Pacific Nations Cup 2026 – Japan vs USA – ARN Guide

The stage is set at the historic Hanazono Rugby Stadium in Osaka as Japan hosts the USA Men’s Eagles in a highly anticipated Pacific Nations Cup semi-final showdown this Saturday, September 12, 2026. This high-stakes knockout clash renews a fierce international rivalry, with the Brave Blossoms entering as firm favorites on their home turf while riding a four-game winning streak against the Americans.

For head coach Eddie Jones, the match represents a crucial test for a youthful, transitioning Japanese squad, while USA head coach Scott Lawrence looks to capitalize on his team’s recent undefeated July momentum and stress-test a resilient, developing roster under maximum pressure.

 

FORM GUIDE

Current World Ranking: 12 (75.36 points)

STARTING LINEUP CHANGES

	IN	OUT
1	Sojiro Otsuka	Takato Okabe
4	Michael Stolberg	Jack Cornelsen
8	Jack Cornelsen	Faulua Makisi
11	Kazuma Ueda	Haruto Kida
15	Sam Greene	Takuro Matsunaga

	IN	OUT
1	Payton Telea-Ilalio	Jack Iscaro
2	Shilo Klein	Kapeli Pifeleti
4	Jason Damm	Nathan Den Hoedt
5	Nathan Den Hoedt	Brandon Harvey
6	Marno Redelinghuys	Cory Daniel
8	Makeen Alikhan	Jason Damm
11	Noah Brown	Perry Mayo
13	Taviete Lopeti	Julian Roberts

 

* Changes are from the most recent test matches per team: (a) Japan vs Canada and (b) USA vs Spain.

 

NOTABLE ABSENTEES

– Warner Dearns (LO), Kazuki Himeno (No. 8), Michael Leitch (FL), Tyler Paul (FL), Taira Main (CE), Yoshitaki Yazaki (WI)

– David Ainu’u (LH), Kapeli Pifeleti (HK), Charlie Abel (TH), AJ MacGinty (FH), Rufus McLean (WI), Conner Mooneyham (WI)

 

NOTES

• Historically, the longest winning streak Japan has ever recorded against the USA is 5 consecutive victories between 2008 and 2014. Japan can match it this weekend as the Brave Blossoms are currently riding a 4-game winning streak against the Eagles dating back to Rugby World Cup 2015.
• The USA Eagles enter full of confidence. The USA is coming off a 25-24 victory over Argentina XV in Fort Lauderdale and an undefeated World Rugby Nations Cup campaign in July.
• After missing the uncapped match against the Argentina XV, Chris Hilsenbeck is back for the USA after personal leave while Mitch Wilson comes back from injury.
• Sam Golla, Joe Taufete’e and ⁠Benjamin Bonasso return to provide a boost from the replacements bench.
• Scott Lawrence is without Campbell Robb, Ma’ake Muti, and Brandon Harvey. The trio suffered training injuries and return to the USA early.
• Eddie Jones has decided against debutants for this match. Notwithstanding, Jones has Shinobu Fujiwara and Sena Kimura in the matchday 23 as replacements. Both will earn their first caps of the year for Japan.
• Scrum-half Naoto Saito retains the captaincy after successfully guiding the Brave Blossoms through their dominant victory over Canada. Jason Damm will captain the USA Eagles.
• Jones has named a relatively inexperienced side largely due to the absence of regular talisman and lock Warner Dearns, who is missing from the squad.
• Jack Cornelsen (24 caps) and Dylan Riley (22 caps) are the most experienced Japanese players. Both are products of Australian rugby.
• There are no uncapped USA players in the 23 to face Japan.
• Ruben de Haas (47 caps) and Joe Taufete’e (36 caps) are the most capped of the 23 Eagles. Taufete’e has not represented the USA since August 2023 (vs Romania).

 

QUOTES

Scott Lawrence (Head Coach)

“Our focus is on growing as a collective and building a playing base that can consistently deliver the actions and behaviors we’ve committed to… This is an opportunity to stress test our standards under pressure and continue growing as a team.”

Eddie Jones (Head Coach)

“It’s our best 23. It’s important that players get as much experience as they can in test match rugby and every match in test match rugby is different. It’s always about the best 23 first and then obviously we’re trying to build a team for the World Cup.”

 

PREDICTION

Under head coach Eddie Jones, Japan relies on their signature high-tempo, fast-transition playing style that wears opponents down through relentless phase-play and rapid ball movement. Conversely, the USA under Scott Lawrence employs a much more physical, direct approach focused on dominating the set-piece, winning collision battles, and utilizing tactical kicking to choke space. While the Eagles possess the size to challenge the breakdown, Japan enters as favorites due to their superior cohesion, home-ground advantage at Hanazono, and an explosive tactical speed that should ultimately overstretch and exploit the American defensive line in the latter stages of the match.

 

TEAMS

USA
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
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

 

MATCH INFO

Date: Saturday, September 12, 2026
Venue: Hanazono Rugby Stadium, Osaka (JP)
Kickoff: 19:05 local (6:05 Eastern)
Weather Forecast: Cloudy and Humid 81°F (27°C), wind NE 5-7mph (8-11km/h)
Broadcasts: Paramount+ (USA), TSN+ (Canada), RugbyPass TV

 

OFFICIALS

Referee: Jordan Way (Australia)
Assistants: Damon Murphy (Australia) & Morgan White (Hong Kong)
TMO: Graham Cooper (Australia)

 

HISTORY

HEAD-TO-HEAD (24):  USA 13, Japan 10, Draw 1