2013 Wales rugby union tour of Japan

2013 Wales rugby union tour of Japan
Coach(es)	Robin McBryde
Tour captain(s)	Bradley Davies
Top test point scorer(s)	Dan Biggar (17)
Top test try scorer(s)	Harry Robinson (1) Tom Prydie (1)
Summary	P W D L
Total	02 01 00 01
Test match	02 01 00 01
Opponent	P W D L
Japan	2 1 0 1
Tour chronology
Previous tour	Australia 2012
Next tour	South Africa 2014

In June 2013, Wales toured Japan as part of the 2013 mid-year rugby test series.^[1] They faced Japan in a two-test series on 8 and 15 June, playing in the oldest dedicated rugby union stadium in Japan, Kintetsu Hanazono Rugby Stadium in Osaka, and the home stadium of Japanese rugby, Chichibunomiya Rugby Stadium in Tokyo. The test series was Wales' first test series against Japan since 2001, when Wales were victorious 2–0, and their first encounter since Wales' 72–18 victory in the 2007 Rugby World Cup Pool B match. Wales were also the first Tier 1 nation to play Japan in Japan since Italy in 2006.

At the start of the tour Japan were yet to earn a victory over the Welsh, with Wales winning all fixtures before this test series. However, the second match of the series saw Japan win their first test match against Wales. The test series ended in a 1–1 draw with Wales winning the first test and Japan winning the second.

Fixtures

Date	Venue	Home	Score	Away
8 June 2013	Kintetsu Hanazono Rugby Stadium, Osaka	Japan	18–22	Wales
15 June 2013	Chichibunomiya Rugby Stadium, Tokyo	Japan	23–8	Wales

Squads

Wales

In the absence of Warren Gatland and Rob Howley with their commitments on the 2013 British & Irish Lions tour to Australia, Robin McBryde took on the role of head coach.^[2] On 21 May, McBryde named a 27-man squad for the tour.^[3]

Aaron Shingler and Ashley Beck were ruled out with injury ahead of the tour (28 May) and was replaced with Josh Navidi and Adam Warren^[4] 15 players were also unavailable due to selection for the Lions tour to Australia.

• Head coach: Robin McBryde (interim)

Note: Flags indicate national union for the club/province as defined by World Rugby.

Player	Position	Date of birth (age)	Caps	Club/province
Scott Baldwin	Hooker	(1988-07-12)12 July 1988 (aged 24)	0	Ospreys
Emyr Phillips	Hooker	(1987-02-22)22 February 1987 (aged 26)	0	Scarlets
Scott Andrews	Prop	(1989-08-01)1 August 1989 (aged 23)	6	Cardiff Blues
Ryan Bevington	Prop	(1988-12-09)9 December 1988 (aged 24)	9	Ospreys
Rhys Gill	Prop	(1986-10-30)30 October 1986 (aged 26)	3	Saracens
Rhodri Jones	Prop	(1991-12-23)23 December 1991 (aged 21)	1	Scarlets
Craig Mitchell	Prop	(1986-05-03)3 May 1986 (aged 27)	14	Exeter Chiefs
Andrew Coombs	Lock	(1984-10-27)27 October 1984 (aged 28)	4	Newport Gwent Dragons
Bradley Davies (c)	Lock	(1987-01-09)9 January 1987 (aged 26)	38	Cardiff Blues
James King	Lock	(1990-07-24)24 July 1990 (aged 22)	0	Ospreys
Lou Reed	Lock	(1987-09-10)10 September 1987 (aged 25)	3	Cardiff Blues
Dan Baker	Flanker	(1992-07-05)5 July 1992 (aged 20)	0	Ospreys
Rob McCusker	Flanker	(1988-03-12)12 March 1988 (aged 25)	5	Scarlets
Josh Navidi	Flanker	(1990-12-30)30 December 1990 (aged 22)	0	Cardiff Blues
Andries Pretorius	Number 8	(1985-09-26)26 September 1985 (aged 27)	0	Cardiff Blues
Tavis Knoyle	Scrum-half	(1990-06-02)2 June 1990 (aged 23)	9	Scarlets
Lloyd Williams	Scrum-half	(1989-11-30)30 November 1989 (aged 23)	13	Cardiff Blues
Dan Biggar	Fly-half	(1989-10-16)16 October 1989 (aged 23)	16	Ospreys
Rhys Patchell	Fly-half	(1993-05-17)17 May 1993 (aged 20)	0	Cardiff Blues
Jonathan Spratt	Centre	(1986-04-28)28 April 1986 (aged 27)	2	Ospreys
Adam Warren	Centre	(1991-03-07)7 March 1991 (aged 22)	1	Scarlets
Owen Williams	Centre	(1991-10-02)2 October 1991 (aged 21)	0	Cardiff Blues
Dafydd Howells	Wing	(1995-03-22)22 March 1995 (aged 18)	0	Ospreys
Harry Robinson	Wing	(1993-04-16)16 April 1993 (aged 20)	1	Cardiff Blues
Liam Williams	Fullback	(1991-04-09)9 April 1991 (aged 22)	3	Scarlets
Tom Prydie	Fullback	(1992-02-23)23 February 1992 (aged 21)	4	Newport Gwent Dragons
Steven Shingler	Fullback	(1991-06-20)20 June 1991 (aged 21)	0	London Irish

Japan

The Japanese 36-man squad for 2013 IRB Pacific Nations Cup and Wales' tour of Japan.

• Head coach: Eddie Jones
• Caps and ages are to first Test (8 June 2013)

Note: Flags indicate national union for the club/province as defined by World Rugby.

Player	Position	Date of birth (age)	Caps	Club/province
Yusuke Aoki	Hooker	(1983-06-19)19 June 1983 (aged 29)	25	Suntory
Shota Horie	Hooker	(1986-01-21)21 January 1986 (aged 27)	19	Melbourne Rebels
Hiroki Yuhara	Hooker	(1984-01-21)21 January 1984 (aged 29)	11	Toshiba
Takuma Asahara	Prop	(1987-09-07)7 September 1987 (aged 25)	3	Toshiba
Kensuke Hatakeyama	Prop	(1985-08-02)2 August 1985 (aged 27)	38	Suntory
Takeshi Kizu	Prop	(1988-07-15)15 July 1988 (aged 24)	15	Kobelco Steelers
Masataka Mikami	Prop	(1988-06-04)4 June 1988 (aged 25)	2	Toshiba
Yusuke Nagae	Prop	(1985-07-19)19 July 1985 (aged 27)	9	Black Rams
Hiroshi Yamashita	Prop	(1986-01-01)1 January 1986 (aged 27)	18	Kobelco Steelers
Michael Broadhurst	Lock	(1986-10-30)30 October 1986 (aged 26)	5	Black Rams
Shoji Ito	Lock	(1980-12-02)2 December 1980 (aged 32)	10	Kobelco Steelers
Shinya Makabe	Lock	(1987-03-26)26 March 1987 (aged 26)	12	Suntory
Hitoshi Ono	Lock	(1978-05-06)6 May 1978 (aged 35)	66	Toshiba
Hendrik Tui	Lock	(1987-12-13)13 December 1987 (aged 25)	7	Panasonic
Justin Ives	Flanker	(1984-05-24)24 May 1984 (aged 29)	10	Panasonic
Michael Leitch	Flanker	(1988-10-07)7 October 1988 (aged 24)	28	Chiefs
Ryuta Yasui	Flanker	(1989-12-06)6 December 1989 (aged 23)	1	Kobelco Steelers
Takashi Kikutani	Number 8	(1980-02-24)24 February 1980 (aged 33)	56	Toyota Verblitz
Koliniasi Holani	Number 8	(1981-10-25)25 October 1981 (aged 31)	24	Panasonic
Atsushi Hiwasa	Scrum-half	(1987-05-22)22 May 1987 (aged 26)	20	Suntory
Fumiaki Tanaka	Scrum-half	(1985-01-03)3 January 1985 (aged 28)	33	Highlanders
Keisuke Uchida	Scrum-half	(1992-02-22)22 February 1992 (aged 21)	3	Tsukuba University
Ryoto Nakamura	Fly-half	(1991-01-28)28 January 1991 (aged 22)	1	Teikyo University
Kosei Ono	Fly-half	(1987-04-17)17 April 1987 (aged 26)	16	Suntory
Yuu Tamura	Fly-half	(1989-01-09)9 January 1989 (aged 24)	6	Green Rockets
Yuta Imamura	Centre	(1984-10-31)31 October 1984 (aged 28)	35	Kobe Steel
Male Sa'u	Centre	(1987-10-13)13 October 1987 (aged 25)	2	Yamaha Jubilo
Seiichi Shimonura	Centre	(1981-09-20)20 September 1981 (aged 31)	4	Panasonic
Harumichi Tatekawa	Centre	(1989-12-02)2 December 1989 (aged 23)	12	Kubota Spears
Craig Wing	Centre	(1979-12-26)26 December 1979 (aged 33)	1	Kobelco Steelers
Yoshikazu Fujita	Wing	(1993-10-08)8 October 1993 (aged 19)	3	Waseda University
Kenki Fukuoka	Wing	(1992-09-07)7 September 1992 (aged 20)	2	University of Tsukuba
Toshiaki Hirose (c)	Wing	(1981-10-17)17 October 1981 (aged 31)	11	Toshiba
Hirotoki Onozawa	Wing	(1978-03-29)29 March 1978 (aged 35)	78	Suntory Sungoliath
Ayumu Goromaru	Fullback	(1986-03-01)1 March 1986 (aged 27)	20	Yamaha Jubilo

Matches

First test

8 June 2013 14:00 JST (UTC+9)

Japan	18–22	Wales
Try: Broadhurst 38' m Fujita 69' c Con: Goromaru (1/2) 70' Pen: Goromaru (2/4) 15', 20'	Report[5]	Try: Robinson 63' c Con: Biggar (1/1) 64' Pen: Biggar (4/5) 23', 29', 46', 59' Patchell (1/1) 79'

Hanazono Rugby Stadium, Osaka Attendance: 20,152 Referee: Lourens van der Merwe (South Africa)

FB 15 Ayumu Goromaru RW 14 Yoshikazu Fujita OC 13 Male Sa'u IC 12 Craig Wing  70' LW 11 Kenki Fukuoka  79' FH 10 Harumichi Tatekawa SH 9 Fumiaki Tanaka  66' N8 8 Takashi Kikutani (c) OF 7 Michael Broadhurst BF 6 Hendrik Tui  72' RL 5 Shoji Ito LL 4 Hitoshi Ono  80' TP 3 Hiroshi Yamashita  64' HK 2 Shota Horie 30' to 32'  72' LP 1 Masataka Mikami  60' Replacements: HK 16 Takeshi Kizu  30'  32'  72' PR 17 Yusuke Nagae  60' PR 18 Kensuke Hatakeyama  64' LK 19 Toshizumi Kitagawa  80' FL 20 Ryuta Yasui  72' SH 21 Atsushi Hiwasa  66' FH 22 Yuu Tamura  70' WG 23 Hirotoki Onozawa  79' Coach: Eddie Jones

FB 15 Liam Williams RW 14 Harry Robinson OC 13 Owen Williams IC 12 Jonathan Spratt LW 11 Dafydd Howells FH 10 Dan Biggar  64' SH 9 Lloyd Williams  60' N8 8 Rob McCusker  19'  60' OF 7 James King BF 6 Andrew Coombs  51' RL 5 Lou Reed LL 4 Bradley Davies (c) TP 3 Scott Andrews HK 2 Emyr Phillips LP 1 Ryan Bevington  51' Replacements: HK 16 Scott Baldwin PR 17 Rhys Gill  51' PR 18 Rhodri Jones N8 19 Andries Pretorius  51' FL 20 Dan Baker  60' SH 21 Tavis Knoyle  60' FH 22 Rhys Patchell  64' FB 23 Tom Prydie Coach: Robin McBryde

Note:

• Dan Baker, Dafydd Howells, James King, Rhys Patchell, Emyr Phillips, Andries Pretorius, Owen Williams (all Wales) and Yusuke Nagae (Japan) made their international debuts.

Second test

15 June 2013 14:00 JST (UTC+9)

Japan	23–8	Wales
Try: Wing 49' c Broadhurst 60' c Con: Goromaru (2/2) 49', 61' Pen: Goromaru (3/3) 14', 34', 76'	Report[6]	Try: Prydie 44' m Pen: Biggar (1/2) 21'

Chichibunomiya Rugby Stadium, Tokyo Attendance: 21,062 Referee: Greg Garner (England)

FB 15 Ayumu Goromaru RW 14 Toshiaki Hirose (c) OC 13 Male Sa'u IC 12 Craig Wing  69' LW 11 Kenki Fukuoka  79' FH 10 Harumichi Tatekawa SH 9 Fumiaki Tanaka  67' N8 8 Takashi Kikutani OF 7 Michael Broadhurst BF 6 Hendrik Tui RL 5 Shoji Ito  45' LL 4 Hitoshi Ono  74' TP 3 Hiroshi Yamashita  45' HK 2 Shota Horie  79' LP 1 Masataka Mikami  69' Replacements: HK 16 Takeshi Kizu  79' PR 17 Yusuke Nagae  69' PR 18 Kensuke Hatakeyama  45' LK 19 Shinya Makabe  45' FL 20 Justin Ives  74' SH 21 Atsushi Hiwasa  67' FH 22 Yuu Tamura  69' WG 23 Yoshikazu Fujita  79' Coach: Eddie Jones

FB 15 Liam Williams  53' RW 14 Harry Robinson OC 13 Owen Williams  23' IC 12 Jonathan Spratt LW 11 Tom Prydie FH 10 Dan Biggar SH 9 Lloyd Williams  50' N8 8 Andries Pretorius OF 7 Josh Navidi  63' BF 6 James King RL 5 Lou Reed  50' LL 4 Bradley Davies (c) TP 3 Scott Andrews  57' HK 2 Emyr Phillips  78' LP 1 Rhys Gill  57' Replacements: HK 16 Scott Baldwin  78' PR 17 Rhodri Jones  57' PR 18 Craig Mitchell  57' LK 19 Andrew Coombs  50' FL 20 Dan Baker  63' SH 21 Tavis Knoyle  50' FH 22 Rhys Patchell  23' WG 23 Dafydd Howells  53' Coach: Robin McBryde

Note:

• This was Japan's first victory over Wales.

See also

• 2013 mid-year rugby test series
• History of rugby union matches between Japan and Wales

References