What Japan Sakura 15 Have Been Saying Ahead of Women’s Rugby World Cup 2025 Opener Against Ireland

The Japan Sakura 15 are just a few days away from opening their account at the Women’s Rugby World Cup 2025 against Ireland in Northampton, and some of the players and coaching staff have been speaking about their expectations in the buildup to the 10th edition and biggest Women’s RWC yet.

Feature Photo Credit JRFU

The first women’s rugby game in Japan was played in 1984, and the national team competed at the first Women’s Rugby World Cup in Wales in 1991 and scored their first-ever Test rugby win against Sweden at the 1994 RWC in Scotland.

The squad selected for the Women’s Rugby World Cup 2025 includes 18 forwards and 14 backs, and as many as a dozen players in the squad will be making their Rugby World Cup debut in England.  There are also 19 players from the previous tournament in the squad for the tournament in England, and the players and management, for some time, have been saying they have their sights on a quarter-final in England, which means the Ireland match is a near must-win for the Japanese.

They are determined to give a better account of themselves from the RWC in NZ, in which they were beaten by Canada, the USA, and Italy in pool play. Head Coach Lesley McKenzie, who represented Canada at two Women’s Rugby World Cups herself, and one of only three female Head Coaches at the RWC 2025, has declared her team as “The best squad we’ve ever had.”

Minoru Yamamoto

Photo JRFU – Minoru Yamamoto

The Japanese player Minori Yamamoto has 38 caps in total and 8 Rugby World Cup caps under her belt and is heading to her third RWC appearance, having made her tournament debut in 2017. She has also played in England previously with Worcester Warriors and Sale Sharks.

She said, “I feel very proud to represent my country. When I played in my first World Cup, I was 20 years old. But now going into my third, I realise how big this moment is more than I had done previously. The UK has also been a great host country; they have treated us well, so I feel like this is going to be a great campaign.

I’m very excited. I remember at the last World Cup, I watched the matches after the pool matches at home. It was tough to watch those games at home because we didn’t make it into the quarter-finals. For this World Cup, we want to accomplish that, and I want to stay in England for as long as possible,” explained Yamamoto.

Minoru Yamamoto said of the fans, “I am hoping there’ll be a lot of Japanese fans in Northampton on Sunday. I hope the neutral fans also come and support Japan.”

Photo Credit – JRFU – Misaki Matsumura

Misaki Matsumura

Misaki Matsumura is the youngest Sakura 15 squad member at 20 years old, but has already made 13 appearances for the national team when not playing for Tokyo Sankyu Phoenix. She had a blazing start to her international career, scoring 5 tries in her first 3 matches.

Matsumura said, “It’s my first World Cup and it’s great to be able to play on the biggest stage. We have done lots of training so that we can win. I’m feeling nervous and I’m feeling the pressure, but at the same time, I’m also very excited as a rugby player. I’m very honoured to be able to play in this tournament.”

Ayano Sakurai

The 23-capped player is a veteran of two Rugby World Cups, making her debut for Japan in 2015, and plays with Yokogawa Musashino Artemi Stars. Both of her parents played rugby, and her mother is a former referee.

Ayano Sakurai said of what it means to represent her country at the Women’s RWC 2025, “I’m feeling very honoured to play here. I feel like this experience is going to influence my life after I return to Japan. I also hope there’s going to be a positive shift towards women’s rugby in Japan. I am excited for that to happen.”

She scored twice at RWC 2017 against Asian rivals Hong Kong China in what was Japan’s biggest ever Rugby World Cup win (44-5).

Photo Credit – JRFU -Ayano Sakurai

She said of her experience from RWC 2021 in New Zealand, in which Japan failed to win a game, “There are multiple roles that players must take within the squad. I feel we are getting better at recognising those roles, and players are on the same page, pursuing the same goal. I feel that’s what we have progressed most from the last World Cup.”

Japan Sakura 15s Strength and Conditioning coach Ollie Richardson

Ollie Richardson said of his time with the Japanese women, “I’ve spent five or six years in Japan over my career and it’s the first time working with the women’s team. They’re an incredible group of people, irrelevant as to whether they’re male or female. Diligent, hard-working, tough and just good humans.”

He said of the physical attributes the Sakura 15s players have, many of whom have come through rugby sevens, “Physically, the players have great engines. Technically and tactically, it’s a challenge to then change because it’s such a radically different game, to change how some of them move from that habitual sevens style of play. In general, aerobically, we’re a very, very fit team, and we’ll play and play and play until the very end.”

Of the opening match at RWC 2025 against Ireland the S&C Coach added, “I am really excited. An incredible amount of planning has gone into this campaign, and we’ve been on the road within Japan, just moving around venues. Now we’re here, and you can feel the energy, along with the Welcoming Ceremony, which was great. We just want to get on the field and make sure we’re aligned, fresh and ready to go and put in a performance.

It would be great if we could decide what the result is all the time, but all we can do is make sure our process is as good as possible. We’re just making sure our process and our rhythm, as well as our timing, is all in place and we know they’ll give us everything on Sunday.”

Women’s Rugby World Cup 2025 News

• “We Want To Make It To The Knockouts at RWC 2025” – Sakura 15s Head Coach Lesley McKenzie.
• Sakura Fifteen Rugby World Cup 2025 Squad Announced.
• Japan Sakura 15 Attend Women’s Rugby World Cup 2025 Welcome Ceremony in Northampton.
• Lexi Chambers – Race To Women’s Rugby World Cup England 2025.