WXV 2023 gets underway with Japan Sakura Fifteen playing Italy in the WXV 2 in Stellenbosch, South Africa on Friday 13th October 2023 and the Japanese will be hoping to repeat the result last month when they beat Italy.
Kat Roche (USA) will take care of the inaugural WXV fixture and it will be the first time she referees Japan in a test match, as the Sakura ranked 10th, look to again upset the Europeans who are ranked 8th by World Rugby.
In fact, an opening-round win for the Asian side will not only give them a huge confidence boost for the tournament but also could see them climb to a record-high 7th, and Italy (depending on the results) could drop out of the top ten for the first time.
These permutations won’t be the focus of either side on Friday, but a winning result will be the target in the new-look women’s competition and on the first occasion either side has played an international test in the host nation South Africa.
Italy lost to Japan in September 2023 as part of the Rugby WXV preparations
The Italiens reached WXV via a 23-0 playoff victory against Spain in Piacenza in July 2023, while Japan comfortably won the Asia Rugby Championship in Kazakhstan, beating the hosts 72-0 in the final, and the Sakura Fifteen are undefeated this calendar year.
Japan head coach Lesley McKenzie has made five changes to the WXV 2023 team that defeated Italy re-instating their most-capped player, Seino Saito for Friday’s match. The pack remains largely unchanged, and they are a key source of tries for this team.
Mckenzie said, “We’ve been in the WXV mindset since we left Japan. We had a really good warm-up game in Italy, with a really strong contest and our first-ever test win against them. We knew this second game against Italy would be the first game of WXV, so we’re already well and truly in the mindset, in the process and on the journey.
We’ve named a slightly different starting line-up this week and expect Italy to do the same. They beat us last year at the World Cup and with the challenge that we’ve issued in Parma, we’re anticipating a really tough game from them.”
A notable stat for the Japanese is that they are a side that scores tries, having done so in every match they have played going back to 2019. Defensively, they tend to leak points in the second half, as they have done against Fiji and Italy in matches in 2023.
Italy head coach Giovanni Raineri has made a total of seven changes to the team that lost to Japan, with five personnel and two positional changes and they have fielded an experienced side which boasts 492 caps’ worth of experience in the starting XV, and 170 on the bench!
Match Permutations – Japan vs Italy – WXV 2 2023
- Italy can gain as much as 1.27 rating points by beating Japan.
- Japan could rise to ninth if they and Scotland win their opening WXV 2 fixtures against Italy and South Africa, and the Asian side will become the higher-ranked of the two nations and could even reach a record-high seventh, depending on margin and the results of USA and Scotland matches.
- Italy could drop out of the top 10 for the first time since the rankings were introduced in February 2016 if they lose by more than 15 points to Japan.
Japan Squad – Japan vs Italy – WXV 2 2023 Friday 13th October
1. Sachiko Kato
2. Asuka Kuge
3. Yuka Sadaka
4. Masami Kawamura
5. Otoka Yoshimura
6. Seina Saito
7. Iroha Nagata (captain)
8. Ayano Nagai
9. Megumi Abe
10. Ayasa Otsuka
11. Komachi Imakugi
12. Kanako Kobayashi
13. Mana Furuta
14. Misaki Matsumura
15. Sora Nishimura
16. Kotomi Taniguchi
17. Hinata Komaki
18. Nijiho Nagata
19. Jennifer Nduka
20. Sakurako Korai
21. Kotono Yasuo
22. Mei Yoshimoto
23. Minori Yamamoto
Italy Squad – Japan vs Italy – WXV 2 2023 Friday 13th October
1. Silvia Turani
2. Vittoria Vecchini
3. Sara Seye
4. Valeria Fedrighi
5. Giordana Duca
6. Alessandra Frangipani
7. Alissa Ranuccini
8. Giulia Cavina
9. Sofia Stefan (captain)
10. Veronica Madia
11. Alyssa D’Inca
12. Beatrice Rigoni
13. Michela Sillari
14. Aura Muzzo
15. Francesca Granzotto
16. Laura Gurioli
17. Gaia Maris
18. Lucia Gai
19. Alessia Pilani
20. Sara Tounesi
21. Emma Stevanin
22. Beatrice Capomaggi
23. Gaia Buso
WXV 2023 News
- WXV 2 2023 Team Guide – Can Japan Win in South Africa?
- WXV 2023 Complete Guide.
- Sakura Fifteen Pre-WXV 2 2023 Match Schedule & Results.
- WXV 3 Team Guide – Kazakhstan Nomads Challenging For The Title In Dubai?
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