The Japan national rugby union team are one of Asia’s finest sides. Known by their fans as the Cherry Blossoms (and occasionally the Brave Blossoms), the team competes in the Asia Rugby Championship. In addition, the side also represents Japan in the Rugby World Cup and they’ve featured in every edition of the tournament, claiming some big scalps in the process.
Read on to discover everything there is to know about the Japan Rugby team. On this page, you can learn more about the history of the team and see their latest fixtures and results.
My only slight dismay at news that a World Club Cup might happen, is having to wait until 2028 to see it.
The pools have been confirmed for the third and final round of the men’s and women’s World Rugby HSBC Sevens Challenger 2024 in Munich, Germany, and Krakow, Poland, respectively on 18-19 May.
The Japan national rugby union team are one of Asia’s finest sides. Known by their fans as the Cherry Blossoms (and occasionally the Brave Blossoms), the team competes in the Asia Rugby Championship. In addition, the side also represents Japan in the Rugby World Cup and they’ve featured in every edition of the tournament, claiming some big scalps in the process.
Read on to discover everything there is to know about the Japan Rugby team. On this page, you can learn more about the history of the team and see their latest fixtures and results.
Although rugby was first played in Japan in 1866, the Japan national rugby union team did not play their first international game until 1932. Ever since, the Japan Rugby team have slowly progressed and have begun to become a force on the world stage. For example, they beat the Junior All Blacks in 1968 and were only narrowly beaten 6-3 by England in 1971.
Over the years since, the Japan Rugby team have become a respected international side who are capable of beating the top sides. They beat a Scotland XV in 1989 and comprehensively beat Wales 23-8 in 2013. In 2011, they also won the Pacific Nations Cup for the first time and in 2014 they entered the world’s top 10 after they won 10 tests in a row.
However, the Japan national rugby union team’s greatest achievement arguably came in the 2015 Rugby World Cup. During the tournament, they produced a shock for the ages when they defeated South Africa in one of the competition’s finest ever matches. Following this, Japan hosted the 2019 edition of the tournament and they reached the quarter-final stage for the first time in their history.
Amanaki Saumaki Blindside Flanker 
Amato Fakatava Number 8 
Asaeli Ai Valu Prop 
Atsushi Sakate Hooker 
Ben Gunter Flanker 6 
Craig Millar Prop 
Jack Cornelsen Lock 4 
James Moore Lock 
Jiwon Koo Prop 
Kanji Shimokawa Blindside Flanker 
Kazuki Himeno Flanker 7 
Keita Inagaki Prop 
Kosuke Horikoshi Hooker 
Michael Leitch Number 8 
Pieter Labuschagne Openside Flanker 
Shinnosuke Kakinaga Tighthead Prop 
Shota Fukui Blindside Flanker 
Shota Horie Hooker 
Sione Halasili Number 8 
Uwe Helu Lock 
Dylan Riley Fullback 
Haruto Kida Left Wing 
Jone Naikabula Right Wing 
Jumpei Ogura 
Kenta Fukuda Scrum Half 
Kotaro Matsushima Fullback 
Lua Makisi Fullback 
Naoto Saito 
Nik McCurran Inside Centre 
Rikiya Matsuda Fullback 
Ryohei Yamanaka Fly half 
Ryoto Nakamura Centre 
Semisi Masirewa Wing 
Seungsin Lee Fly Half 
Shogo Nakano 
Siosaia Fifita 
Tevita Tatafu Fullback 
Tomoki Osada Inside Centre 
Warner Dearns Fullback 
Yutaka Nagare Scrum half Although the Japan Rugby team haven’t been as successful as some of the powerhouses of rugby, several international stars have played for the Japan Rugby team, including Toshiyuki Hayashi, Yoshihito Yoshida and Ayumu Goromaru.
The current Japan Rugby squad remains strong and the team are currently looking to build on the successes of the past decade with the help of Shota Horie, Fumiaki Tanaka and captain Michael Leitch.
Japan National Rugby Union Team 
