Robin McBryde has defended the inexperienced Wales team that lost to Japan earlier today.

The caretaker coach rested Ryan Jones, James Hook and Paul James for the encounter, despite the Six Nations champions being without 15 players because of the British and Irish Lions tour.

McBryde told BBC Sport: "I made the decisions, I backed this group of young men. We've fallen short but hopefully the experience these young men will have gained will put them in good stead.

"They've been thrown together at the end of a tough season, different backgrounds the majority of them. I'm not going to hang my head in shame because it's important that we learn from this and move on.

"Obviously we're disappointed to lose. We paid the ultimate price for not being accurate and making the most of our opportunities. But you can't take anything away from Japan, they showed what a quality side they are and if you allow them to play with that tempo in their game, they're going to be a match for any team."

Japan secured a 23-8 victory to take their first ever win over Wales.