The UNOFFICIAL
JAPANESE RUGBY SITE

maintained since 19 August 1996 by The Laird of Kitakyushu (Everything is here!)

“Lang may yer lum reek!”

(May Your Chimney Smoke for a Long Time... and may you be responsible for many conversions, both to and in the great game of Rugby! ;-)

You can e-mail me here. (But please note I will probably not reply to requests for assistance with employment, organising tours etc.)

The Web Counter says you are visitor number http://counter.digits.com/wc/-d/4/jprugby since August 19, 1996.

front_cover_ULTIMATE_CRUSH　

Click on the cover! Or visit best-rugby-coaching.com

ULTIMATE CRUSH - book available, translated into English by the Laird

Downloadable preview (PDF)

Review

Download and/or test yourself on the Laws of the Game, in seven different languages!

In an important article in the Times of January 10th Stephen Jones says “Rugby must return to the painful days of jolly ruckers”! As the owner of the Ruckingham Ruckers club in Blackout Rugby the Laird is 100% behind this idea. (By the way, the club is currently second in Japan Division II, League 4, with a home stadium named ‘Global Rucking’. Our club song is – you guessed it - Ruckin’ all over the world!!...;-)

Supplementary Foot Note: The Laird’s support for reclaiming the ruck has nothing to do with the fact that Scotland has always been traditionally and by reputation rather good at rucking... well, almost nothing I should say! ;-)

Scots stars assess Six Nations rivals – all the 2010 Six Nations games will be shown live on J Sports!

Top League awards 2009-10 (MVP, Best XV etc.)

Top League proposal

Why not reduce the number of teams from 14 to 12, and have them each play 22 games on a home and away basis like the Guinness Premiership? The first season of the Top League (2003-4) and also the second and third seasons had 12 teams, so why not go back to that (though I think there were only 11 rounds played at that time). It would surely ease the revenue problems experienced by some clubs (e.g. Yamaha Jubilo, where the company owning the team has recently pulled the plug), and the season would be longer. 14 teams which play each other once only (i.e. 13 rounds) doesn’t seem to work as well as possible in terms of boosting the popularity of the Top League.

The Guinness Premiership season runs from the beginning of September (exactly the same as the Top League) to the beginning of May, with the final at the end of May. Is that too long for Japanese Rugby? The Top League playoff tournament currently finishes at end of January, with the final league round played on January 9th. Maybe it is time to cut the Top League out of the national championships altogether, and treat it as a separate and fully professional entity. (However, this proposal would probably spell the end of the national championship, now in its 47th year, and there might be some reluctance on the part of the authorities to do this!)

Tournaments

(Games in red are live on J Sports...)

47th National Championship (Nihon Senshuken) Preview Round 1: February 7 (Sun) (1)  Suntory Sungoliath 10 NEC Green Rockets 10 (14.00, Hanazono, Osaka) (The game was eventually decided by lottery – the Laird would prefer ‘sudden death.’)  ; (2) Teikyo University 76 Rokko Fighting Bull 7 (14.00, Prince Chichibu, Tokyo) (Clearly a mismatch!) ; (3) Tokai University 7 NTT Communications 11 (12.00, Prince Chichibu) (Tokai would have scored another try but for some strange antics by their full back in the in-goal area...he tried to get nearer the posts, passed the ball and it was taken by a NTT player!)  ; (4) Kobe Seiko Kobelco Steelers 19 Toyota Verblitz 36 (12.00, Hanazono) ;

Round 2 February 14 (Sun) (5) NEC v Teikyo ; (6) NTT v Toyota (Prince Chichibu);

Semi-finals February 20 (Sat) (7) Sanyo Wild Knights v Winner of (5) (14.00, Chichibu); (8) Winner of (6) v Toshiba Brave Lupus (14.00, Hanazono)

Final February 28 (Sun) Winner of (7) v Winner of (8) (14.00, Prince Chichibu)

(A rather complicated competition, which is fairly predictable except for the occasional major upset: Waseda v Toyota February 12, 2006 anyone?? ;-)

 

Online tickets

Top League playoff tournament – for what used to be called the Microsoft Cup (until Microsoft ended sponsorship last year)

Live on J Sports

January 24th (Sun) Sanyo （Top League 1) 25 Toyota (Top League 4) 21 (14.00, Hanazono) (Obviously a close game – Sanyo without Tony Brown may be less formidable?) ; Toshiba （Top League 3) 35 Suntory (Top League 2) 24 (14.00, Prince Chichibu) (Toshiba wanted this game more, after a fairly humiliating heavy defeat at the hands of Suntory in the ‘Fuchu Derby’ league game...) ;

January 31st Final (14.00, Prince Chichibu)　Sanyo Wild Knights 0 Toshiba Brave Lupus 6 (Clash – or maybe that should be Ultimate Crash? - of the Electro-Titans!! Hugely physical, as Tony Brown told the Daily Yomiuri reporter...)

Online tickets

Top League Wild Card Tournament – for places in the National Championship

Jan. 16:  (1) Coca Cola 31 Yamaha 17 (12.00, Hanazono); (2) Sanix 5 NEC 33 (14.00, Hanazono); Jan. 23: Kubota 21 NEC 22 (12.00, Chichibunomiya); Kobe 40 Coca Cola 28 (14.00, Chichibunomiya)

TL Promotion/Relegation games Feb. 13: Ricoh v Mazda (Top Challenge 1 3rd placed team); Kintetsu v Yokogawa (Top Challenge 2 1st placed team)

Top Challenge Series (1 and 2)　Preview – for the right to be automatically promoted in place of the 13th and 14th placed teams (Honda and Kyuden) in the case of the top two teams in Top Challenge Series 1; or to challenge the 12th placed team (Ricoh) in the case of the 3rd placed team of Top Challenge 1, and the 11th placed team (Kintetsu) in the case of the top team of Top Challenge 2. (Make sense?!?)

Jan. 16: Top Challenge 2: Chugoku Denryoku 17 Yokogawa Musashino 81 (12.30, Hiroshima); Top Challenge 1: Matsuda Blue Zoomers 0 NTT Communications 43 (14.30, Hiroshima)

Jan. 23: TC 2: NTT Docomo 137 Chugoku Denryoku 0 (12.00, Hanazono); TC 1: Toyota Jido Shokki 55 Matsuda Blue Zoomers 0 (14.00, Hanazono)

Jan. 30 (Preview): TC 2: Yokogawa Musashino 29 NTT Docomo 23(12.00, Chichibunomiya); TC 1: NTT Communications 38 Toyota Jido Shokki 35 (14.00, Chichibunomiya)

NTT Communications, Toyota Jido Shokki promoted to Top League (Jan. 23) – Congratulations to these two teams!! Neither have been in the Top League before.

 

JRFU English website – includes Japan and Top League game reports

The Daily Yomiuri sports page includes rugby reports by Rich Freeman and occasional articles from Japan coach John Kirwan in a series titled STRAIGHT FROM THE COACH’S MOUTH: January 9, 2010; February 6;

That’s about it…except for this page and the very detailed RiJ e-mail newsletter (all.4.one[at]hotmail.com) .

Total Rugby （IRB radio）

IRB World rankings

J Sports TV schedules.

(At least two Top League games were shown each round.)

JRFU Top League 2009-10

JRFU Top League 2009-10 Preview ; Changes to Top League 2009-10

Top League schedule 2009-10 season (Japanese) ; Express Results (Japanese, for mobile phones) 

1.   Previews: Round One; Round Two; Round Three; Round Four; Round Five; Round Six; Round Seven; Round Eight; Round Nine; Round Ten; Round 11; Round 12; Round 13 (Final round, January 9, 2010)

2. Wrap-ups: Round One; Round Two; Round Three; Round Four; Round Five; Round Six; Round Seven; Round Eight; Round Nine; Round Ten; Round 11; Round 12; Round 13

3. Statistics: Round One; Round Two; Round Three; Round Four; Round Five; Round Six; Round Seven; Round Eight; Round Nine; Round Ten; Round 11; Round 12; Round 13

4. Team Profiles: TOSHIBA Brave Lupus; SANYO Wild Knights; SUNTORY Sungoliath; Kobe KOBELCO Steelers; NEC Green Rockets;

5. Man of the Match: Rounds 1 through 11

6. Fixtures and Results: After 12 rounds

Online Top League tickets from the JRFU website

(Note: Chichibunomiya and Hanazono games only)

Top League 2009-10 after the 13th (i.e. final) round

Team

P

W

D

L

F

A

Diff

BP1

BP2

Pts

1

Sanyo

13

12

1

0

534

175

359

9

-

59

2

Suntory

13

11

2

0

571

196

375

10

-

58

3

Toshiba

13

10

0

3

436

276

160

10

2

52

4

Toyota

13

10

1

2

394

219

175

6

-

48

5

Kobe

13

7

1

4

344

304

40

6

2

38

6

Kubota

13

6

0

7

313

339

-26

4

3

31

7

Sanix

13

6

0

7

311

371

-60

5

2

31

8

Coca-Cola

13

7

0

6

299

448

-149

3

-

31

9

Yamaha

13

5

2

6

311

327

-16

3

2

30

10

NEC

13

4

0

9

224

280

-56

4

5

25

11

Kintetsu

13

4

1

8

218

348

-130

3

2

23

12

Ricoh

13

4

0

9

262

422

-160

1

2

19

13

Honda

13

1

0

12

255

464

-209

2

4

10

14

Kyuden

13

0

0

13

199

502

-303

2

2

4

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 Playoff Tournament, the finals series for the 2009-10 Top League season.

The top four finishers automatically qualify for the 47th National Championship 2010 with the teams that finish 5th to 10th 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 11th and 12th go through the promotion and relegation play-offs against regional challengers to retain their places in Top League for 2010-11.

 

Leading Points Scorers (final)

 

 

Name

Team

T

G

PG

DG

Pts

1

Atsushi Tanabe

Sanyo

4

48

25

-

191

2

Ryan Nicholas

Suntory

6

46

17

-

173

3

Shaun Webb

Coca-Cola

8

25

20

-

150

4

Shane Drahm

Kubota

2

28

16

7

135

5

David Hill

Toshiba

4

39

8

-

122

6

Ayumu Goromaru

Yamaha

-

27

19

-

111

7

Yoshimitsu Kawano

Ricoh

1

23

15

2

102

8

Orene Ai’i

Toyota

4

21

5

1

80

9

Hirotoki Onozawa

Suntory

14

-

-

-

70

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 (final)

 

 

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

3

Steven Bates

Toshiba

10

7

Steven Yates

Toyota

9

7

Shinji Nakazono

Yamaha

9

9

Akihito Yamada

Honda

8

9

Shota Horie

Sanyo

8

9

Shaun Webb

Coca-Cola

8

12

Takashi Miyake

Sanyo

7

12

Hideki Namba

Toyota

7

12

Neil Brew

Toshiba

7

 

 

February 9th

 

Schoolboy mistake costs Tokai University – The Laird thinks the blushes of the Tokai full back might have been spared by not naming him in this Daily Yomiuri article, but anyway he will surely learn from his mistake and be a better player for it in the long term. (Best of Luck, Shohei Toyoshima, and see you in the national side a couple of years from now, together with Michael Leitch – already capped – who kindly consoled you after the game!! ;-) As for deciding winners by drawing lots, straws etc. the Laird would prefer the teams to play till the next score, a ‘sayonara’ win!

 

Good that Albert van den Berg and Andre Pretorius are apparently coming to Japan...And finally the idea of Eddie Jones taking over at Suntory – if the rumours are correct – has an element of the cuckoo’s nest about it!! (One can’t blame Kiyomiya, who was originally the sole head coach of Suntory, for wanting to fly off to another perch in such circumstances. And maybe Suntory will also perform better with one head coach rather than two.)

 

Kiyomiya-san thanks everyone and explains his decision on his website in Japanese. He says he is proud to have coached Suntory Sungoliath for four years, and that as a professional he always had the feeling that if the results were not good he would resign (mi wo hiku), and that his contract was a one year renewable one.  He feels anyway that Suntory is going in the right direction. He again thanks all the players and fans for their warm support, and hopes to meet everyone again in the ‘coach’s room’ (kantokushitsu, i.e. his official blog) soon...  (The message is dated February 8th. He is the master of his fate. He is the captain of his soul... ;-)

 

February 8th

 

I am the master of my fate. I am the captain of my soul...

 

‘Invictus’ is a great movie, well worth seeing. The Laird saw it in a Warner Mycal cinema last night near his home. The healing power of Rugby and its ability to unite a nation was wonderfully exploited by Nelson Mandela as the film makes clear. After all those years when rugby games against South African teams were disrupted by anti-apartheid protesters (and indeed apartheid was an evil and vast mechanism for repression) it seems that Rugby had the last laugh!!

 

Meanwhile the Six Nations 2010 Round One yielded more or less the expected results... And Coach Kiyomiya has declared his intention to resign after Suntory Sungoliath was knocked out of the National Championship yesterday...

 

February 6th

 

Rebels set to tour Japan (Daily Yomiuri)

 

February 4th 

 

Dawson, Damon and Pienaar discuss Invictus, RWC 1995, Robben Island, Capetown barbecues... Mutual backslapping taken to new heights...with a few kind words for Nelson as well!!

 

January 25th  

It was very good to see Robbie Deans sitting next to Tony Brown at Hanazono for Sanyo v Toyota yesterday. What a privilege for the young(er) man!! (So there was an upside of the match ban for TB after all... ;-) And as Bill McLaren might have said, “they’ll be dancing in the streets at Cheviot to the north of Christchurch after the opening of the Deans memorial stand at AMI stadium... [and in the streets of Balclutha for that matter...]”.

 

But Japan is suddenly becoming very popular with top coaches, isn’t it? Eddie Jones, Jake White, Robbie Deans... who’s left? It must be partly to do with getting RWC 2019 which has sparked interest. Deans will be with Sanyo till tomorrow (Tuesday, January 26th) according to the J Sports commentary team who spoke with Sanyo coach Iijima about his visit.

  

January 24th

After a disappointing 17-27 away loss yesterday in the last league game of Blackout Rugby Season 7, Ruckingham Ruckers (alias Ruckers of Kyushu, or Kyushu Ruck’n’Rollers) are looking forward to a rematch at Global Rucking on Friday evening at 7.35 pm in the playoffs!!

Okinawa RFC (1st in League) v Shirakawa-go Ducks (4th) ; Ruckingham Ruckers (2nd) v Niigata Next 21 (3rd)

Final: January 30th (Sat) 2.35 pm Japan Time

 

January 21st

 R.I.P. Bill McLaren – like so many others around the world the Laird grew up listening to his wonderful commentaries. He made the game so much more enjoyable, and was a true gentleman. A truly irreplaceable man: Thank you, Sir, for all the Memories!!

Andy Robinson has some very well-chosen words about the Legend from Hawick, before commenting on the Scottish team, Edinburgh and Glasgow. And so does John Beattie! And this from Brian Moore: “Among all the many memories I have of him one thought stays with me; Bill absolutely loved rugby and rugby absolutely loved him. He will be missed and he is an impossible act to follow. How many men leave that sort of mark on the world?” And let’s not forget Sir Ian McGeechan's tribute either! (Hopefully Murrayfield will be renamed the Bill McLaren stadium in his honour, and a posthumous knighthood is surely appropriate too?)

 

“The following have been selected to represent the glorious Ruckingham Ruckers v Niigata Next 21 this Saturday at Rockin Rods Tribute stadium, Kanto area, kick off 2.35 pm. (Bring clean boots & kit!! The plane leaves at 7pm sharp on Friday evening from Kitakyushu airport, latecomers to make their own travel arrangements.)

 

1. Daniel ‘Beefy’ Baron; 2. Ryan ‘The Boot’ Howell; 3. Wyatt ‘Earp’ Bekker; 4. Reijiro ‘Stingray’ Serizawa; 5. Azelio ‘Giraffe’ Maiale; 6. Masato ‘O-tobai’ Suzuki; 7. Hisato ‘Lightning’ Torisei; 8. Arana ‘Tank’ Tago; 9. Umberto ‘The Artist’ Vitozzi; 10. Ronan ‘Hornet’ Shannon; 11. Teresio ‘Terry’ DiGuglilemo (capt.); 12. Chase ‘The Egg’ Stern; 13. Rano ‘Rabbit’ Babitu; 14. Claudio ‘Caesar’ Tudorache; 15. Jimbo ‘Grocer’ Blakey. Subs: TBA

Signed: Tsugahara Tomika (Coach)”

 

January 20th Playoff’s nothing but dog’s brekkie. The Laird yesterday removed a comment he had made above about the 47th National Championship being a “dog’s breakfast” because he thought it was “a bit harsh”. Then blow me down, a similar phrase appears as part of a Yomiuri headline!! ;-) Actually the Laird feels the current situation is not so much a dog’s breakfast, more like a wonderfully complex kanji character. The character for depression (‘utsu’ 鬱) has 29 strokes, and the Laird certainly gets depressed, or rather exhausted and confused, when trying to work out all these tournaments! Ah well, maybe it’s ‘different strokes for different folks’ after all... (Dog’s breakfast? More like a dog’s... dinner!! ;-)

 

January 19th Last night the Laird’s Blackout Rugby team, Ruckingham Ruckers, beat the “jammy” Doughnuts of Grampian region in Scotland in an international friendly, 24-14 at home. After going 24-0 up it was disappointing to concede two tries near the end of the game, but we’ll take the win!! Next up is the final Japan league game of Season 7 on Saturday against Niigata Next 21, followed probably by the playoff tournament. (The Laird has apologised to the owner of Doughnuts for giving wrong directions from the UK to Kyushu... turn right at Inchon, not left, or you’ll end up in North Korea!! ;-)

 

Blackout Rugby, Japan Div II.4

 

 

Club

Played

W

L

D

For

Against

Margin

BT

BL

Total

1.

Okinawa RFC

13

13

0

0

822

39

+783

11

0

63

2.

Ruckingham Ruckers

13

10

3

0

779

97

+682

10

1

51

3.

Niigata Next 21

13

7

6

0

399

243

+156

6

1

35

4.

Shirakawa-go Ducks

13

8

5

0

262

395

-133

2

1

35

5.

Rishiri Rebun Thunder

13

6

7

0

370

372

-2

5

2

31

6.

Asakusa Prey

13

5

8

0

210

450

-240

1

1

22

7.

Iga Ueno Reds

13

3

10

0

166

747

-581

0

1

13

8.

Akan Buccaneers

13

0

13

0

73

738

-665

0

1

1

 

January 14th The Laird may be an old fogey on disciplinary matters (see previous entry for January 12th) and he’s even older than Eddie Jones (but not as old as Graham Henry! ;-). Anyway, he still doesn’t understand why rucking is so frowned on these days. Isn’t it a dumbing down of the game to gain wider appeal for the ‘product’ and avoid frightening off the mothers?? Be this as it may, a ‘tickle with the sprigs’ is entirely different to downward stamping which is both dangerous and highly undesirable, as is raking studs down someone’s back, putting them near a person’s face deliberately or recklessly etc. (The Laird once many years ago got stud marks on his forehead during a game at K.R. & A.C., thanks for that Simon!) 

 

Then again, is rucking banned merely because some people can’t tell the difference between rucking and stamping or other dangerous uses of the boot? Whatever the reason(s) for the ban, skilful rucking – in which the studs do not point vertically downwards but are at an angle with or parallel to the ground – is a form of art, and in danger of becoming a lost one. It would clean up so many of these wretched multiple pile-ups euphemistically referred to as ‘breakdowns’ which plague the modern game, and sort out the ‘beached whales’ lying all over the place as well... The knock-on effects (excuse the pun! ;-) for other areas of the game would also be spectacularly positive!!

 

January 12th Wild Knights’ Brown handed 1-game ban Tony Brown of Sanyo can have no complaint whatever about this. He should remember that he is not hired as a bantam weight boxer, nor as a wrestler (there was a separate head lock incident before the ‘boxing’) but as a professional rugby player!! Likewise Justin Ives’ sinbinning for a dangerous tackle seemed fair enough to the Laird. (If you take a man into the air in a tackle you have a responsibility to set him down safely!)

 

46th University Championship 2009-10 (16 teams): Dec. 20: Keio Gijuku 41 Fukuoka 15 (Level 5, Fukuoka); Hosei 51 Ryutsu Keizai 22 (Mizuho, Aichi); Tenri 50 Setsunan 19 (Hanazono); Tsukuba 22 Tokai 29 (Prince Chichibu, Tokyo); Kwansei Gakuin 38 Doshisha 24 (Hanazono); Meiji 19 Takushoku 12 (Kumagaya, Saitama); Teikyo 17 Kanto Gakuin 17 (Chichibu, Teikyo win on no. of tries scored); Ritsumeikan 0 Waseda 38 (Mizuho)

Round 2 – December 27: Keio 33 Hosei 24 (12.00, Chichibunomiya, Hope Eddie Jones enjoyed that one, he’s advising Keio and was spotted on the TV ;-); Teikyo 31 Waseda 20 (14.00, Chichibunomiya, former Waseda coach Kiyomiya-san will not have enjoyed that one, also spotted by the TV cameras...but Teikyo were clearly the better-prepared team on the day)

Kwansei Gakuin 29 Meiji 62 (12.00, Mizuho, Welcome back, Meiji! ;-); Tenri 12 Tokai 53 (14.00, Mizuho)

Semi-finals (2 January 2010): Keio 14 Tokai 19 (12.15, National Stadium – Though 2010 is the Year of the Tiger, it was not to be Keio’s year, even though they wear yellow and black tiger jerseys!); Meiji 12 Teikyo 43 (14.00, National Stadium – The two coaches were sat almost next to each other – unusual! Anyway, an easy win for Teikyo this time...)

FINAL – Jan. 10 (Sun), 14.00, National Stadium.  Tokai 13 Teikyo 14

Whichever side won it was going to be their first championship, which is a welcome shot in the arm for this competition after so many Meiji, Waseda and Kanto Gakuin wins... and the Doshisha triple in the far past! Congratulations to Teikyo for avenging their loss to Waseda in the same final last year, and to both teams for producing as good a spectacle as the current rules allow, with the ‘breakdown’ (a rather negative word, and not one you will find in the Laws of Rugby!) providing more or less the usual shambles. (Bring back the jolly ruckers!!)

A Japanese newspaper (Sankei Sports) reports that South African Jake White, the  former World Cup-winning coach - and mate of Eddie Jones - watched the game from the stands and said that both sides played well... as indeed they did!! White is now with Suntory in Kagoshima, assisting with preparations for the upcoming Microsoft Cup starting on January 24th.

All these games were on J Sports. The semi-finals were live on NHK, and the final was also, and on NHK’s Dai-ichi Radio.

Online Tickets for games at the National Stadium (Tokyo), Chichibunomiya (Tokyo), Mizuho (Nagoya) and Hanazono (Osaka)

 

Top League Schedule (Schedule in Japanese)

(Notes: 1. Games live on J Sports are shown in red. 2. Attendance figures are quoted from the official Top League website, so they must be completely accurate, right? ;-)

Round 13 (Last round, all games live on J Sports) January 9, 2010 NEC Green Rockets 29 Yamaha Jubilo 17 (12.00, Chichibunomiya, Tokyo. Attendance: 9,693.); Coca Cola West Red Sparks 43 Honda Heat 40 (12.00, Level 5, Fukuoka. 3,036.); Toyota Verblitz 52 Ricoh Black Rams 0 (12.00, Hanazono, Osaka. 3,271.); Suntory Sungoliath 16 Sanyo Wild Knights 16 (14.00, Chichibunomiya. 12,587 – a suitably exciting game for the biggest crowd of the season!); Kintetsu Liners 17 Fukuoka Sanix Blues 44 (14.00, Hanazono. 4,772.); Kyuden Voltex 24 Kubota Spears 40 (14.00, Level 5, Fukuoka. 4,114.); Kobe Kobelco Steelers 33 Toshiba Brave Lupus 52 (14.00, Homes, Kobe. 5,729.).

Round 12 Dec. 26: Sanyo Wild Knights 42 Yamaha Jubilo 15 (13.00, Ota, Gunma pref. Attendance: 2,772); Toshiba Brave Lupus 22 Suntory Sungoliath 59 (13.00, Ajinomoto stadium, Tokyo. 7,096 – The Fuchu local derby with quite a big crowd!); Honda Heat 17 NEC Green Rockets 27 (13.00，Mizuho, Aichi. 1,265); Dec. 27:　Kubota Spears 23 Kintetsu Liners 18 (12.00, Homes stadium, Kobe. 5,105); Fukuoka Sanix Blues 43 Ricoh Black Rams 21 (12.00, Level 5 stadium, Fukuoka. 2,454); Kyuden Voltex 14 Toyota Verblitz 55 (14.00, Level 5. 2,974); Kobelco Steelers 70 Coca Cola West Red Sparks 10 (14.00, Homes, Kobe. 6,501)　

Round 11 Dec. 19: NEC Green Rockets 33 Fukuoka Sanix Blues 14 (12.00, Chichibu, Attendance: 3,534); Yamaha Jubilo 13 Suntory Sungoliath 51 (13.00, Yamaha stadium, Shizuoka, 5,505); Toyota Verblitz 47 Coca Cola West Red Sparks 21　(13.00, Shiga pref. 2,331); Kyuden Voltex 12 Toshiba Brave Lupus 33 (13.00, Level 5, Fukuoka. 1,667); Kubota Spears 24 Ricoh Black Rams 20 (14.00, Chichibu. 5,047); Kintetsu Liners 8 Sanyo Wild Knights 41 (14.00, Hanazono. 2,992); Dec. 20: Honda Heat 22 Kobelco Steelers 28 (13.00, Takamatsu, Kagawa pref., 3,050)

Round 10 Dec. 12: Yamaha Jubilo 22 Sanix Blues 29 (12.00, Hanazono, Osaka. Attendance: 2,329); Kintetsu Liners 15 Honda Heat 14 (14.00, Hanazono. 3,658); Toshiba Brave Lupus 37 Kubota Spears 19 (14.00, Prince Chichibu, Tokyo. 4,272); Suntory Sungoliath 38 Ricoh Black Rams 22 (14.00, Kose Sports Park, Yamanashi pref. 4,863); Dec. 13: NEC Green Rockets 5 Sanyo Wild Knights 22 (13.00, Mito Municipal Stadium, Ibaraki pref., 2,948); Kobelco Steelers 17 Toyota Verblitz 23 (13.00, Homes Stadium, Kobe. 6,371); Coca Cola West Red Sparks 35 Kyuden Voltex 24 (13.00, Best Amenity, Tosu, Saga pref. 3,295)

Round 9 Dec. 5: Toyota 6 NEC 3 (13.00, Mizuho, Aichi. Attendance: 3,263); Coca Cola 29 Ricoh 22 (13.00, Honjo, Fukuoka. 2,213); Dec. 6: Honda 19 Toshiba 45 (12.00, Hanazono, Osaka. 4,878); Kyuden 19 Yamaha 21 (12.00, KK Wing, Kumamoto. 3,829); Kubota 28 Sanyo 55 (13.00, Ehime. 2,070); Kintetsu 13 Kobe 26 (14.00, Hanazono. 6,438); Sanix 17 Suntory 46 (14.00, KK Wing. 4,082)

Round 8 Nov. 28: Sanyo 50 Kobe 5 (14.00, Chichibunomiya. Attendance: 7,822); Nov. 29: Toyota 26 Kubota 0 (12.00, Hanazono. 5,091); Sanix 22 Toshiba 33 (12.00, Kagoshima. 1,802); NEC 15 Suntory 41 (13.00, Chiba. 3,735); Yamaha 32 Coca Cola 13 (13.00, Okayama. 1,953); Kintetsu 19 Ricoh 25 (14.00, Hanazono. 6,512); Kyuden 25 Honda 39 (14.00, Kagoshima. 4,019)

 

January 7th  Venter vents his spleen... and gets into hot water for it!

 

All games in the 89th High School rugby tournament were shown live on J Sports starting December 27th. (This is a fair indication of how much interest there is and continues to be in this tournament in Japan!!) 51 teams represented all the 47 prefectures of Japan with one or two extras thrown in (Osaka prefecture has three teams in total, Tokyo two, and Hokkaido two).

The Laird watched the opening ceremony live yesterday (Sunday Dec. 27) from the ‘sacred rugby ground’ (ragubi- no seichi) of Hanazono, the usual venue. There was a special feeling this year, because as both JRFU High Performance Unit Manager Ken Iwabuchi (ex-Japan and Saracens)  in the commentary team and JRFU President Mori observed, the current high school players have a good chance of playing for Japan in RWC 2019 here in Japan, if not RWC 2015 in England or even (at a pinch!) RWC 2011 in New Zealand. A girls sevens game (East v West) was played before the tournament began, and they also looked as if they knew very well how to play Rugby...well done!! One of the Ida high school players (according to Mori-san) has only one eye after a baseball accident, and sees four balls at once!

January 3rd: Quarter-finals day: Ryutsu Keizai 5 Osaka Chosen 12; Tokai Gyosei 7 Higashi Fukuoka 23 (This is the first time Higashi Fukuoka has beaten the Kansai team. It was front-page news in the Nishispo newspaper here in Kyushu!) ; Josho Gakuen (formerly Osaka Kodai) 10 Toin Gakuen 31; Gosei Jitsugyo 5 Kyoto Seisho 17

January 5th – Semi-finals from 13.00. Higashi Fukuoka (Fukuoka pref.) 67 Kyoto Seisho (Kyoto) 12; Osaka Chosen (Osaka 3, a Korean school) 7 Toin Gakuen (Kanagawa) 33

January 7th – Final. Higashi Fukuoka 31 Toin 5. 14.00. Half-time score: 17-5. (Good to see John Kirwan watching, with Mori-san just behind him! In his farewell speech Mori-san told the players that JK had been taking a lot of notes... ;-) He also said that Hanazono, which he called the Mecca of Japanese rugby, will have to be improved to international standard before RWC 2019. He spoke very well, and as a true Rugby man, even offering some pertinent comments on the way the teams had played in the final. Not bad for a keen rugby player in the wonderfully named Japanese Diet Rugby Club, golfer – of which the less said the better - and former Prime Minister of Japan! ;-)

 

January 3, 2010

Shock, horror! Yet more revelations... Brian Moore was subject to sexual abuse in his youth. Does that mean we should disregard all he says and writes? I think not. (But can we get back to Rugby now, please?!)

 

Well done to Glasgow for winning the 1872 Cup!! (Phil Godman clearly had a bad game until subbed, but thumbs down to Edinburgh chairman Gavin Hastings for failing to support his player in the half-time interview with the BBC...as chairman he should be more supportive.)   

New Year Reflections on the way to strengthen Kyushu University Rugby - to the benefit of Japanese Rugby as a whole

 

A recent comment made by one of the Japanese commentators (Koichi Murakami) on J Sports during the Keio v Fukuoka University game in Fukuoka on December 20th (Championship first round) about the drain of the best Kyushu high school players away to the Kanto (Tokyo) and Kansai （Osaka） areas, to the effect that “they can’t be prevented from going” has set the Laird thinking. While this statement is of course true, there must be ways to encourage more of the best players to stay in Kyushu, or even for some of the best to be attracted from the Kanto or Kansai areas to Kyushu!!

In short, the Laird feels that the best way forward is for some really good (and preferably famous) coaches to get involved in Kyushu university rugby, maybe as consultants, exactly as Eddie Jones is now doing for Keio University up in Tokyo. It is the model already followed in the Top League, with ex-Japan coach Mukai-san moving down to Fukuoka a few years ago to coach Coca Cola, now arguably Kyushu’s strongest Top League team (though Sanix is on equal points at present!). Japanese Rugby as a whole needs Kyushu - and Kansai - to be stronger, not only in high schools and the Top League, but also at the University level. (It’s a missing piece or two in the jigsaw puzzle...! ;-)

December 30th

Brian Moore looks back on a curate’s egg of a year, in which the IRB succeeded in getting Rugby sevens into the Olympics, for which they deserve praise, but “blunders were made” over the ELVs. Also the ERC needs to be managed better after their mismanagement of Bloodgate... yet another job for the IRB, which bears ultimate responsibility for overseeing everything that happens in the game! (Mind you, this should not be too difficult as the IRB and ERC seem to inhabit the same building in Dublin! The address: Huguenot House, 35-38 St Stephens Green, Dublin 2, Ireland.)  

We wish you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year from East Asia (the not-so-Far East in this day and age!)

Christmas rugby jokes – every one’s a cracker, and original from the Laird:

1) IRB (= International Rule Bodgers?!) International Player of the Year Richie McCaw has decided to buy a new house which he will live in for the rest of his days. It is called “Offside”. (Some people think he has been living there for a while already... ;-)

2) Q: Why do so many rugby players wear contact lenses? A: Because it’s a contact sport!! (Note: Referees don’t wear contact lenses, but some of them might need glasses...)

3) Q. How many backs would a full back back if a full back could back backs?

Choose your answer from the following options: a) half a back is better than no back b) first five eighths divided by three-quarters c) back to the future d) mind your backs, Alfie’s at No. 15 ;-)  e) six f) back to the drawing board

 

December 23rd  Shiver me timbers!! The Laird always thought that Gareth Thomas was a cheerful and jolly chap, but now it turns out he is gay!! Does this startling fact influence the way he plays his rugby on the field? No. Does it matter at all? No. Did the world need to know? Maybe not, but Thomas himself argues that his example might stop a young person in the future from giving up the game, and if there is even one such case then perhaps it will have been worth the intrusion on his and his family’s privacy. Gutsy anyway... Maybe we can all move on now, and just enjoy the remainder of Alfie’s wonderful career wherever he chooses to play.

 

December 21st  The Laird enjoyed his rugby yesterday, and scored a try for the first time in ages. This was mainly because his request to play at No. 8 (rather than his usual position as prop or lock) which he made at training was granted, at least for the first 20-minute game. He was not so knackered at No. 8 and was able to keep up with play better. (In the Laird’s experience, by the time the front row union are released from their herculean labours at the scrum, the ball is usually several miles away! ;-)

 

December 16th The Laird is looking forward to seeing the new movie ‘Invictus,’ although as Paul Ackford says it may be wrong in some details, e.g. Mandela was not himself a rugby coach or strategist of any kind! That is Hollywood embroidering what is already a great story...

 

SCRUM DOWN　The Laird doesn’t mind about players taking the penalty 30 cm from the mark, but sometimes the quick tap-and-go is dubious. Stephen Jones scored a try against Argentina in Cardiff the other day when, apparently, the Argentine captain had been told to talk to his men by the ref!! If true, as related by Allan Massie, that is poor officiating...

“Two final thoughts from the autumn internationals. First, despite everything, the France-New Zealand match showed there is nothing much wrong with the laws if both teams set out to play rugby. Second, if a referee tells a captain to go and talk to his team, he must not allow a tap penalty to be taken till he has done so and they are ready to play again.

In the Wales-Argentina match, Fernandez Lobbe was instructed to do this. While he was obeying the referee, Stephen Jones took a tap penalty and ran unopposed to score. I call that cheating, but the referee was also at fault. He should have called Jones back.”

 

December 14th

 

The Kyushu Derby game Cola v Kyuden was of course shown on TV in Kyushu. Kyuden fought mightily to the end and actually scored two tries when they only had 14 men on the field.（Presumably they ran out of replacements?! Hats off anyway for the effort.） Meanwhile Suntory have closed the gap on Sanyo to one point thanks to NEC’s defence refusing a 4-try bonus point to Sanyo while Suntory managed that against Ricoh... Suntory meets Sanyo in a showdown in the final round!!

 

December 13th   

There were some very good games yesterday in the Top League. Liners v Heat was very close on the scoreboard, though the Laird hasn’t seen the game yet on video. Sungoliath showed why they are second in the League in defeating a spirited Black Rams with Stephen Larkham at No. 10 before a crowd of almost 5,000 spectators, while his former partner-in-crime George Gregan was at No. 9 for Sungoliath. (This game was apparently televised live by Sky New Zealand, hope you all liked it! ;-)  Brave Lupus woke up in the second half to beat Spears, and Blues downed Jubilo at Hanazono in a close game. Can the Green Rockets trouble the Wild Knights today??

   The Laird attended his rugby club’s annual dinner last night and heard some unsolicited feedback from senior members which was very positive about stars Stephen Larkham and Shaun Webb after the game on December 5th: they both cheerfully and willingly signed a lot of autographs for enthusiastic kids from the rugby schools and high schools of Kitakyushu. Of course this is part of a professional player’s normal work, but anyway it was noticed and appreciated. (Keep up the good work, Gentlemen!!)

 

December 7th　The more articles I read by Brian Ashton, the more I respect him. Here he is on fly halves like Matt Giteau and players like Austin Healey. But Brian Moore is also interesting on the failings of the IRB and the excessive kicking in the modern game. (They might both be right, i.e. Giteau is a brilliant player and can shine regardless of the laws, but for most teams who don’t have brilliant fly halves the current laws are unsatisfactory at best. Bring back rucking!!)

 

December 6, 2009 – The traditional Waseda v Meiji University game (So-Mei sen) was broadcast on NHK General live from 13.50.

Top League games don’t get this level of prime time coverage on terrestrial channels... not yet at least... though J Sports does a decent job with at least two TL games covered per round. But anyway the So-Mei sen is a once-a-year phenomenon, and many of the 40-50,000 spectators at the National Stadium are of course students. And to be fair NHK does usually broadcast the finals at the end of the year: the Microsoft Cup final (for the top TL teams) and the All-Japan Championship final.

The Top League should not be seeking to displace university rugby in the affections of the traditionally-minded Japanese public which would be pretty hard to do anyway, but rather to build a loyal following of its own. It’s not a zero sum game as between university and TL rugby, there is room “for all” – to borrow the TL’s slogan – and everyone can benefit. There is a chance to build up the popularity of the TL with the World Cup coming to Japan in less than (!) 10 years from now, and though the crowd was not large at the recent game in Kitakyushu the Laird was pleased to see that there were a lot of teenagers and younger children at the ground, and they were waving flags, chanting in chorus and generally getting behind their teams!! (There had also been a curtain raiser between Saga Kougyou and Kokura High Schools.)

 

December 6th The So-Mei sen ended with a narrow win for Waseda University, 16-14. Many thanks to Coach Yoshida for making Meiji competitive once more and restoring meaning to the fixture. It made for exciting viewing! (In ULTIMATE CRUSH Kiyomiya-san stated that the drama of the So-Mei sen game had been lost because of poor Meiji coaching, but it’s apparently back with a vengeance now!)

 

Coke_v_Ricoh_TL_Dec_5_2009 008

Coca Cola v Ricoh: Shaun Webb (“Webby,” or maybe “Webbmaster”? ;-) lines up a penalty kick in the first half. He kicked five penalty goals, two conversions and scored one try. Total 24 points out of 29!!

 

December 5th  Coca Cola West Red Sparks beat Ricoh Black Rams 29-22 in the first ever Top League game played in Kitakyushu city today, after a warm welcome from Mayor Kitahashi and the enthusiastic spectators. Coke’s defence was good throughout, and Japan full back Shaun Webb (the Laird’s Man of the Match) kicked most of his penalties and conversions and timed his passes and interventions in the line very well. There was a charge down at the end and two near-tries for Ricoh which had the 2,213-strong crowd in uproar such that the final hooter could not be clearly heard... Great entertainment from both teams for which many thanks!! (But the Laird wondered why the unusually anonymous ex-Wallaby Stephen Larkham was at full back for Ricoh and not fly half - “if you’ve got it, flaunt it!” they say... ;-) The Laird was also glad to shake the hand of ex-NEC and now Red Sparks player Brendan Nielson before the game.

 Coke_v_Ricoh_TL_Dec_5_2009 003

Mascot Sparky and friends, Honjo stadium, Kitakyushu (5 December 2009)

 

December 1 The Laird, Mrs. Laird and his father-in-law (a recent convert to Rugby, age 90, it’s never too late to repent you know! ;-) will be going to see Coca Cola v Ricoh at Honjo stadium this weekend. We have our tickets, 1000 yen each (1,300 yen on the door). Hope we can park near the stadium, which is due for an upgrade now that Kitakyushu has its first ever pro sports team (the soccer boys got promoted to J2 this year).

(By the way, at rugby training on Wednesday this week the Laird learned that of 30 tickets allocated to his club only five have been bought so far, and he bought three of those!!)

 

November 30  Eddie Jones comments that Suntory and Japan wing Hirotoki Onozawa has “something about him”. Indeed he does have a fantastic ability to step so as to avoid tackles. This is called ‘unagi steppu’ in Japanese (i.e. eel step) and is the main reason, together with his speed, why he scores so many tries. The Laird has never seen anyone quite so elastic and hard to tackle! Here is a photo of ace Hirotoki slip slidin’ away from defenders... Notice he is mildly airborne... ;-)

 

November 26 The Laird has always admired Welsh fly half Stephen Jones ever since he toured Japan early in his career, and his battle with Matt Giteau this weekend will be intriguing. Jones speaks very well too. They are both great players in fact!!

 

November 22  A good win by Japan to keep 13th place in the IRB rankings, and a rare and precious win by Scotland over the Wallabies!! A pretty good weekend for the Laird really...

 

 

November 18　

 

Yamaha move bursts bubble – surely the Top League will have to change to a home and away format from next season?  Revenue from home games is vital for clubs to stay afloat. (This is true even in Blackout Rugby as the Laird has discovered!)

 

Japan hits new height earlier than expected – whatever, as JK says Saturday is a must-win game for Japan.

 

November 17

 

Jubilo forced to cut all 17 professionals　– let’s hope that they fall on their feet soon! Never a nice thing to be made redundant...

 

November 16

 

Congratulations to Japan on a very good win yesterday (46-8) against Canada. If they repeat that result on Saturday Japan will move one ahead of Canada in the IRB rankings to 13th – Japan’s highest ever position.

 

Meanwhile Yamaha Jubilo has announced today that from next April the team will only be made up of company workers. There are currently 17 players on pro contracts including Goromaru (FB, Japan) and Yatomi (SH, Japan) not to mention foreigners such as Reuben Thorne or coach Kevin Schuler. This is an economic cutback, and no reflection on the players themselves. 

 

November 9 The two Canada tests are looming large.

Japan v Canada tickets (Saturday, November 21) are available online – Japan plays her oldest rugby rival at Chichibunomiya ! Prices seem very reasonable: 5,000 yen at most. Hopefully that will pull in a good crowd to get behind Japan!

Squad for the Canada game (announced October 19, 2009) – 44 man squad

Kirwan names ‘best’ Japan squad ever (Daily Yomiuri, October 20)

First Test: Japan v Canada, Sunday, 15 November 2009, kick-off at 2:00 PM, Yurtec Stadium, Sendai.

Second Test: Japan v Canada, Saturday, 21 November 2009, kick-off at 2:00 PM, Prince Chichibu Memorial Rugby Ground, Tokyo.

Bledisloe Cup Tokyo 2009 tickets info

Nissui Tokyo Bledisloe Cup 2009 Official Home Page: Japanese; English

October 31st, 17.30, National Stadium Tokyo

The event is being sponsored by the Yomiuri Shinbun newspaper and Nissui (Nippon Suisan) a marine products company with a long history.

The advertising urges people to “come enjoy what a Rugby World Cup Final or Semi-Final is like!!”  .... or quarter-final maybe? ;-) (No worries, they are of course much higher than that in the IRB rankings...)

Robbie Deans and the Wallabies are here, never seen him smile before! ;-)

October 30 Great news that Jonah Lomu will be an ambassador for RWC Japan 2019! There is no nicer bloke on the planet, surely? And other Kiwis might be back then too. 

October 29 What a surprise! The Daily Yomiuri reports that the Bledisloe Cup game hasn’t sold as well as hoped. The Laird agrees with JRFU President Mr. Mori that it is better to fill the stadium with free tickets than to have it half empty. People need to be shown what they are missing and develop a taste for the game. Anyway, at 7,000 yen for the basic adult ticket – regardless of who set these prices – they are just too darn high! (3,500 yen tickets might have filled the stadium. Whatever, we’ll soon find out the attendance on Saturday.)

October 27 All Blacks play soccer at Chichibu, then get down to business. Like the Aussies say, everyone wants to beat New Zealand, including my Kyushu-based virtual rugby team which won 41-0 away in Wellington yesterday. (Quite a surprise, but there you go! I do spend hours on team selection and buying in good players from all over the world mind...;-)

Top league Round 8 will be played after the intermission on Saturday November 28th and Sunday November 29th.

Round Seven: October 24 (Sat): Ricoh 41 Kyuden 17 ; Yamaha 32 Kobe 20 ; Sanyo 46 Toyota 19 ; Honda 15 Sanix 31 ; Suntory 21 Kubota 16; Kintetsu 26 NEC 24 ; October 25 (Sun): Coca Cola 22 Toshiba 55 

Round Six: October 17 (Sat): Suntory 60 Toyota 15; Toshiba 41 Kintetsu 12; October 18 (Sun): Ricoh 12 Yamaha 61; Coca Cola 18 NEC 13; Sanix 11 Sanyo 50 ; Honda 23 Kubota 48 ; Kyuden 22 Kobe 43

Round Five: October 9: Suntory 52 Honda 5; October 10: Kubota 33 Coca Cola 38; Yamaha 29 Kintetsu 29; Sanyo 54 Kyuden 10; October 11: Toyota 56 Sanix 10; Kobe Steel 27 NEC 24; Toshiba 36 Ricoh 21

The Log after four rounds: 1. Sanyo 18 pts, 2. Suntory 17 pts, 3. Toyota 15 pts, 4. Toshiba 12 pts,  5. Kubota 12 pts, 6. Kobe 11 pts, 7. Sanix 11 pts, 8. Ricoh 8 pts, 9. Coca Cola 8 pts, 10. Yamaha 7 pts, 11. Kintetsu 6 pts, 12. NEC 5 pts, 13. Honda 1 pt, 14. Kyuden 1 pt.

October 23 It looks as if the next RWC could be a costly business... for Kiwi taxpayers. At this rate 2019 might be a mixed blessing for Japan also. (And yes I pay Japanese taxes!) Still, maybe the giant rugby ball and the upcoming Bledisloe game will attract Japanese rugby fans to NZ?

October 22 The JRFU has invited Prime Minister Hatoyama to come to see the Bledisloe Cup game in Tokyo, Japanese sources report. The IRB is said to be concerned about developing good relations from the start with the new government.

Also I was wrong in my last entry – there will be a Top League game on December 5th between Coca Cola and Ricoh at Honjo stadium in Kitakyushu, even closer to home than Global Arena!

October 19 Congratulations to Ryan Nicholas for becoming the Top League’s top points scorer! And many more points to you... Suntory hammered Toyota at the weekend but Sanyo stayed top courtesy of a 50-11 win at Global Arena which the Laird witnessed in person, it being the closest ground to his home. Sanix tried hard but Tony Brown’s distribution had them at sixes and sevens in the first half before he came off. (Lovely Kyoho black grapes the size of small golf balls bought from the roadside on the way home. Ah, the joys of Kyushu country life!!)

October 12 Coke showed itself to be the strongest of the Kyushu teams in this round, beating Kubota. The other two (Sanix and Kyuden) suffered collapses in the second half which tends to point to relative lack of fitness. The most exciting game was Kobe’s Houdini act courtesy of centre Yuta Imamura (ex-Waseda U. and Yokkaichi Nougei H.S., Mie pref.) who ran the length of the field to score a try. NEC looked much more penetrating in attack with Jaco v d Westhuizen at fly half than they have done.

October 6 Will he, won’t he? Talk again that Stirling Mortlock might join Kyuden... if he does they will not be short of quality centres, assuming Nathan Grey stays on! Meanwhile JK is certainly behind including Sevens in the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro... As the Brazilians really know how to party (!) it seems like a no-brainer to the Laird, because Sevens is one big party.

October 4 Nathan Grey (Kyuden and ex-Wallaby centre) was interviewed for the Kyuden website just after the recent hammering by Suntory. He said he felt the difference was between a team with professionals and one without. Certainly Suntory has some big stars... Anyway the Laird hopes Kyuden can make up lost ground as it is important for Kyushu that the three teams stay in the Top League. Good Luck!!

October 1 Lawrence Doolally-Oh on the Ethics of Rugby and what a clean game it is. (And no, he did not partake of dope all those years ago, he was only joking! ;-)

Meanwhile on September 30th, after the practice game between Suntory and Waseda held on September 17th, Eddie Jones (Suntory GM) held a coaching session with Waseda University. He has previously coached Keio several times, but this is the first time he has coached Waseda. (Japanese article)

September 29 A remarkable failure by Heineken Cup organisers to change the rule whereby medical officials are not allowed to inspect injuries of the other team’s players is reported today.  Mr. Derek McGrath, chief executive of European Rugby Ltd., says: “