The 2024 Autumn Internationals are upon us and kicking off the first match will be Japan locking horns with New Zealand at the Nissan Stadium in Yokohama on Saturday morning.
Both these sides enter this match following heartbreaks last month, with Japan losing the Pacific Nations Cup final to Fiji, while New Zealand were forced to relinquish the Rugby Championship title.
Match preview
© Imago
The last encounter between these teams took place in Tokyo in 2022, where Japan put up a strong fight, pushing the All Blacks to the limit before the visitors secured a hard-fought 38-31 win.
Since then, the Brave Blossoms have seen Jamie Joseph replaced by Eddie Jones, whose second stint with the team began with three consecutive defeats in the mid-year internationals against Italy, Georgia and England.
However, Jones's side demonstrated significant improvement in their recent Pacific Nations Cup campaign, where the former Wallabies coach integrated several younger and less experienced players who performed very well, although they ultimately fell to Fiji in the final.
The Japan head coach has maintained his approach of selecting youthful players for this weekend's match, and while they may not be up against New Zealand's strongest lineup, they will still be anticipating a massive task ahead.
In the lead-up to this match, Jones said that his team will take the challenge to the fancied All Blacks with their fast-paced play, as they look to claim their first-ever victory over the Southern Hemisphere heavyweights.
© Imago
Meanwhile, New Zealand will be determined to make a positive start to their tour of the Northern Hemisphere after their four-year reign as winners of the Rugby Championship was ended by South Africa last month.
During that competition, most would agree that the All Blacks were a long way from their best, as they only managed three wins in their six matches, which included a shock defeat to Argentina in Wellington.
In the end, the team managed to secure second place in the competition, but there were also plenty of questions raised about the suitability of Scott Robertson for the head coach role.
Thus, this feels like a very important month for the former Crusaders boss, and he has chosen to rest most of his regular starters for this match, giving several younger players the opportunity to make an impression ahead of the European leg of their tour.
With humid conditions expected in Yokohama on Saturday, the replacement bench could have a significant impact on the outcome of this match for the All Blacks, particularly in the second half when the starters begin to slow down, which was something we saw more than once from the team last month.
Japan form (all competitions):
- L
- L
- W
- W
- W
- L
New Zealand form (all competitions):
- L
- W
- L
- L
- W
- W
Team News
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Jones has announced his side to face New Zealand this weekend and one of the notable inclusions is loose forward Kazuki Himeno, who is set to make his return to the starting lineup for the first time since the World Cup last year.
Harumichi Tatekawa will captain the side from flyhalf with Shinobu Fujiwara joining him in the halves pairing, while there are two uncapped players on the bench in loosehead prop Opeti Helu and outside back Takuri Matsunga.
For New Zealand, Billy Proctor secures his first start for the national team following an outstanding 2024 Super Rugby season with the Hurricanes, and he will join Anton Lienert-Brown in midfield.
Additionally, scrumhalf Cam Roigard returns from injury to make his first appearance in the famous black jersey this year, while prop Pasililo Tosi earns his first start following three appearances as a substitute last month.
Japan starting lineup: 15 Yoshitaka Yazaki, 14 Jone Naikabula, 13 Dylan Riley, 12 Nicholas McCurran, 11 Malo Tuitama, 10 Harumichi Tatekawa (captain), 9 Shinobu Fujiwara, 8 Faulua Makisi, 7 Kazuki Himeno, 6 Amato Fakatava, 5 Warner Deans, 4 Sanaila Waqa, 3 Shuhei Takeuchi, 2 Atsushi Sakate, 1 Takato Okabe
Replacements: 16 Mamoru Harada, 17 Takayoshi Mohara, 18 Opeti Helu, 19 Epineri Uluiviti, 20 Kanji Shimokawa, 21 Taiki Koyama, 22 Tomoki Osada, 23 Takuro Matsunaga
New Zealand starting lineup: 15 Stephen Perofeta, 14 Sevu Reece, 13 Billy Proctor, 12 Anton Lienert-Brown, 11 Mark Tele'a, 10 Damian McKenzie, 9 Cam Roigard, 8 Wallace Sititi, 7 Sam Cane, 6 Samipeni Finau, 5 Patrick Tuipulotu (captain), 4 Sam Darry, 3 Pasilio Tosi, 2 Asafo Aumua, 1 Tamaiti Williams
Replacements: 16 George Bell, 17 Ofa Tu'ungafasi, 18 Fletcher Newell, 19 Josh Lord, 20 Peter Lakai, 21 Thomas Perenara, 22 David Havili, 23 Ruben Love
We say: Japan 17-42 New Zealand
New Zealand are coming into the Autumn internationals off the back of a very disappointing Rugby Championship and will be determined to start strongly before heading to Europe to face England, Ireland and France.
Japan have made significant improvement over the last year and we are expecting them to put up a good challenge here, but we feel that the All Blacks will be too strong for the Brave Blossoms.
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