RUGBY JERSEY – Japan Rugby League One Division 1, No.15 – Kubota Spears Funabashi/Tokyo Bay vs NTT Communications Shining Arcs Tokyo Bay Urayasu

(Author: Azul, May 5, 2022)

This week, on May 1, I went to the Edogawa-ku Athletic Stadium in Tokyo to watch the Kubota Spears vs. NTT Shining Arcs game.

The weather forecast the day before was for cloudy skies, but on the day of the game it turned out to be raining. I often get caught in the rain when I come to the Edogawa Athletic Stadium.

This stadium is the home stadium of Kubota Spears. The total capacity is 6,950. The Spears are a team loved by the locals, and even in a rainy game like this, they were able to attract about 3,000 spectators.

Let’s check out the standings for Division 1 of League One, which is reaching its climax.

rankingteamWinLoseEvenWPGD
1Tokyo Sungoliath131061 
2Kubota Spears113053 
3Saitama Wildnights122052 
4Tokyo Brave Lupas95044 
5Yokohama Eagles95041101
6Toyota Verblitz950417
7Kobe Steelers59027 
8Shizuoka Blue Revs410021 
9Shining Arks Tokyo Bay410018 
10Black Rams Tokyo311016 
11Red Hurricanes Osaka311014-248
12Green Rockets Tokatsu212014-187

WP=Winning Point

GD=Goal Difference

Spears is currently in 2nd place. They have already decided to advance to the final tournament, but they should be able to get a steady win against the 9th-ranked Shining Arcs.

Shining Arcs, on the other hand, is currently in 9th place, and is only one point before the 10th place team, although they are barely out of the playoffs for Division 2, as they are in 10th place or lower. Shining Arcs will be looking to add a point to their tally in this match, no matter what it takes.

Let me introduce you to the teams that will be playing this time.

First up is the home team, Kubota Spears, who have been steadily gaining ground since around 2020. With world-class players in key positions on the team, young players on the rise, veteran players, and a sense of unity with the local fans, they are a model team for all of League One. If there is a weakness, it is that they have not been able to fill it since the injury to hooker Marx.

Kubota Spears’ starting lineup for this match is as follows.

Spears
No.Nameheightweightage 
1Kota Kaishi172cm102kg27 
2Hiroaki Sugimoto181cm105kg33 
3Kengo Kitagawa178cm110kg29Japan 3cap
4Uwe Helu193cm133kg31Japan 16cap
5David Bulbring199cm113kg32 
6Ruan Botha205cm120kg29 
7Pieter L. Labus Chagne189cm106kg32Japan 13cap
8Sione Vatuvei190cm105kg38Japan 8cap
9Shinobu Fujiwara171cm76kg22 
10Bernard Foley182cm89kg32Australia 71cap
11Koga Nezuka173cm82kg23 
12Harumichi Tatekawa180cm93kg32Japan 55cap
13Haratoa Vailea187cm105kg23 
14Haruto Kida176cm90kg23 
15Gerhard Van Den Heever192cm102kg32Japan

** Players to watch **

Koga Nezuka, 173 cm, 82 kg, 23 years old. He is a reliable player who can be relied on to cut the gain line whenever he gets the ball. He had been a CTB at Hosei University, so he has a strong sense of connecting the ball, and although his try tally is a little low, he is an indispensable player as a WTB. He is the top scorer in League One in line breaks with 20.

Next, let me introduce the visiting team, the Shining Arcs.

The Shining Arcs were promoted to the Top League in 2010, and since then have been ranked in the bottom half of the league. However, since last year, they have been putting a lot of effort into reinforcing their players and have been acquiring national-class players. The current ranking is 10th, but this is largely due to the fact that they have lost three games due to a new type of corona infection.

Today’s starting lineup is as follows

Shining Arcs
No.Nameheightweightage 
1Ken Saito177cm116kg25 
2Anaru Rangi181cm105kg33 
3Syuhei Takeuchi183cm115kg24 
4Luke Tompson196cm110kg41Japan 71cap
5Sam Jeffries200cm115kg29 
6Shingo Nakashima187cm107kg29 
7Alexander Mackenzie186cm105kg24 
8Jimmy Tupou196cm113kg29Japan 6cap
9Ren Iinuma170cm75kg22 
10Greig Laidlaw176cm80kg36Scotland 76cap
11Kazushi Hano185cm85kg30 
12Shane Gates183cm95kg29Japan 1cap
13Brackin Henry182cm95kg33 
14Kai Ishii179cm85kg28 
15Takuhei Yasuda177cm80kg25Japan 2cap

** Players to watch **

Israel Folau. 194cm.103kg,32 years old. Folau holds the record for most tries scored by a SUPER RUGBY player in history. Folau’s high ball catching is unbeatable. He is a reserve for today’s match.

The game kicked off at 12:00 on May 1.

Two minutes into the first half:

The Shining Arcs, who wanted a win at all costs to avoid going to the replacement game, were fired up from the first half.

After the kickoff, Shining Arcs FB Yasuda kicked the ball from his own line and it rolled over the opponents’ 22-meter line and out of the area, so the 50-22 rule was applied, and the game got off to a quick start. Shining Arcs created an opportunity. From a lineout on their own ball, the Shining Arcs displayed a series of staggered attacks, and CTB Gates easily slipped past his opponent’s marker on the right deployment to score a try in the middle of the right field. SO Laidlaw converted the try and the score was 0-7 in favor of the Shining Arcs.

6 minutes into the first half:

The Shining Arks, buoyed by their first try, went on the offensive again, with SO Laidlaw’s kick passing to WTB The Shining Arcs again went close to the goal line. At this point, Spears committed a foul and the Shining Arcs opted for the PG. SO Laidlaw scored to put the Shining Arks in control of the game with the score 0-10.

24 minutes into the first half:

Spears had made many minor handling errors up to this point, but at this time of the game, they were adapting to the inclement weather. They connected fine short passes, and their heavyweight FW players continued to make fine breakthroughs to make progress. Finally, newcomer CTB Vailea broke through to the left corner, passed to WTB Kida, and scored a try in the left corner of the in-goal! The conversion goal after the try failed. The score was 5-10 to the Spears.

First half 27 minutes:

The Shining Arcs took the kickoff immediately after the try was scored, and attacked into the opponents’ territory, where a tight battle led to an infringement by the opposing team. SO Laidlaw made a steady PG to make the score 13-5.

36 minutes into the first half:

The Spears’ FWs gradually began to show their ability to make progress in the wet weather. However, the Shining Arcs responded with a tenacious defensive effort and did not allow Spears to make a decisive breakthrough. Near the enemy 22-meter line, Spears was awarded a penalty kick after a foul by the opposing team. Here, Spears chose to go for the PG instead of going for the try. This was scored by Spears’ SO Foley, making the score 13-8.

The first half ended with the score unchanged. The Shining Arcs defense put up a good fight. The rain was so heavy at the end of the first half that it was quite difficult to take pictures.

In the first half, Shining Arcs showed good effort both offensively and defensively, so it was a game worth watching. Shining Arcs is a very explosive team this season, winning against strong teams such as Brave Lupas and Kobe Steelers, and coming within 7 points of last year’s champion, Wild Nights.

However, Spears is also looking forward to a second half turnaround, as they would like to finish as high as possible in the standings, even though they have already qualified for the playoffs.

Pictured above is Suppy, the mascot of the home team, Kubota Spears. He circled the stadium at halftime.

Now, let’s start the second half.

4 minutes into the second half

The Spears, who were in the hunt in this match, started the second half with a good passing game, moving forward in the enemy territory and getting close to the goal line. The Shining Arcs were able to hold off a breakaway attempt by a FW in front of the goal post. From there, the Shining Arcs took a left turn and FB Van Den Heever ran in from behind and scored a try on the left side of the goal post. The conversion goal after the try was also scored, and the Spears were able to turn the game around in the first 5 minutes of the second half. The score was 15-13.

11 minutes into the second half:

Spears took control of the game from the start of the second half and did not relinquish it. Shining Arcs seemed to be on the defensive. The standout player was CTB Vailea, a newcomer to the team this spring, who made a strong tackle on defense to steal the ball from the opposition and caught a kick pass from SO Foley in a series of attacks during this period and scored a try right in the middle of the in-goal area. The conversion goal after the try was unsuccessful. The score was now 20-13, Spears leading by 7 points.

19 minutes into the second half:

Spears started to push forward in defense, which prevented the Shining Arcs from moving forward even when they attacked out wide. The Shining Arcs BK was knocked down at the moment he received a pass and was fouled for not releasing the ball, allowing Spears’ SO Foley scored a PG from a relatively easy position. The score was now 26-13 and the Spears are now in the lead.

28 minutes into the second half:

The Shining Arcs took the offensive this time around, and from a penalty kick, they got their own lineout inside the opponent’s 22m line. Shining Arcs won the ball and drove forward in a maul. The Shining Arcs took the ball and drove forward in a maul to score a try.

However, the referee could not see it, so the TMO made a video decision.

It took more than three minutes for the referee to make a decision, and in the end the try was disallowed. The referee’s conclusion was that the try could not be awarded without evidence of grounding of the ball, whether seen by the referee’s eyes or on video.

30 minutes into the second half:

The Shining Arcs, perhaps still reeling from the earlier no-try decision, were lackluster in their movement. The Shining Arcs went over, but soon lost possession to the Spears, and in a tight pack, Spears WTB Nezuka ran in to receive the ball and score a try right in the middle of the field. The score was 33-13.

32 minutes into the second half:

By this point, the difference in energy between the two teams was evident. The Shining Arcs no longer had the strength to stop the forward momentum of the Spears. After the ball was connected in a series of attacks, SO Foley scored the final try in the left center of the in-goal. The conversion goal after the try was also successful, making the score 40-13.

The score remained unchanged for the remainder of the match.

The score in the second half was 33-0, a one-sided offensive by the Spears. Shining Arcs could not score a single point in the second half. In order for Shining Arcs to move up, they will have to find a way to correct this in the future, as the team has large waves from game to game.

Since this was the final home game for Kubota Spears, after the game they made a round of the field to greet their fans. The team is expected to do well in the playoffs.

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Stop the war.

Peace to Ukraine

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