RiJ Vol.6 No.48

December 29, 2009

Contact Ian McDonnell at ianmcdo@apost.plala.or.jp

Contents:

¡ Japan Rugby Top League 2009-10

s Round 12

¡ 46^th National University Championship 2009

s Second Round

¡ The Grubber Kick:

s IRB Ranking: 13 (70.59, 7 December 2009)

s Backchat:

RiJ brings the reader all the action of round eleven of Top League. Meanwhile, the University Championship kicked off on the weekend. And, of course, a very Merry Christmas to everyone.

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2009-10 Round 12

Round 12

Date	K/0	Teams	Score	Teams	Venue
Sat, 26 Dec 2009	13:00	Toshiba (3Ts)	22-59	Suntory (7Ts)	Ajinomoto Stadium, Tokyo
	13:00	Honda (2Ts)	17-27	NEC (4Ts)	Mizuho, Nagoya
	13:00	Sanyo (5Ts)	42-15	Yamaha (2Ts)	Ota, Gunma
Sun, 27 Dec 2009	12:00	Kubota (2Ts)	18-23	Kintetsu (2Ts)	Homes Stadium, Kobe
	12:00	Sanix (6Ts)	43-21	Ricoh (3Ts)	Level 5, Fukuoka
	14:00	Kobe (10Ts)	70-10	Coca-Cola (2Ts)	Homes Stadium, Kobe
	14:00	Kyuden (2Ts)	14-55	Toyota (8Ts)	Level 5, Fukuoka

Round Twelve Preview

In one of three Saturday games in Round 12, Fuchu rivals Toshiba Brave Lupus and Suntory Sungoliath go head-to-head at the Ajinomoto Stadium in Tokyo. Both sides are sitting near the top of the table but a win or a loss could be the difference between first, second or third. Although Suntory have had the one draw they are still as yet to taste defeat after eleven rounds of the 2009-10 Top League season and they will be looking for their eleventh win of the year against Toshiba. The Brave Lupus sit in third place on 47 points behind Suntory on 51 points and they will be aiming for their tenth win of the season in order to leapfrog their neighbours. Both sides are in good form and they are fielding strong teams for this match with the likes of former Australian captain and halfback George Gregan and wing Hirotoki Onozawa in the Suntory line-up and lock Hitoshi Ono and centre Neil Brew turning out for Toshiba.

Honda Heat take on NEC Green Rockets in Nagoya in what is a very crucial game for the Heat. With only one round to play after this weekend a loss for Honda would condemn them to relegation but a bonus point win would keep them in the hunt to overtake the Rockets. Honda are in second last place on the table with just two rounds to play but if they can chalk up their second win of the season they might still be able to leapfrog NEC into twelfth place and thus avoid automatic relegation at the end of the season. Going into this round, Honda are on 8 points and NEC are on 15 points so it is still feasible for the Heat to avoid relegation though they will have to beat NEC to have any chance at all. NEC picked up only their second win of the season when they beat Sanix 33-14 in Tokyo last round and another win this weekend over Honda should see them avoid automatic relegation.

Sanyo Wild Knights host Yamaha Jubilo in Ota city in Gunma prefecture in the penultimate round. Sanyo have won all eleven of their games and sit on top of the table on 52 points, one point clear of Suntory on 51 and five points clear of Toshiba on 47 and so they will be wanting to retain their top spot at the expense of Yamaha. After a slow start to the season Yamaha lifted their game with four wins on the trot but all of that was undone with back-to-back losses in the last two rounds. Going into this game, Jubilo sit in sixth place on 30 points and a final four spot is now starting to look out of reach as Toyota are in fourth place on 38 points.

On Sunday, Kubota Spears take on Kintetsu Liners in the first game of a double header at the Homes Stadium in Kobe. Last round Kubota broke a losing streak of four games when they came up with a 24-21 win over Ricoh at Chichibu and they will be striving to maintain the winning momentum against Kintetsu. The Liners played their last five games on their home ground of Kintetsu Hanazono Rugby Ground in Osaka and so this game will be a test of their resilience away from home. Kubota can consolidate a mid table finish for the season if they can beat Kintetsu but with the Liners who are currently in eleventh place will be playing to win in order to avoid the promotion and relegation play-offs for the teams that finish eleventh and twelfth.

In the first game of another Sunday double header at the Level 5 Stadium in Fukuoka, Fukuoka Sanix Blues play Ricoh Black Rams. The Blues have had four wins and seven losses from their eleven games and their season so far has seen a pattern of a win followed by two losses and so if this pattern continues the Blues are heading for a loss against the Rams. Of course, that may not mean very much come Sunday, but Ricoh will be hard to beat. Ricoh have had the same four wins and seven losses as Sanix but the Blues have garnered two extra bonus points. When all is said and done, both these teams will be fighting tooth and nail for the win to help them avoid the promotion and relegation play-offs.

In the second game in Kobe, Kobe Steelers play host to Coca-Cola West Red Sparks. Kobe are in fifth place on 32 points before this round and if they are to have any chance of claiming fourth spot it must start with a win over Coca-Cola in order to narrow the gap with Toyota on 38 points. However, Coca-Cola are heading for their most successful season ever in what is now their fourth year in Top League and a win over Kobe is not out of the question.

In the second game in Fukuoka, Kyuden Voltex play Toyota Verblitz. Kyuden will be playing for pride this weekend as mathematically it is now certain that the Voltex will be automatically relegated after the completion of the rounds early in the new year. Kyuden have lost all eleven games and they sit in last place on the table on 3 points. Honda are in second last place on 8 points but NEC are now on 15 points in twelfth place meaning Kyuden have no chance of avoiding the drop. It is a different story for Toyota, however, as the Verblitz are fighting to consolidate fourth place on the table and consequently a place in the Microsoft Cup finals and automatic admission to the National Championship.

Round 12 Wrap-up

After twelve rounds of the 2009-10 Top League season only Sanyo have collected twelve wins. They sit on top of the table on 57 points followed by undefeated Suntory in second place on 56 points from eleven wins and a draw. The top four positions are now confirmed with Toshiba on 47 points in third place and Toyota in fourth place on 43 points. Kobe are in fifth place on 36 points and Yamaha are in sixth on 30 points. Three teams are on 26 points with the difference coming down to differential with Kubota in seventh, Sanix in eighth and Coca-Cola in ninth. They are followed by Kintetsu in tenth place on 23 points. Meanwhile, NEC are on 20 points and Ricoh are on 19 points. Honda are in thirteenth place on 8 points and Kyuden sit alone at the bottom off the table on 3 competition points with the latter two teams to be relegated at the completion of the rounds.

In one of three Saturday games in the penultimate Round 12, Fuchu rivals Toshiba Brave Lupus and Suntory Sungoliath went head-to-head at the Ajinomoto Stadium in Tokyo. In a game that went against expectations, Suntory bettered Toshiba to the tune of 59-22. The Sungoliath scored seven tries to three to dominate proceedings after holding a commanding 39-10 lead at halftime. Suntory picked up maximum points from the match but for Toshiba it was a different story as they came away from the clash empty handed. The win should consolidate either first or second place on the table for Suntory, though the loss for Toshiba means they may have to settle for third. Although Suntory have had the one draw they are still as yet to taste defeat after twelve rounds of the 2009-10 Top League season and they will now play Sanyo in the final round to determine top spot. Wing Hirotoki Onozawa scored two tries while centre Ryan Nicholas scored a try and kicked six conversions and three penalties.

Honda Heat took on NEC Green Rockets in Nagoya in what was a very crucial game for the Heat. NEC won 27-17 and so with only one round to play after this weekend the loss for Honda has condemned them to relegation as they are in second last place on the table. As a consequence of this result, Honda are on 8 points and NEC are on 20 points so it is no longer feasible for the Heat to avoid relegation. NEC picked up only their third win of the season when they beat Honda and they will now be trying to avoid the promotion and  relegation play-offs for the teams that finish eleventh and twelfth. Flanker Semisi Saukawa scored two first half tries for the Green Rockets, while wing Koichiro Kubota and fullback Hiromasa Yoshihiro also scored five-pointers as NEC went out to a 24-10 lead at the break. Although the Heat out-scored NEC 7-3 in the second half it was not enough to overcome the first half deficit as the Rockets went on to win 27-17.

Sanyo Wild Knights beat Yamaha Jubilo 42-15 in Ota city in Gunma prefecture in the penultimate round. Sanyo have now won all twelve of their games and sit on top of the table on 57 points, one point clear of Suntory on 56 and ten points clear of Toshiba on 47 and so they retained their top spot at the expense of Yamaha. After a slow start to the season Yamaha lifted their game with four wins on the trot but all of that has been undone with losses in the last three rounds. Sanyo scored five tries to two and led 22-8 at halftime. Flanker Kieran Black was named man-of-the-match and he scored one of the three first half tries. Halfback Atsushi Takayasu, fullback Atsushi Tanabe, replacement hooker Mitsugu Yamamoto and replacement centre Masayuki Osawa were the other try scorers for Sanyo.

On Sunday, Kubota Spears took on Kintetsu Liners in the first game of a double header at the Homes Stadium in Kobe with Kintetsu winning 23-18. Last round Kubota broke a four game losing streak when they came up with a 24-21 win over Ricoh but they could not maintain the momentum against Kintetsu. The Liners played their last five games on their home ground of Kintetsu Hanazono Rugby Ground in Osaka and so this was a good test of their resilience away from home. Both sides scored two tries apiece with the boot of Kintetsu five-eighth Yasumasa Shigemitsu proving the difference in the end. The score was locked at 10-all at halftime but the Liners got their noses in front midway through the second half and stayed there. Kubota narrowed the gap to 20-18 with five minutes remaining but a late Shigemitsu penalty sealed the win for Kintetsu.

In the first game of another Sunday double header at the Level 5 Stadium in Fukuoka, Fukuoka Sanix Blues defeated Ricoh Black Rams 43-21. The Blues have now had five wins and seven losses from their twelve games and sit in a crowded mid table position. Ricoh, on the other hand, have had four wins and eighth losses and they could be heading for the promotion and relegation play-offs at the end of the season. The Blues scored six tries to three and led 12-0 at halftime. However, the home side stepped up the pace in the second half adding four more tries with prop Takahiro Sugiura among the scorers.

In the second game in Kobe, Kobe Steelers played host to Coca-Cola West Red Sparks with the Steelers claiming an emphatic ten tries to two, 70-10 victory. Kobe are in fifth place on 37 points after this round but there is now no chance of claiming fourth spot as Toyota are on 43 points after their win over Kyuden. Left wing Yoshikazu Ohashi bagged a first half hat-trick of tries to help set up a commanding  42-5 lead, while outside centre Yuta Imamura picked up a double with a try in either half. This gave inside centre Daisuke Yamamoto plenty of kicking practice as he went on to nail all ten conversions.

In the second game in Fukuoka, Kyuden Voltex went down to Toyota Verblitz 55-14. Kyuden were playing for pride as it is now certain that the Voltex will be automatically relegated after the completion of the rounds early in the new year. Kyuden have lost all twelve games and they sit in last place on the table on 3 points. Honda are in second last place on 8 points and will join Kyuden in relegation. It is a different story for Toyota, however, as the Verblitz have now consolidated fourth place on the table and consequently a place in the Microsoft Cup finals and automatic admission to the National Championship. The bonus point win pushes Toyota up to 43 competition points, ahead of Kobe on 37 points in fifth place. Fullback Steven Yates crossed for two tries while five-eighth Orene Ai’i contributed with a try, three conversions and a penalty.

2009-10 Japan Rugby Top League Round Twelve

	Team	P	W	D	L	F	A	Diff	BP1	BP2	Pts
1	Sanyo	12	12	0	0	518	159	359	9	-	57
2	Suntory	12	11	1	0	555	180	375	10	-	56
3	Toshiba	12	9	0	3	384	243	141	9	2	47
4	Toyota	12	9	1	2	342	219	123	5	-	43
5	Kobe	12	7	1	3	311	252	59	5	2	37
6	Yamaha	12	5	2	5	294	298	-4	3	2	30
7	Kubota	12	5	0	7	273	315	-42	3	3	26
8	Sanix	12	5	0	7	267	354	-87	4	2	26
9	Coca-Cola	12	6	0	6	256	408	-152	2	-	26
10	Kintetsu	12	4	1	7	201	304	-103	3	2	23
11	NEC	12	3	0	9	195	263	-68	3	5	20
12	Ricoh	12	4	0	8	262	370	-108	1	2	19
13	Honda	12	1	0	11	215	421	-206	1	3	8
14	Kyuden	12	0	0	12	175	462	-287	1	2	3

Four points for win, two for draw, one bonus point for four tries or more (BP1) and one bonus point for losing by seven or less (BP2).

The top four finishers qualify for the Microsoft Cup 2010, the finals series for the 2009-10 Top League season.

The top four finishers automatically qualify for the 47^th National Championship 2010 with the teams that finish 5^th to 10^th playing off to determine the final 2 Top League teams.

The bottom two finishers are automatically relegated to regional leagues for the 2010-11 season.

The teams that finish 11^th and 12^th go through the promotion and relegation play-offs against regional challengers to retain their places in Top League for 2010-11.

Leading Point Scorers

After round twelve, Sanyo fullback Atsushi Tanabe holds onto the top spot on the point scorers list with 175 points. However, the gap has closed to just two points with Suntory centre Ryan Nicholas on 173 points with one round remaining to be played.

	Name	Team	T	G	PG	DG	Pts
1	Atsushi Tanabe	Sanyo	3	47	22	-	175
2	Ryan Nicholas	Suntory	6	46	17	-	173
3	Shaun Webb	Coca-Cola	7	21	20	-	137
4	Shane Drahm	Kubota	1	23	16	7	120
5	Ayumu Goromaru	Yamaha	-	26	19	-	109
6	David Hill	Toshiba	3	33	8	-	105
7	Yoshimitsu Kawano	Ricoh	1	23	15	2	102
8	Hirotoki Onozawa	Suntory	14	-	-	-	70
9	Orene Ai’i	Toyota	4	15	5	1	68
10	Tomoki Kitagawa	Sanyo	13	-	-	-	65
11	Daisuke Yamamoto	Kobe	1	15	8	-	59
12	Thinus Delport	Kobe	3	15	4	-	57
13	Tadanobu Ko	Kintetsu	3	8	7	-	52

Leading Try Scorers

After round twelve, Suntory wing Hirotoki Onozawa heads the list with 14 tries while Sanyo wing Tomoki Kitagawa is close behind on 13 tries.

	Name	Team	Tries
1	Hirotoki Onozawa	Suntory	14
2	Tomoki Kitagawa	Sanyo	13
3	Go Aruga	Suntory	10
3	Toshiaki Hirose	Toshiba	10
3	Yasunori Nagatomo	Suntory	10
6	Akihito Yamada	Honda	8
6	Shota Horie	Sanyo	8
8	Shaun Webb	Coca-Cola	7
8	Takashi Miyake	Sanyo	7
8	Steven Bates	Toshiba	7
8	Steven Yates	Toyota	7
8	Shinji Nakazono	Yamaha	7
8	Neil Brew	Toshiba	7

Round 12 Man-of-the-match Awards

Date	Teams	Score	Teams	Ground	MOTM
Sat. 26 Dec. 09	Toshiba		Suntory	Ajinomoto Stadium, Tokyo
	Honda		NEC	Mizuho, Nagoya
	Sanyo		Yamaha	Ota, Gunma	Kieran BLACK, Flanker
Sun. 27 Dec. 09	Kubota		Kintetsu	Homes Stadium, Kobe
	Sanix		Ricoh	Level 5, Fukuoka
	Kobe		Coca-Cola	Homes Stadium, Kobe
	Kyuden		Toyota	Level 5, Fukuoka

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The 46^th National University Championship 2009:

At the completion of the respective regional leagues, the top 16 universities qualify for the annual National University Championship held over December into the early New Year.

In brief, the top finishers in the stronger Kanto Taiko, Kanto League and Kansai League competitions are joined by the top Kyushu school in the knock-out style championship. The fifth place finishers in the Kanto Taiko and Kansai competitions play off against regional universities for a place in the Championship.

The two schools that reach the final then qualify for the 10-team 47^th All-Japan National Championship to be played in February 2010. The two university sides will join the top six finishers in Top League, the top club side and the top challenger. The National Championship was expanded from 8 to 10 teams for 2009 with the addition of two more Top League sides. For 2010, the top four Top League sides automatically qualify for the National Championship, while the six sides that finish fifth to tenth play off to determine the last two Top League sides.

First Round Results

Sunday, 20 December 2009

The eight first round games involving the top 16 universities were played at five locations across Japan.

A Block

Keio 41 (2^nd in Kanto League) d Fukuoka 15 (1^st in Kyushu), at Level Five Stadium, Fukuoka, 14:00.

Keio move on to the second round after being knocked out by Teikyo in the corresponding game last year.

Hosei (3^rd in Kanto League) 51 d Ryutsu Keizai 22 (4^th in Kanto League), at Mizuho, Nagoya, 12:00.

Hosei remain alive with a good win over Ryutsu Keizai.

Tenri (2^nd in Kansai) 50 d Setsunan (3^rd in Kansai) 19, at Hanazono, Osaka, 12:00.

Tenri went down to Setsunan at the same stage last year, but there was no mistake this year.

Tokai (1^st in Kanto League) 29 d Tsukuba (3^rd in Kanto Taiko) 22, at Chichibu, Tokyo, 14:00.

As the top team in the Kanto League, Tokai did it tough against a determined Tsukuba.

B Block

Kwansei Gakuin (1^st in Kansai) 38 d Doshisha (4^th in Kansai) 24, at Hanazono, Osaka, 14:00.

Kwansei continue their good form from last season with a solid win over fellow Kansai school Doshisha.

Meiji (5^th in Kanto Taiko) 19 d Takushoku (qualified for 5^th in Kanto) 12, at Kumagaya, Saitama, 14:00.

After missing out on the championship last year Meiji redeemed themselves with victory over a plucky Takushoku side.

Teikyo (4^th in Kanto Taiko) 17 d Kanto Gakuin 17 (2^nd in Kanto League), at Chichibu, Tokyo, 12:00.

Although the score was locked at 17-all at fulltime Teikyo progressed to the second round as they had scored more tries.

Waseda (1^st in Kanto Taiko) 38 d Ritsumeikan 0 (qualified for 5^th in Kansai), at Mizuho, Nagoya, 14:00.

Waseda progressed to the next round with a comfortable win over Ritsumeikan.

Second Round/Quarterfinals

Sunday, 27 December 2009

Keio (2^nd in Kanto League) 33 d Hosei (3^rd in Kanto League) 24, at Chichibu, Tokyo, 12:00.

In a gripping second round match-up Keio scored five tries to three to defeat Hosei 33-24. In a fast and furious first half Keio opened the scoring with a try to fullback Toshio Kobayashi in the sixth minute. Hosei responded with a try to fullback Takuma Watanabe to even up the scores at 7-all. Keio put on two more tries to pull away 21-7 late in the half before Watanabe scored his second five-pointer to close out the half 21-14. Keio centre Yosuke Ochiai crossed for his second try early in the second half to open up a 26-14 lead but Hosei again bounced back with a try to halfback Atsushi Hiwasa and a conversion and a penalty to five-eighth Takaya Monji to narrow the gap to 26-24. However, Keio left wing Takafumi Miki put the result beyond doubt when he scored his second try late in the game.

Tokai (1^st in Kanto League) 53 d Tenri (2^nd in Kansai) 12, at Mizuho, Nagoya, 14:00.

Tokai progressed to the semi-finals when they dispatched of Tenri 53-12. Tokai scored nine tries to two and were never really troubled by their Kansai opposition. Tokai scored four first half tries, including one to captain and No8 Joshua Mau to stretch out a 24-0 lead at the break. Although Tenri were first to score in the second half Tokai picked up where they left off in the first half with a further five tries. Fullback Shohei Toyoshima helped out his team with a try and four conversions.

Meiji (5^th in Kanto Taiko) 62 d Kwansei Gakuin (1^st in Kansai) 29, at Mizuho, Nagoya, 12:00.

Meiji produced a very confident performance to put away Kwansei Gakuin 62-29. A total of 13 tries were scored in a game that flowed from end to end, however, Kwansei never really had the answers to the Meiji onslaught. Five-eighth Yu Tamura was the maestro for Meiji with a fine display of skills that included deft kicks, a strong running game and fine passing. He put the icing on the cake by scoring the final try and landing all ten conversions and adding two penalties. Meiji now go on to meet Taiko rivals Teikyo in the semi-finals.

Teikyo (4^th in Kanto Taiko) 31 d Waseda (1^st in Kanto Taiko) 20, at Chichibu, Tokyo, 14:00.

In front of a full house at the Prince Chichibu Memorial Rugby Ground in Tokyo Teikyo knocked out favourites Waseda 31-20. In a repeat of last year’s final, Waseda were gunning for their third university title in a row but were thwarted by a dogged effort from the men in red jerseys. Teikyo started the game in fine form etching out a 12-3 lead by the half hour mark but Waseda stormed back to take a 13-12 lead into the halftime break. When prop Ryutaro Ueda grounded the ball for the second Waseda try early in the second half and fullback Takuya Iida added the extras to extend the lead to 20-13 it looked like the reigning champions were on their way to another semi-final berth. However, Teikyo kept their composure and scored three tries of their own, including a double to flanker Hendrik Tui to deny Waseda.

Semi-finals

Saturday, 2 January 2010

National Stadium in Tokyo.

Keio (2^nd in Kanto League) v Tokai (1^st in Kanto League), 12:15.

Meiji (5^th in Kanto Taiko) v Teikyo (4^th in Kanto Taiko), 14:00.

Final

Sunday, 10 January 2010

To be played at the National Stadium in Tokyo at 14:00.

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The Grubber Kick

The Grubber Kick brings the reader weekly news shorts, gossip and general happenings from the world of Rugby in Japan.

IRB ranking on 7 December 2009 - Japan were 13 (70.59).

Backchat:

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The Draw

The Draw gives the reader future dates for the diary and other great things to look forward to in Rugby in Japan.

89^th National High School Championship

The 2009-10 tournament is the 89^th running of the annual National High School Championship.

The Holy Grail of Japanese high school rugby is being held from 27 December 2009 to 7 January 2010 at the Kintetsu Hanazono Rugby facilities in Osaka. Fifty-one schools representing every prefecture in Japan with multiples from Hokkaido, Tokyo and Osaka are taking part in this traditional annual event.

The Microsoft Cup

Semi-finals

Sunday, 24 January 2010

Top League 1 v Top League 4, at Chichibu or Hanazono. Kick-off at 14:00.

Top League 2 v Top League 3, at Chichibu or Hanazono. Kick-off at 14:00.

Final

Sunday, 31 January 2010

The winners of the two semi-finals, at the Prince Chichibu Memorial Rugby Ground in Tokyo. Kick-off at 14:00.

The 47^th National Championship 2010:

Prior to 2009, the NC had an 8-team format for three years, but for 2009 the number of teams was increased to ten with the inclusion of two extra Top League sides. The NC involves 6 Top League sides, the two top university teams, the winner of Top Challenge and the top club team. The first round of the NC kicks off on Sunday, 7 February 2010.

Top League Qualification to the NC for Teams Fifth to Tenth

Saturday, 16 January 2010

Top League 8 v Top League 9.

Top League 7 v Top League 10.

Saturday, 23 January 2010

Top League 5 v winner of Top League 8 v Top League 9.

Top League 6 v winner of Top League 7 v Top League 10.

First Round

Sunday, 7 February 2010.

Second Round

Sunday, 14 February 2010.

Semi-finals

Saturday, 20 February 2010.

Final

Sunday, 28 February 2010.