Rugby-Japan to lean on experienced bench against All Blacks
(Reuters) - Japan head coach Jamie Joseph on Thursday named his starting 15 to face the All Blacks at Tokyo's National Stadium at the weekend and said he has selected an experienced bench to give his side some momentum later in the test.
Japan will be led by hooker Atsushi Sakate on Saturday, with prop Jiwon Gu returning for the first time since featuring against Portugal in November last year.
Former skipper Michael Leitch will earn his 75th cap in the back row, alongside Kazuki Himeno and Tevita Tatafu.
Takeshi Hino returns on the bench for the first time since featuring in the first of Japan's two wins over Uruguay in June, where he will be joined by replacement props Craig Millar and Shuhei Takeuchi.
"Coming into this weekend, the energy within the team has been really positive and we're excited for the match," Joseph said in a statement.
"This week we need to ensure we've got really experienced, highly competent players coming on during those tough parts of the match, so that's been a big driver with our selections on the bench."
Japan have failed to beat New Zealand in their six meetings, losing 69-31 when the teams last met in 2018.
After facing the All Blacks, Japan travel to Europe to face England and France in November.
Japan: 15-Ryohei Yamanaka, 14-Kotaro Matsushima, 13-Dylan Riley, 12-Ryoto Nakamura, 11-Siosaia Fifita, 10-Takuya Yamasawa, 9-Yutaka Nagare, 8-Tevita Tatafu, 7-Kazuki Himeno, 6-Michael Leitch, 5-Jack Cornelsen, 4-Warner Dearns, 3-Jiwon Gu, 2-Atsushi Sakate, 1-Keita Inagaki.
Replacements: 16-Takeshi Hino, 17-Craig Millar, 18-Shuhei Takeuchi, 19-Kanji Shimokawa, 20-Faulua Makisi, 21-Naoto Saito, 22-Seungsin Lee, 23-Gerhard Van Den Heever.
