Damage limitation visitors' aim

The Japanese management have named 10 of the team that started Tuesday night's 8313 defeat by Ireland Under-25 at Ravenhill in the side to face Ireland in the Test match at Lansdowne Road tomorrow.

A further two of tomorrow's team, second row Karl Todd and number eight Takeomi Ito, came on as replacements in the Ravenhill match. Only three players, outhalf and record points scorer Keiji Hirose, centre Hideki Namba and right wing Michinori Oda took no part in the Belfast match. Japan will be captained by scrumhalf Katsuji Ohara.

Three players, prop Toshikazu Fumihara, flanker Koichi Kubo and centre Reo Kawai will make their Test debuts at Lansdowne Road.

Japan are therefore faced with a damage limitation exercise, the only imponderable the margin of Ireland's victory.

This is not demeaning to Japan merely a recognition of their rebuilding process, geared towards the 2003 World Cup, and a dismal run of results which have seen them lose their last 11 matches outside of the Asian Cup.

Tomorrow's visitors lost all three matches in the 1999 World Cup, a friendly against Argentina, all five matches in the Epson Cup (formerly the Pacific Rim Challenge), were beaten by France A and then this week went down to Ireland Under-25.

Where they were once bolstered by New Zealand and Australian players, a fact illustrated by the presence of captain Andrew McCormick, Greg Smith, Graeme Bachop, Jamie Joseph and Robert Gordon in Japan's 1999 World Cup squad, tomorrow's team contains only one New Zealander, second row Karl Todd.

It has been a disappointing 12 months for Japan, their slide from Epson Cup winners in 1999 to losing every match in this season's competition illustrating the magnitude of the task ahead.

Last May they lost 36-21 in Osaka to a US team that Ireland would subsequently beat 83-3 on their summer tour of the United States and while Warren Gatland's charges managed a 27-27 draw against Canada at Markham, the Canadians thrashed Japan at the same venue 62-18 in July.

The Japanese have fought a perennial battle to overcome their disadvantages in physique, hence their welcome for players from the southern hemisphere who meet the qualification laws, usually through residency. These players have provided the bulk and height to allow Japan to be more competitive in the scrum and lineout, fundamentals of the modern game.

As ball players, the Japanese are a delight to watch, with full back Daisuke Ohata and left wing Patiliai Tyuidaki wonderfully elusive in possession. It is ironic that some observers of the Japan's 1999-2000 domestic season say it provided some fine play. The national side is obviously at the embryo stage of their development and quite what a full Test match against Ireland will achieve will perhaps be only apparent after tomorrow's game.

JAPAN: D Ohata; M Oda, R Kawai, H Namba, P Tuidraki; K Hirose, K Ohara (capt); T Fumihara, N Yasuda, N Nakamura, K Todd, H Tanuma, H Sugawara, T Ito, K Kubo. Replacements: M Amino, M Toyoyama, T Akatsuka, N Watanabe, M Ito, S Fuchigami, H Yoshida.