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Coach: Shogo Mukai is a product of the Japanese domestic league. A talented full-back for company team Toshiba, he won 13 caps for the national team before he retired and moved into coaching.

Captain: A surprise selection in 2002, the workmanlike Takuro Miuchi did little to capture the nation's imagination, but he has since silenced his critics by his no-nonsense style of leadership. The hard-hitting skipper considers his defence the cornerstone of his game and is renowned for his fierce hits on opposition runners.

Player(s) to watch: Daisuke Ohata is something of a try-scoring wunderkind, with just 29 Tests to his name, he has managed to become Japan's leading try-scorer. The winger exploded onto the international scene in the 1999 Hong Kong Sevens tournament where he was named most valuable player and he later ran in an unbelievable eight tries against Chinese Taipei in the Rugby World Cup qualifiers in 2002.

Profile: Often relying hevily on expatriate and naturalised players, such as former skipper Andrew McCormack and back five forward Jamie Joseph, Japan nevertheless built on their experience and have steadily begun to improve its world standing.

Although they took the 1999 Epson Cup Pacific Rim title, they had a disappointing RWC'99 in Wales but since then they have adopted a program of development in time for the RWC 2003.

With investment continuing in their club program from a muber of business corporations, Japan's international prospects continue to improve.