Is South Africa vs Japan on TV? Kick-off time, channel and how to watch Springboks clash

The Springboks return to action as the world champions kick off an extended European tour with a meeting with Japan at Wembley.

South Africa defended their Rugby Championship crown in London last month and are back in the city for the first of five fixtures this November.

10 years on from masterminding a shock success over the Springboks in Brighton during the 2015 Rugby World Cup, Eddie Jones will seek something similar with his Japan side showing signs of growth in recent weeks.

The hosts pushed Australia close in Tokyo last weekend and will hope to match the world champions for as long as they can at the home of English football.

Here’s everything you need to know.

When is South Africa vs Japan?

South Africa vs Japan is due to kick off at 4.10pm GMT on Saturday 1 November at Wembley Stadium in London.

How can I watch it?

Viewers in the United Kingdom can watch the match live on Premier Sports 2, with coverage on the channel from 4pm GMT. A live stream will be available via the Premier Sports website.

Team news

The Springboks hand a debut to young tighthead Zachary Porthen, considered a prop of real promise after captaining South Africa at U20 level. With Damian Willemse ruled out, Cheslin Kolbe is relocated to full-back with Ethan Hooker and Kurt-Lee Arendse on the wings.

The bench, as ever, is of interest – centre Andre Esterhuizen is named ostensibly as back-row cover, with Kwagga Smith also providing versatility among the replacements.

Japan make two changes to the side that pushed Australia close in Tokyo last weekend, with Eddie Jones hoping to continue to build continuity and confidence within his squad. Charlie Lawrence replaces Shogo Nakano at inside centre, partnering the experienced and excellent Dylan Riley, while Kenji Sato takes over from Hayate Era at hooker.

Line-ups

South Africa XV: 1 Ox Nche, 2 Malcolm Marx, 3 Zachary Porthen; 4 RG Snyman, 5 Lood de Jager; 6 Siya Kolisi (capt.), 7 Franco Mostert, 8 Jasper Wiese; 9 Cobus Reinach, 10 Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu; 11 Kurt-Lee Arendse, 12 Damian de Allende, 13 Jesse Kriel, 14 Ethan Hooker; 15 Cheslin Kolbe.

Replacements: 16 Johan Grobbelaar, 17 Gerhard Steenekamp, 18 Wilco Louw, 19 Ruan Nortje, 20 Andre Esterhuizen, 21 Kwagga Smith; 22 Grant Williams, 23 Manie Libbok.

Japan XV: 1 Kenta Kobayashi, 2 Kenji Sato, 3 Shuhei Takeuchi; 4 Jack Cornelsen, 5 Warner Dearns; 6 Ben Gunter, 7 Kanji Shimokawa, 8 Michael Leitch (capt.); 9 Shinobu Fujiwara, 10 Seung Sin Lee; 11 Tomoki Osada, 12 Charlie Lawrence, 13 Dylan Riley, 14 Kippei Ishida; 15 Yoshitaka Yazaki.

Replacements: 16 Shodai Hirao, 17 Ryosuke Iwaihara, 18 Keijiro Tamefusa, 19 Tyler Paul, 20 Faulua Makisi; 21 Kenta Fukuda, 22 Sam Greene, 23 Tieenan Costley.