Month: June 2025

 (Written by Azul: June 22, 2025)

On June 1, 2025, the Japan Rugby League One playoff final for the 2024-2025 season was held at the National Stadium in Shibuya, Tokyo.

This was the 4th season for League One, and the previous winners were as follows.

2022: SAITAMA Panasonic Wild Knights

2022-2023: KUBOTA Spears

2023-2024: TOSHIBA Brave Lupas

In the third-place match that preceded the final, KOBELCO Steelers (5th in the regular season) beat Panasonic Wild Knights (2nd in the regular season) by a score of 22-17.

And the combination for this final match is

TOSHIBA Brave Lupas (regular season 1st place) vs KUBOTA Spears (regular season 3rd place) .

The kickoff time was 15:05, the weather was cloudy, and the temperature was 24 degrees Celsius, making the conditions a bit humid. The final was played in front of 51,009 spectators, 80% of the National Stadium.

Here are the two teams that made it to the final.

First, an update on TOSHIBA Brave Lupas, last season’s champion and this season’s regular season’s 1st place finisher in League One.

Brave Lupas’ regular season record this season was 15 wins, 2 losses, and 1 draw. Their losses were 2 to the SHIZUOKA Blue Revs and 1 draw against the Panasonic Wild Knights. Looking at the losses, in the 2nd match against Blue Revs on April 12, the team lost by a double score of 26-56. In this match, they had already lost one game to Blue Revs, so even though it was a revenge chance for Brave Lupas, they were outplayed by Blue Revs. They were pushed at set pieces and were unable to stop the strong individual skills and breakthroughs of the Revs’ individual players. I personally was hoping for a 3rd matchup between the Blue Revs and Brave Lupas, but alas, the Revs lost in the 1st round of the playoffs, so we never got to see them face off in person. In this season’s League One, the teams are so close that the outcome would not be known until they actually played each other. It has been an exciting season for fans watching the games. Then, we were looking forward to seeing what would happen in this day’s match.

This day’s starting lineup was as follows.

TOSHIBA Brave Lupas
No.	Name	height	weight	age
1	Sena KIMURA	175cm	105kg	24
2	Mamoru　HARADA	175cm	101kg	25	Japan 10caps
3	Taufa LATU	183cm	120kg	26
4	Jacob　PIERCE	201cm	106kg	27
5	Warner　DEARNS	202cm	124kg	23	Japan 20caps
6	Shannon FRIZELL	195cm	114kg	30	New Zealand 33caps
7	Takeshi SASAKI	180cm	101kg	26
8	Michael LEITCH	189cm	113kg	35	Japan 87caps
9	Yuhei Sugiyama	169cm	76kg	27
10	Richie MO’UNGA	176cm	83kg	30	New Zealand  56caps
11	Yuto MORI	174cm	82kg	24
12	Taichi MANO	172cm	88kg	28
13	Rob THOMPSON	184cm	103kg	33
14	Michael COLINS	187cm	94kg	31
15	Takuro MATSUNAGA	172cm	82kg	26	Japan 4caps

Brave Lupas had almost the best lineup. Unfortunately, Japan’s national WTB, NAIKABULA, was unable to play in this final due to injury.

＊＊　Player to watch　＊＊

Richie MO’UNGA is 175 cm, 80 kg, 30 years old. 56 caps for New Zealand. I have already introduced MOUNGA some times in this section, but he is a key player in Brave Lupas, and it is hard to imagine a victory for Spears without stopping him.

After winning 3 consecutive championships with the SUPER RUGBY Crusaders, he moved to Japan’s League One Brave Lupas and immediately became the MVP of last season’s championship, and if they win again this season, he will win his 5th consecutive championship. He is a player who can instantly spot an opening in the opposing team and move his own team freely, and even if he cannot find an opening, he can move on his own to make a precise breakthrough. In League One, MOUNGA has yet to reach its full potential.

The next team to advance to the finals was KUBOTA Spears.

In League One this regular season, they finished in 3rd place with 14 wins, 2 losses, and 2 draws. Their losing records were as follows

12/28: Wild Knights 26 – Spears 24

3/1: Brave Lupas 31 – Spears 27

All of the losses were close, but the Spears team is slowly improving towards the end of the season. The Spears have a consistent set play from their front row, which has kept them from falling too far behind in the standings.

When they play against teams with strong FWs, the margin will be very close, but when they dominate the FW game, we have seen many victories by large margins this season. It will be interesting to see if they can become the League One champions for the 2nd time on this day, following their victory the year before last.

The starting lineup for this day’s match was as follows.

KUBOTA SPEARS
No.	Name	height	weight	age
1	Yota KAMIMORI	172cm	105kg	25
2	Malcolm MARX	189cm	117kg	30	South Africa 74caps
3	Opeti HELU	190cm	127kg	26	Japan 1cap
4	Ruan　BOTHA	205cm	120kg	32
5	David BULBRING	199cm	113kg	35
6	Tyler PAUL	195cm	111kg	29
7	Takeo SUENAGA	178cm	98kg	30
8	Faulua MAKISI	182cm	117kg	28	Japan　7caps
9	Shinobu FUJIWARA	171cm	76kg	25	Japan　6caps
10	Bernard　FOLEY	182cm	89kg	35	Australia 75caps
11	Koga NAZUKA	173cm	82kg	25	Japan　3caps
12	Harumichi TATEKAWA	180cm	93kg	35	Japan　62caps
13	Rikus PRETORIUS	193cm	104kg	24
14	Halatoa VAILEA	187cm	105kg	25
15	Atsushi OSHIKAWA	175cm	87kg	25

Spears has also assembled almost their best lineup for this match. One of the concerns was the accumulated fatigue from playing 5 rounds of matches in a row since the Regular Season, but how the team fights in their signature FW game will be the highlight of this match.

＊＊　Player to watch 　＊＊

Malcolm MARX is 30 years old, 189 cm, 117 kg. He has 72 caps for the South African national team. Position = Hooker. World No. 1 hooker. This player has also been featured in this section some times, but since he is the central player in Spears, it would be unthinkable to exclude him from the final to determine the winner. The strongest scrums, mauls, and lineouts in League One are only as good as MARX. With the best big men in League One at the core of their team, the Spears would be able to show their strength on the defensive side of the ball. Their iron-clad defense would disrupt the rhythm of their opponents’ attacks, and when their opponents are exhausted, they would put their powerful frontline forward to score points by force. This is the rugby of Spears. Would it be Brave Lupas’ rugby or Spears’ rugby that wins the final?

Let’s start the first half.

The game started with a kick by Spears.

The spiritedness of each Speras player was remarkable. In a densely packed battle, they turned up their opponents, turned over, and made progress toward the enemy’s try line.

8 minutes into the first half:

The race to win the ball in set pieces and dense battles was almost a 50-50 battle.

However, Brave Lupas continued to attack and gradually pushed deeper and deeper into enemy territory.

Brave Lupas came close to the try line, and after a left-right move, SO MOUNGA broke the line with his individual skill and scored a try in the left corner of the enemy’s in-goal, dragging a couple of opposing defenders with him.

The conversion goal after the try was unsuccessful, but Brave Lupas succeeded in scoring the first points of the game. The score was 5-0.

Both teams played well in the final. The teams pushed each other individually and when they got into a development game, they were turned over and the play did not break down.

At this point, the game had already turned into a war of attrition. Both teams played with such intensity that it looked as if they might not last until the end of the game.

17 minutes into the first half:

The next scoring opportunity came for Speras. Brave Lupas’ CTB MANO committed a high tackle on Speras’ WTB VAILEA as the Spears moved into their own territory. Spears chose to go for the PG because they were in front of the goal post and about 30 meters away. Spears’ SO FOLEY scored to make the score 5-3.

22 minutes into the first half:

Brave Lupas had another scoring opportunity, this time in a tight battle as Brave Lupas entered enemy territory, and Spears committed a foul.

Brave Lupas chose to go for the PG and SO MOUNGA scored to make the score 8-3.

32 minutes into the first half:

At this time, Brave Lupas was spreading the ball around so much that the big Spears players were getting pushed around and having a hard time getting into the enemy territory.

The Spears broke the deadlock with a scrum deep in their own territory.

The Spears pushed in at this scrum and earned a collapsing foul from their opponents. From here, Spears pushed into enemy territory, deployed the ball, and attacked deep into enemy territory, where Brave Lupas was fouled in a tight battle. With the goalposts in front of them, Speras opted for the PG. SO FOLEY scored it to make the score 8-6.

The first half ended with this score. In the first half, Brave Lupas spent a lot of time on the attack, and the Spears were often forced to defend. Spears, who finished 3rd in the league, had been playing in the playoffs since the quarterfinals, so there were concerns about fatigue due to the consecutive games. However, with a 2-points difference on the score, Spears had plenty of room for an upset victory. The timing of the player changes in the second half could make or break this match.

So let’s get the second half underway.

From the kickoff to start the second half, Brave Lupas advanced forward as they entered enemy territory, advancing their position to near the 22-meter line. Here, Speras committed an infringement near the front of the goal post. This was a great PG opportunity, but Brave Lupas chose to go for a penalty kick instead of a PG, and from a lineout on their own ball, they made the strong choice to go for the try.

However, Spears played tenacious defense and did not allow them to score. Conversely, from this point on, the Spears pushed deep into enemy territory.

7 minutes into the second half:

Here, Brave Lupas deployed from deep in their own territory to make up ground.

Brave Lupas’ SO MOUNGA broke the line despite being tangled up with the opposing defense, and quickly attacked deep into the enemy territory.

He passed to Brave Lupas’ WTB MORI, who ran alongside him, and MORI scored a try in the middle of the enemy in-goal on the left side.

Brave Lupas scored the first points of the second half to put the game in their favor. The conversion goal after the try was also successful, making the score 15-6.

16 minutes into the second half:

Brave Lupas continued to hold the ball and attack in enemy territory. Brave Lupas was able to break down the Spears’ defense, which had been rock solid in league play, allowing few line breaks to the other team. Brave Lupas broke down the Spears’ defense several times, and the crowd at the National Stadium cheered loudly each time.

Brave Lupas made full use of off-load passes, and their BK players made a big move from the left side to the right side, and finally SO MOUNGA scored a try right in the middle of the enemy’s in-goal.

However, this try was cancelled out by video judgment due to a throw forward infringement in the middle of the field.

21 minutes into the second half:

Brave Lupas took control of the match in the second half and continued to attack almost exclusively in enemy territory. However, the gap between the teams remained tight as Speras did not break down defensively. However, Brave Lupas had a couple of PG chances in this period. In the second half, Brave Lupas had been trying to score a try instead of going for the PG when they had PG chances, but finally, the Speras defense gave in and they went for the PG.

SO MOUNGA of Brave Lupas scored it, and the score was 18-6.

32 minutes into the second half:

With 30 minutes to go in the second half, it was finally time for Speras to attack.

The Speras team was able to get into the enemy territory, and from a lineout set play, they were able to push forward in a maul and score a try with their powerful FW.

However, Brave Lupas’ defense held strong, and the two teams battled hard around the try line, with Brave Lupas pushing the ball back and kicking it out to regain possession just short of the try line.

However, the Spears again made a series of forward advances to the try line. After 3 or 4 more of these attacks, the Spears challenged the FWs to a tight battle in front of the in-goal on the left flank.

From there, the Spears made a turnaround, and after a big move to the right, WTB NEZUKA went for a try, which was blocked by the opposing defense, but the Spears were able to expand again, and CTB TATEKAWA scored a try at the right side of the goal post.

The conversion goal after the try was also successful, and the score was 18-13.

With 8 minutes remaining, Speras had enough time to make a comeback, but the substitutes were unable to apply pressure at the set piece, and Brave Lupas pushed them back at the scrum. Brave Lupas, the match-winners, used their time skillfully here, and the game came to an end. In the end, SO MOUNGA kicked the ball out and the game was over.

With this result, Brave Lupas won the League One playoff final and became the champion for the second year in a row.

Spears kept Brave Lupas at bay until the end of the match, entertaining the crowd but falling short of their first championship in two years.

The final, which closed out the season, was just as heated as last season, with an unpredictable outcome until the very end. We look forward to another great match next season as the league as a whole raises its level.

＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊

Stop the war.

Peace to Ukraine

＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊

 (Written by Azul: June 8, 2025)

(TOSHIBA Brave Lupas head coach Todd Blackadder is aiming for another League One championship.)

The League One playoffs began on May 17 with the semifinals.

The results of the semifinals held the previous week were as follows

Quarterfinals Game 1 (5/17 at Hanazono Rugby Stadium, Higashiosaka):

SHIZUOKA Blue Revs vs KOBELCO Steelers

Steelers won 20-35.

Quarterfinal Match 2 (5/18 at Chichibunomiya Rugby Ground, Tokyo):

KUBOTA Spears vs SUNTORY Sungoliath

Spears won 20-15.

As a result, the pairings for the semifinals were decided as follows.

Semifinal Game 1 (5/24 at Chichibunomiya Rugby Ground, Tokyo):

TOSHIBA Brave Lupas vs KOBELCO Steelers

Semifinal Match 2 (5/25 at Chichibunomiya Rugby Ground, Tokyo):

Panasonic Wild Knights vs KUBOTA Spears

I went to watch the first semifinal match, which started at 14:05 on Saturday, May 24.

The weather was cloudy and there was a chance of rain, so I arrived at the stadium one hour before the game started. However, I went to the game in the standing room behind the goal. The number of spectators on that day was 16,253, which was quite a large crowd.

Let me introduce the two teams playing on that day.

First, let me introduce the KOBELCO Steelers.

This season in League One, they finished in 5th place with a record of 10 wins and 8 losses, making the playoffs for the first time since becoming a League One team.

During the season, the team’s form has fluctuated, with big wins followed by big losses, much to the worry of their supporters. With a strong group of players and a number of world-class players, the Steelers are a strong contender for the championship if they play to their full potential.

In the quarterfinals, the Steelers beat the upper-ranked SHIZUOKA Blue Revs in a close match, creating an upset. We expect the Steelers to play well in the semifinals as well.

This day’s starting lineup was as follows

KOBELCO Steelers
No.	Name	height	weight	age
1	Shigure TAKAO	178cm	110kg	28
2	Takuya KITADE	180cm	100kg	32
3	Hiroshi YAMASHITA	183cm	120kg	39	Japan 51caps
4	Gerard COWLEI-TUIOTI	197cm	115kg	32
5	Brodie RETALLICK	204cm	120kg	33	New Zealand 109caps
6	Waisake RARATUBUA	193cm	118kg	27
7	Willie POTGIETTER	190cm	105kg	23
8	Amanaki SAUMAKI	189m	110kg	28	Japan　5caps
9	Atsushi HIWASA	166cm	70kg	37	Japan　51caps
10	Bryn GATLAND	180cm	88kg	29
11	Kanta MATSUNAGA	167cm	79kg	25
12	Lafaere TIMOSY	186cm	98kg	33
13	Michael LITTLE	180cm	98kg	32
14	Kazuma UEDA	177cm	87kg	22
15	Seunsin LEE	176cm	85kg	24	Japan　18caps

** Player to watch **

Willie POTGIETTER. 190cm, 105kg, 23 years old. Position = FL, NO.8. He is from South Africa and is a promising young player who joined the Steelers in 2023. This season, he has been playing regularly among the strong Steelers FW members, and his presence is increasing with each game. He has been particularly strong in tight games, contributing to the team’s turn overs and securing the ball for his team.

Next, we would like to introduce the Defending Champion, TOSHIBA Brave Lupas.

Brave Lupas, last season’s Champion team in League One, came into the playoffs in first place in the league standings. The main injured player for this match is NAIKABULA, the WTB for Japan, who is sidelined. All other players were reported to be in good condition after about 2 weeks of rest. In the semifinal matchup, the Blue Revs were initially expected to advance, but the Steelers came out on top. The Steelers’ contact strength improved in the quarterfinals as if they were a different team. We expect a good match.

The starting lineup for this day’s match was as follows

TOSHIBA Brave Lupas
No.	Name	height	weight	age
1	Sena KIMURA	175cm	105kg	24
2	Mamoru　HARADA	175cm	101kg	25	Japan 10caps
3	Taufa LATU	183cm	120kg	26
4	Jacob　PIERCE	201cm	106kg	27
5	Warner　DEARNS	202cm	124kg	23	Japan 20caps
6	Shannon FRIZELL	195cm	114kg	30	New Zealand 33caps
7	Takeshi SASAKI	180cm	101kg	26
8	Michael LEITCH	189cm	113kg	35	Japan 87caps
9	Yuhei Sugiyama	169cm	76kg	27
10	Richie MO’UNGA	176cm	83kg	30	New Zealand  56caps
11	Syohei TOYOSHIMA	175cm	87kg	35
12	Rob THOMPSON	184cm	103kg	33
13	Seta TAMANIVAL	189cm	104kg	33	New Zealand  3caps, Fiji 3 caps
14	Toshiki KUWAYAMA	184cm	95kg	28
15	Takuro MATSUNAGA	172cm	82kg	26	Japan 4caps

** Player to watch **

Yuhei SUGIYAMA. 169 cm, 76 kg, 27 years old. He is a graduate of Tsukuba University. The veteran half of the Steelers’ team is likely to put SUGIYAMA under a lot of pressure in this match. It will be interesting to see if SUGIYAMA will be able to show their ability on the big stage of the playoffs under intense pressure.

Let’s start the first half.

Steelers kickoff to start the game.

3 minutes into the first half:

Both sides’ determination to win this one clashed, and intense contact play was seen. In the league matches this season, Steelers had suffered a heavy defeat against Brave Lupas, but in the tournament matches, the atmosphere was different from that in the league matches, because the season ends after a loss.

After a kicking battle for possession, the Steelers got into enemy territory and drew a foul from Brave Lupas, giving them the right of a PG almost directly in front of the goal posts.

The Steelers’ SO GATTLAND scored the first goal. The score was 0-3.

The Steelers, as in the quarterfinals, got off to a good start by scoring first.

11 minutes into the first half:

What was particularly noticeable since the start of the playoffs was the increased intensity of the Steelers’ contact. This was due to the fact that key players such as LO RETALLICK and CTB LITTLE have recovered from their injuries and have adjusted for this playoffs, and that there were no more holes in the defensive network as a result of the pre-game meetings.

However, Brave Lupas was not to be outdone in terms of defensive intensity in front of the try line, as the Steelers’ FL POTGIETTER broke the line and ran over 30 meters to close in on the try line, only to be stopped by a series of attacks. Brave Lupas was able to hold off a series of attacks to score a try.

The Steelers then broke the line with CTB Little, and from there they attacked again, this time deep into the opposition territory.

However, Brave Lupas won the ball back and SO MOUNGA kicked the ball from deep in their own territory, which sailed just short of the enemy in-goal and off the touchline.

This led to an up-and-down position recovery kick by Brave Lupas’ SO MOUNGA. The 50-22 rule was applied, and Brave Lupas quickly closed in on the enemy in-goal and had a great scoring opportunity, a lineout on their own ball.

The crowd cheered Brave Lupas’ SO MOUNGA’s super play.

From the lineout, Brave Lupas secured the ball and formed a maul to push forward. However, the Steelers were able to hold off this advance, and the Brave Lupas maul almost collapsed. Brave Lupas’ FL SASAKI made a breakthrough and dove into the in-goal for the try.

The Brave Lupas supporters, who probably made up 80% of the stands that day, cheered loudly.

However, a video review after the try confirmed an infringement in the play before the try, so the try was disallowed.

16 minutes of the first half:

The restart after the try was cancelled resulted in a scrum 5 meters in front of the in-goal by Steelers’ own ball.

The Steelers tried to push forward from this point with a side attack by the FWs, but Brave Lupas succeeded in turning it over and launching a series of attacks. Brave Lupas’ CTB THOMPSON dragged the defense behind him and scored a try right under the goal post.

The conversion goal after the try was also successful, making the score 7-3 in favor of Brave Lupas.

After this, the first half was a stalemate in terms of score. However, a spectacular densely contested battle ensued, with the FWs playing a central role. In the contact phase, the Steelers players were no match for Brave Lupas.

The Steelers came close to the try line several times and created several scoring chances, but failed to score.

In the end, the first half ended with the score 7-3. Both teams played an athletic match, and it would be interesting to see which team will be the first to take control of the game in the second half.

3 minutes into the second half:

Brave Lupas was the first team to get into the game in the second half.

After Brave Lupas kicked off to start the second half, the Steelers tried to push forward, but a mistake during a deployed attack resulted in a foul and the ball went to Brave Lupas. Brave Lupas started their attack in the enemy territory and steadily approached the enemy try line while continuing their attack. From a scrum in front of the goalposts, Brave Lupas moved to the right, and on their second successive attack, the ball was passed to right wing WTB KUWAYAMA, who scored a try right in the middle of the enemy in-goal.

The conversion goal after the try was also successful, making the score 14-3.

9 minutes into the second half:

The game continued to go back and forth with neither team scoring during this period. However, Brave Lupas had the ball in their own territory and a Steelers foul gave Brave Lupas a PG opportunity. The distance was over 40 meters, but it was right in front of the goal post, so SO MOUNGA of Brave Lupas scored it to make the score 17-3.

12 minutes into the second half:

From the restart after the PG, Brave Lupas entered the enemy territory, and in a series of attacks, SO MOUNGA broke the line at key points, approached the enemy try line, and finally scored a try just below the goal post by FL FRIZELL who followed up on it.

However, the try was cancelled out by a video review, which showed that Brave Lupas had been fouled for a Forwarad Pass in the process.

35 minutes into the second half:

The intensity of the contact from the start of the match was so strong that as the second half drew to a close, both teams were so worn out that both teams’ players were breathing on their shoulders during the scrums. Brave Lupas’ substitutes showed their performance during this period, with Brave Lupas’ CTB MANO showing strong tackling and struggling in dense battles, winning the ball for his opponents on several occasions.

(CTB MANO of Brave Lupas is the player on the far right)

Brave Lupas’s Hooker HASHIMOTO, who also came on as a substitute, made a series of line breaks from a dense battle in the enemy camp, and finally scored a try right under the goal post in the enemy camp.

The conversion goal after the try was also successful, making the score 24-3.

40 minutes into the second half:

With the score then tied, the Brave Lupas were looking to win the match, but the Steelers were determined to get their revenge and continued their attack from the restart kickoff. However, from the restart, the Steelers continued to attack from the kickoff. From a tight battle, CTB TOMPSON intercepted the ball and ran over 30 meters to score a try right under the goalposts. The conversion goal after the try was also successful, making the score 31-3.

The game was over, and Brave Lupas advanced to the League One playoff final for the second year in a row.

The defeated Steelers will play the third-place game the following Saturday for the season finale.

In the end, Brave Lupas won outright, but the game was close until the middle of the second half, much to the delight of the fans who came to the game.

＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊

Stop the war.

Peace to Ukraine

＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊