leads to good offense. I want the fans to watch our defence."
Regulars feature for the Japanese side, including Hurricanes-bound Warner Dearns, Dylan Riley, Seungsin Lee at flyhalf (who topped the scoring at last year's Pacific Nations Cup). Exciting winger Kippei Ishida, who starts on the right wing, and Kubota Spears Funabashi Tokyo Bay prop Yota Kamimori, will both make their debuts.
Jones has lauded Ishida previously, saying the Japan 7s Olympian could reach the heights of Springbok maestro Cheslin Kolbe.
He commented on front-rower Kamimori, "He has benefited greatly from playing with Springbok Malcolm Marx, and he is trying to improve his work rate in both attack and defence during the Miyazaki training camp."
On the bench are six potential debutants with Jones saying there is a high number of debuts number of injuries in the squad; Hayate Era, Sena Kimura, Waisake Raratubua, Shuntaro Kitamura, Ichigo Nakakusu, and Halatoa Vailea.
Other replacements are Ben Gunter and talented prospect Shuntaro Kitamura, who was the joint top try scorer in the JRLO regular season.
Talented scrumhalf Naoto Saito, who plays at Toulouse, was not included in the matchday squad this weekend after winning the French Top 14 last week (although he did not play the final).
He has been training with the team this week, and said the Welsh play a style of rugby that focuses on set pieces and kicking, and they attack wide (with their backs).” He added the Japanese need to strike a balance between their own attack and keep the visitors pinned back with an accurate kicking game.
For Wales, they are on a record 17-match Test losing sequence and have dropped to a new low of 12th place in the world rankings. Japan are at home, and as much as they are rebuilding, they have a new mantra this season and are looking to the future; at some point, they need the results in front of their fans before pressure starts building.
The Brave Blossoms will debut their new jersey, and the theme of the home jersey design is inspired by kabuki’s kumadori motif, which expresses the strength and dynamism of Japan’s national teams.
1. Kamimori Yota (Kubota Spears Funabashi Tokyo Bay/ 0 caps)
2. Harada Mamoru (*announced his departure from Toshiba Brave Lupus Tokyo on June 4, 2025/10 caps)
3. Takeuchi Shuhei (*announced his departure from Urayasu D-Rocks on June 1, 2025 / 13 caps)
4. Epineli Uruivaiti (Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Sagamihara DynaBoars 6 caps)
5. Warner Deans (Hurricanes 21 caps)
6. Michael Leitch (Toshiba Brave Lupus Tokyo 87 caps) - Captain
7. Jack Cornelsen (Saitama Panasonic Wild Knights 20 caps)
8. Fakatava Amato (Ricoh Black Rams Tokyo 13 caps)
9. Fujiwara Shinobu (Kubota Spears Funabashi Tokyo Bay 10 caps)
10. Lee Seung-shin (Kobe Steelers 18 caps)
11. Maro Tuitama (Shizuoka Blue Revs 7 caps)
12. Nakano Masago (Tokyo Suntory Sungoliath 7 caps)
13. Dylan Riley (Saitama Panasonic Wild Knights 28 caps)
14. Yoshihira Ishida (Yokohama Canon Eagles 0 caps)
15. Takuro Matsunaga (Toshiba Brave Lupus Tokyo 4 caps)
16. Era Hayate (Kubota Spears Funabashi Tokyo Bay 0 caps)
17. Kimura Seinan (Toshiba Brave Lupus Tokyo 0 caps)
18. Tamefusa Keijiro (Kubota Spears Funabashi Tokyo Bay 10 caps)
19. Waisake Raratubua (Kobe Steelers Kobe 0 caps)
20. Ben Gunter (Saitama Panasonic Wild Knights 9 caps)
21. Kitamura Shuntaro (Shizuoka Blue Revs 0 caps)
22. Nakakusu Kazuki (Ricoh Black Rams Tokyo 0 caps)
23. Halatua Vailea (Kubota Spears Funabashi Tokyo Bay 0 caps)
1. Nicky Smith (Leicester Tigers – 54 caps)
2. Dewi Lake (Ospreys – 20 caps) – Captain
3. Keiron Assiratti (Cardiff Rugby – 14 caps)
4. Ben Carter (Dragons – 12 caps)
5. Teddy Williams (Cardiff Rugby – 6 caps)
6. Alex Mann (Cardiff Rugby – 5 caps)
7. Josh Macleod (Scarlets – 2 caps)
8. Taulupe Faletau (Cardiff Rugby – 108 caps)
9. Kieran Hardy (Ospreys – 23 caps)
10. Sam Costelow (Scarlets – 18 caps)
11. Josh Adams (Cardiff Rugby – 61 caps)
12. Ben Thomas (Cardiff Rugby – 12 caps)
13. Johnny Williams (Scarlets – 7 caps)
14. Tom Rogers (Scarlets – 9 caps)
15. Blair Murray (Scarlets – 8 caps)
16. Liam Belcher (Cardiff Rugby – uncapped)
17. Gareth Thomas (Ospreys – 40 caps)
18. Archie Griffin (Bath Rugby – 6 caps)
19. James Ratti (Ospreys – 1 cap)
20. Aaron Wainwright (Dragons – 57 caps)
21. Tommy Reffell (Leicester Tigers – 27 caps)
22. Rhodri Williams (Dragons – 9 caps)
23. Joe Roberts (Scarlets – 5 caps)
