Japan vs USA Preview & Prediction | 2026 Pacific Nations Cup | Semi-Final
by Trystan Pugh ·
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Eddie Jones' Japan play host to the USA in the second of the 2026 Pacific Nations Cup semi-finals.
Start date/time:
How to watch on TV & online: UK – Not available / USA – Paramount+
Japan team news
Squad: 1 Sojiro Otsuka, 2 Mamoru Harada, 3 Shuhei Takeuchi, 4 Michael Stolberg, 5 Harry Hockings, 6 Ben Gunter, 7 Kanji Shimokawa, 8 Jack Cornelsen, 9 Naoto Saito, 10 Ryunosuke Ito, 11 Kazuma Ueda, 12 Yuya Hirose, 13 Dylan Riley, 14 Inoke Burua, 15 Sam Greene
Replacements: 16 Kenji Sato, 17 Sena Kimura, 18 Takumi Inaba, 19 Esei Haangana, 20 Tiennan Costley, 21 Faulua Makisi, 22 Shinobu Fujiwara, and 23 Samisoni Tua
USA team news
Squad: 1 Payton Telea-Ilalio, 2 Shilo Klein, 3 Tonga Kofe, 4 Jason Damm, 5 Nathan Den Hoedt, 6 Marno Redelinghuys, 7 Paddy Ryan, 8 Makeen Alikhan, 9 Ruben de Haas, 10 Chris Hilsenbeck, 11 Noah Brown, 12 Dominic Besag, 13 Tavite Lopeti, 14 Mark O’Keeffe, 15 Mitch Wilson
Replacements: 16 Joe Taufete’e, 17 Fakaosifolau Pifeleti, 18 Alex Maughan, 19 Sam Golla, 20 Benjamin Bonasso, 21 Michael Baska, 22 Luke Carty, and 23 Julian Roberts
Japan vs USA prediction
Pacific Nations Cup hosts Japan warmed up for this semi-final with a resounding 57-12 victory over Canada in Niigata last weekend, and they will now be looking to dominate another North American nation on home turf.
Eddie Jones' technically talented side are at their best when they play a hight-tempo brand of rugby that forces their opponents on the back foot, and that was certainly the case against the Maple Leafs last week.
USA head coach Scott Lawrence has claimed that his side are "relatively on track" when it comes to their preparation for next year's World Cup, but he has admitted that there are plenty of areas they need to improve on.
This should be a good test of where the Stars and Stripes are in their development, but it seems likely they will fall short against a Japan side who have the edge in both the tactical and technical department.
Japan vs USA tip: Japan to win
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