3th place play-off: Japan v Spain – Friday, 20:30 local (GMT+4)
This will be the first Junior World Championship meeting between Japan and Spain as they prepare to face off at AIA Arena in Kutaisi. Japan have lost their previous 20 meetings with teams from Europe in the competition, while Spain will face a team from Asia for the first time.
Los Leones U20 recorded their biggest win of the tournament so far when dispatching Uruguay 57-6 on Sunday but coach Ricardo Martinena has tweaked his starting XV. Number eight Marçal Carreras returns to captain the side, while Mateo Antem comes in at fly-half to mean a switch to full-back for Malakai Hafoka.
Japan have made to changes in their pack with Sota Miura and Kotaro Kumagae earning starts while Keigo Sato comes in at scrum-half.
Japan won their last game by 50 points (71-21 v USA), their biggest win in Junior World Championship history, to end a run of 19 straight defeats. They will attempt to win consecutive games in the tournament for the first time, but face a confident Spain outfit on the back of their 57-6 victory against Uruguay.
That marked the most points Spain have scored and the fewest points conceded in a game at the Junior World Championship and they too have a first in sight, winning two games in a single tournament for the first time.
