Rugby News Japan on air

Like all rugby players I have always hoped to get bigger, faster and better.

(I should of course clarify that I am talking about the blog/website as age means that is no longer physically possible for this writer.)

Having filed my first reports back in the day of the typewriter, it's taken a while for me to get to grips with all this technology. But am finally at the stage where I am going to give it a go.

Rugby News Japan (http://rugbynewsjapan.com) will hopefully soon become the go-to site for news – both and off the field – on rugby in Japan.

With Japan getting a Super Rugby side, more international sides set to tour here and of course Rugby World Cup 2019 on the horizon, there is – much like the playing talent here – a lot of untapped potential.

Through the site we hope to provide a glimpse of what Japan has to offer for players, coaches and fans alike, not to mention a foreign take on some of the quirky things that occasionally raise their head.

So if you know a company that wants to be associated with the growing rugby scene, a fan keen to know how an old favourite is getting on in the Land of the Rising Sun or just plain curious as to what a Verblitz, Sungoliath or Voltex are, then spread the word.

Rugby News Japan wah ichi-ban desu.

This site will remain but all new stories, features etc will be updated to http://rugbynewsjapan.com

We are also on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/gorugbynewsjapan?fref=ts

And news updates can be found on Twitter at

https://twitter.com/FreemanrugbyJap

Japan forwards wilt under Georgian pressure

Japan's unbeaten run in test matches came to an end Sunday in Tbilisi as they were overpowered 35-24 by Georgia.

Hopes of an unbeaten 2014 vanished as the Brave Blossoms pack wilted badly, earning the wrath of referee Romain Poite early on.

The Frenchman eventually sent two Japan forwards to the bin, making a difficult task nigh on impossible, so to an extent it wasn't a bad effort to stay within 11 points.

Particularly as the side that started the game at Mikheil Meskhi Stadium was a long, long way short of the run-on XV that is expected to start Japan's opening game of Rugby World Cup 2015.

Japan coach Eddie Jones admitted his side were naive in dealing with Poite's interpretation at scrum time, while the players admitted they let themselves down with far too many errors.

The end result is Japan's record over the course of 2014 is 9-1, though if you include the two non-test matches against the Maori All Blacks, they lost three of the last four games.

As Jones said it was a good learning experience, and the Australian and his coaching crew will be burning the midnight oil as they look to rectify the problems that once again surfaced in the tight and at the breakdown.

On the bright side, the autumn games unearthed two gems in Amanaki Lelei Mafi and Karne Hesketh, who combined to score the try of the game, all the more amazing given it came from a scrum while Japan were a man down.

Lelei Mafi has real pace off the back of the scrum, while Hesketh was full of running and his vision and willingness to come off his wing resulted in two tries.

Keita Inagaki also had a good start to his international career and he count himself unlucky getting a yellow card on Sunday as it was more the result of Poite's impatience with the props that started the game than anything he did in his 14 minutes on the field.

The squad that reassembles in the new year will be markedly different with around 10 players set to return from injury, meaning a few of those involved in the past few weeks will need to lift up a gear or two in the remaining Top League games if they want to return to Europe in September next year for the World Cup.

Tokyo ex-pat rugby clubs remember a mate

Two of the ex-pat rugby sides in Tokyo, the Yokohama Country and Athletic Club -- the club that introduced rugby to Japan in the 1860s – and the Tokyo Crusaders, played one another for the MacFadyen Cup at the YC&AC’s ground in Yamate on Saturday.

The game is played in honour of Gareth MacFadyen, who died in December 2000 as a result of burns inflicted during a Christmas party in Auckland. Ironically he was also celebrating the fact that his employers, Merrill Lynch, were sending him back to Tokyo.

A graduate of Otago University, MacFadyen first played for the Crusaders in 1996, and during his three years in Japan made a great many friends in the rugby community. He also turned out for the YC&AC on occasions, including a run in the annual Interport game against the Kobe Regatta and Athletic Club.

The memorial game has been played between the two sides since 2001, with New Zealand referee Vinny Munro even being flown up one year to officiate, and while both clubs have seen a drop in player numbers in recent years there was still plenty of talent on display.

Japan Sevens rep Jamie Henry stole the show, showing the pace that saw him score one of the best tries ever seen in the Sevens World Series (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4weGzdvXeFI) as the YC&AC ran away with a 61-21 victory, after being 21-14 down early in the second half.

As YC&AC rugby club president Simon Ryan pointed out, “Gareth loved rugby and always took any opportunity to play for either club. It's fitting that today's match was played with the same passion and spirit that Gareth always played with.”

Leitch to miss Georgia test

Japan captain Michael Leitch will miss the Brave Blossoms' final game of the year against Georgia on Sunday after damaging his shoulder in last week's win over Romania.

Head coach Eddie Jones named his side Friday for the game in Tbilisi and said while Leitch could have played if it was a Rugby World Cup game, it made sense to rest him at this stage of the season. Hayden Hopgood comes in at openside flanker and prop Kensuke Hatakeyama leads the team in Leitch's absence.

Japan are looking to make it 12 test-match wins on the trot and finish off the calendar year unbeaten and they will do so with a team that show four changes and two positional switches from the side that started last week's 18-13 win.

"The obvious change from last week is Leitch is out injured," Jones said from Tbilisi. "The other change (in the pack) sees Luke Thompson back in the second row ahead of (Shinya) Makabe, who moves to the bench. We rested Luke for the Romania game so we are expecting a big performance from him in the Georgia game."

Behind the forwards, who will have their work cut out against one of the most physical packs in world rugby, the backs have been rejigged to allow the return of Yu Tamura at flyhalf.

"Tamura is back to full fitness so he takes over the 10 spot from Kosei (Ono), who played exceptionally well last week," said Jones, who brings in Harumichi Tatekawa at inside center.

"Haru has now come back into form so we've elevated him to a starting position at 12 with Male (Sa'u) out to 13 and (Kotaro) Matsushima to the right wing, which unfortunately means (Akihito) Yamada misses out on this game."

The two sides have met twice with Japan winning 32-7 in Osaka in May 2006, a game that saw Daisuke Ohata bag a hat-trick to become the leading try scorer in test-match rugby.

Two years ago, a last-minute drop goal by Ono -- in boots he was borrowing from Yasuki Hayashi after the flyhalf left his in Romania -- saw the Brave Blossoms beat the Lelos 25-22.

Jones said he was expecting a similarly tight affair on Sunday.

"It's the last game of the year so I am looking forward to playing some good rugby against a very physical and committed team."

Japan formally accepted into Super Rugby

Japan's entry into Super Rugby from 2016 is “a dream come true,” according to head coach Eddie Jones.

Speaking from Tbilisi where the Brave Blossoms are preparing to take on Georgia on Sunday, Jones said “Winning the Super Rugby bid is a great vote of confidence from the SANZAR group and we are very appreciative of Australia, New Zealand and South Africa support.”

Jones has long said that despite the huge improvements made in the Top League, Japanese players still struggled to bridge the gap from domestic rugby to test-match rugby.

That was all too apparent three weeks ago when a Japan XV were brushed aside by the Maori All Blacks in the first of their two-match series.

Most of the Maori had just finished playing in the ITM Cup and the killer instinct needed to play such a level of rugby came to the fore as they exploited Japan's mistakes to the full.

The Brave Blossoms bounced back the following week but the need to play at a higher level on a regular basis was all too apparent.

“For the development of the national team (Super Rugby) adds the missing cog with players being able to play a consistently high level of rugby against the best players in the world,” Jones said.

“It gives young kids aspiration to play international rugby regularly at home in Japan in one of the premier competitions in the world.”

Tatsuzo Yabe, Chairman of the JRFU also pointed out how important playing in Super Rugby would be for the development of the national team.

“It is absolutely essential for us to participate in the competition as we move toward a successful Rugby World Cup here in 2019. Joining the world’s highest international league is a challenge that will require significant transformation and tremendous efforts by us. However, it will certainly bring innovation to not only Japan, but also the Asian region as a whole,” he said.

“We are also convinced that participating in Super Rugby will encourage greater interest in our domestic rugby and it will become a big dream and goal for those who play rugby in Japan - especially younger generations - to compete at this level.”

While some questions were answered with the official announcement – such as the team will be based at Prince Chichibu Memorial Rugby Ground in Tokyo and will play three “home” games in Singapore – plenty remain unanswered.

Below is an edited and updated version of a piece I wrote for Kyodo News when news came through that SANZAR had decided to ditch the Singapore bid and were only dealing with the JRFU.

How can a Northern Hemisphere side play in a Southern Hemisphere competition? Who will run and finance the team? Where will the players come from? Who will coach the team?

This week the Waratahs – the reigning Super Rugby champions – began their preseason for the 2015 campaign. At the same time the Top League sides are getting ready to start the second half of their own season, which with playoffs and the All-Japan Championship means they will be playing domestic rugby through until February.

Kyodo News has already reported that the 2015-16 Top League season will be an abbreviated affair as a result of Rugby World Cup 2015 and Japan's entry into Super Rugby.

But what will happen in the long term?

One source connected with Japan's bid has said the mystery team would probably be the national team, along with three or four marquee players.

But if run by the JRFU, how will the contracts be drawn up?

"The JRFU are going to have to centrally contract players away from the companies because the companies won't support this privately; there's nothing in it for them as their competition becomes second tier," said NEC Green Rockets' Shaun Webb, who has played in Japan since 2005.

"Eighteen Super Rugby games, 12 tests. How many Top League games will the best Japanese boys play? Can the JRFU beat the companies with regards to paying the top players?"

"Also the appeal of playing Super Rugby for the best foreigners already here is probably secondary to money and lifestyle, with many of them, been there done that."

"If the Top League season is shortened to fit it all in, does this mean smaller Top League contracts for foreigners?"

Webb, who has been capped 35 times by the Brave Blossoms, suggests a possible solution would be for the "JRFU to contract the 35 best players."

"These players belong to them and play Super Rugby and most of them test rugby, while maintaining a connection with a company so they can play in the Top League if they haven't played much during the season or if their central contract isn't renewed," he said. "Again, not much in it for the companies and the JRFU is going to have to pony up."

The Japan men's sevens team has shown the problems that exist when players are not centrally contracted.

One week, coach Tomohiro Segawa has the pick of the best players in Japan and they run off with the Asian Games gold in comfortable fashion. The following weeks, those same players are recalled to their Top League teams and Japan fail to win a game in the Gold Coast Sevens and finishes third in the Asia Sevens Series.

But the general feeling is the JRFU cannot afford to contract the players needed.

A source close to the Singapore bid said the budget to run such a side would be around $20 million, and while the perception overseas is that Japanese rugby is in a healthy state financially, it is far from the truth.

While the companies have plenty of money to spend on their rugby sides, the JRFU has struggled for years, culminating in its starting a public fund last year in the hope of bringing in money to pay for its national teams -- this, in a country where thousands remain in temporary housing following the 2011 earthquake, tsunami and nuclear disasters.

The JRFU struggles as it is trying to promote the game and the Top League -- not to mention providing all the off-field support and staff needed for the national sides -- so how will it cope with a Super Rugby side?

Setting up a private franchise would seem to be the way to go, but that is one of the reasons SANZAR opted against the Singapore bid, according to Eric Series, the head of the group behind the Singaporean campaign.

"Perhaps the competition is not ready for a fully privately-owned club," Series said in a statement a day ahead of SANZAR's decision being made public.

As Jones said Friday when Japan were officially welcomed to one of the top rugby tournaments in the world, “There is a lot of work to go into it now.”

Looks can be deceptive

At first glance it may seem the posts here are slightly one-sided. And to all those that have their heart in the right place, I apologise.

Am in the process of setting up a newer and bigger site and once set up I hope to balance things out with some more positive pieces on rugby in Japan -- of which I have written plenty in the past.

As many have said - including those who have been here even longer than me - one of the frustrating things about rugby in Japan is the untapped potential. Not just the players who deserve better but the fans.

Japan really does have the potential to become a great rugby country but it needs to get rid of the shackles of the past.

Hopefully having a Super Rugby franchise and hosting Rugby World Cup 2019 will ensure that sense prevails.

Antiquated bukatsu system holds back rugby

Hold onto your hats because what I am about to say may shock a few.

The reason Japanese rugby has been held back over the years – and yes I know the Brave Blossoms are at an all time high in the world rankings but lower down the chain things aren't as good – isn't totally the fault of the Japan Rugby Football Union.

Yes that's right. The JRFU may have their problems but one of the fundamental problems with rugby and indeed all sports in Japan is actually out of their hands.

For a country of 120 million it has often been noted that Japan doesn't produce as many truly world class athletes as it should. And those it does have often benefited from overseas coaching and schooling.

And the reason is simple. The school club system does more harm than good when it comes to sport.

The way it works is that when a child enters junior high school he or she must choose one club or “bukatsu.” That can be the baseball club, the tennis club, rugby club, the brass band,,,whatever. And then for the next three years that child basically does nothing else outside his school time.

While kids in the rest of the world play three sports a year and develop basic motor and all-around sporting skills, children in Japan do one sport (if any) and they do it three to four hours a day, 350 days a year, often playing just a handful of games over the course of a year.

Not such a bad thing if you are getting proper coaching but for every school that specializes in a certain sport there are countless others that don't have enough qualified teachers or coaches meaning the older students end up “instructing” the younger children in marathon training sessions that generally feature nothing more than drill after drill after drill.

And in those schools that don't specialize in a sport, the school gravel playing field often serves as the rugby field, tennis courts, baseball and soccer pitch.

Things aren't always rosy, however, at those schools that do specialize in a certain sport. Clubs often have far too many members and far few games, meaning in three years, some players may not actually ever play a game. The old martial arts ethos is also prevalent meaning coaching often borders on the barbaric.

Every year a number of children die from heatstroke from being forced to run countless laps often for making a simple error or having the audacity to ask for a water break in temperatures in the mid 30s C.

While clubs become voluntary at high school and university, the same problems of the haves and have nots exist.

For every Waseda University or Higashi Fukuoka High School with their state of the art facilities, scholarships, huge squads and professional coaches, there are dozens of other colleges and schools that struggle to get 23 for a game.

As such there are countless kids who decide they have had enough by the time they leave school or university. Those that survive often only carry on because they see rugby as a way to get into a good company and basically get a job for life.

“One of the big differences between the foreign born players and the local players in the Japan squad is that many of the locals don't actually seem to enjoy rugby. They rarely watch a Super Rugby game when it is on TV. For them the sport is a duty or a way of life, not something to be enjoyed,” one eminent coach once told me.

And the problem is the conservative JRFU buys into it all.

One of the reasons football (soccer) has taken off is that the JFA has dared to challenge the status quo.

While rugby players can't play for any club outside of their schools – resulting in university and even high school boys at times being prevented from playing for their country, let alone a Top League side – soccer players can join academies run by all the professional clubs at the same time as playing for their schools.

That relationship continues at university level with players allowed to play for J.League sides while studying – in marked contrast to the (non)-relationship between collegiate rugby and the Top League.

As I said, the JRFU isn't totally at fault but they don't help matters, preferring to keep with the system they all went through as kids.

A few years ago I did a one-on-one interview with former prime minister Yoshiro Mori, the president of the JRFU.

Now I have it on very good authority from someone who used to deal with Mori-san on a regular basis that he is passionate about Japan doing well in rugby and that he is more informed on things than he perhaps lets on at times.

But two parts of the interview show that when it comes to things such as bukatsu, summer training camps and the reluctance to follow successful sporting nations, the old “This is Japan, this is the way we do things here,” comes to the fore.

“It is human nature,” Mori said, “that when you give a rugby ball to a child he will start running with it.”

“Not in Japan,” I said.

Mori was shocked.

“I have coached in England, South Africa, America and Japan,” I told him. “The first thing I often did was throw a ball to a group of children and say 'off you go.' More often than not the kids would wait and then divide into teams and play a game of touch. In Japan they just waited and waited and then finally started doing a training drill that has no relevance in a game.”

As you could imagine there was silence. So I decided to get in my next dig.

“Why is rugby played or rather why do players continue training in the height of summer? It's dangerous for one, and kids need a break. They need to recover from injuries.”

“But we are rugger men,” was Mori's response.

“I know, so am I. But there were times when we had a bad season when it was good to take a break. It allowed us to play another sport and then come back to rugby refreshed.”

“But we are rugger men.”

“I know. But every school has a pool. Let the kids spend the summer playing water polo. It's just as physical and is great for fitness, eye to hand coordination and peripheral vision.”

“But we are rugger men.”

Surely it's no coincidence that Japan's most capped player, Hitoshi Ono, still going strong at 36 and loving every minute he plays and trains, didn't start playing rugby until he was at university.

Stay tuned for newer, bigger site

Am in the process of setting up a newer, bigger site that will encompass everything to do with rugby in Japan. Until then please bear with me.

Up to date news can be found on http://english.kyodonews.jp/news/sports/ (for subscribers).

Recent stories

http://english.kyodonews.jp/news/2014/11/322656.html?searchType=site&req_type=article&phrase=rugby

http://english.kyodonews.jp/news/2014/11/322278.html?searchType=site&req_type=article&phrase=rugby

http://english.kyodonews.jp/news/2014/11/322054.html?searchType=site&req_type=article&phrase=rugby

http://english.kyodonews.jp/news/2014/11/321851.html?searchType=site&req_type=article&phrase=rugby

http://english.kyodonews.jp/news/2014/11/321335.html?searchType=site&req_type=article&phrase=rugby

http://english.kyodonews.jp/news/2014/11/321135.html?searchType=site&req_type=article&phrase=rugby

http://english.kyodonews.jp/news/2014/11/320947.html?searchType=site&req_type=article&phrase=rugby

I will also be posting flash news on Twitter @freemanrugbyjap as well as links open to all that use the Kyodo stories.

Such as

http://www.houseofjapan.com/sport/rugby-goromaru-s-boot-helps-japan-keep-win-streak-alive-vs-romania

http://mainichi.jp/english/english/newsselect/news/20141108p2g00m0sp082000c.html

http://mainichi.jp/english/english/newsselect/news/20141019p2g00m0sp105000c.html

Japanese rugby lacks wa

The Japan Rugby Football Union have over recent years adopted the phrase “All for one, one for all,” as their catchphrase.

So often as it been used by former prime minister Yoshiro Mori, the union's president, that it has started to appear in other walks of life in Japan as a modern day version of the spirit of wa.

The problem is actions speak louder than words and over the years the various bodies that run rugby in Japan have shown they are anything but united in their bid to promote the sport.

On Thursday afternoon the Kansai Rugby Football Union sent out a tweet with a link to the sides for Saturday's game in Kansai between a Japan XV and the Maori All Blacks.

     

To the outsider it seemed like the union was supporting an event in its jurisdiction. But to those in the know it was nothing more than a sham, as that same body had already scheduled a heap of university games for the same day.

“Pretty much university player in Kansai will be either playing or obliged to watch their own B team players in these fixtures,” said one frustrated coach.

     

Former players also spoke of their dismay at the decision, saying it made no sense.

     

To those outside Japan it may seem a trivial matter – “They don't stop junior rugby in London when England play” was one comment posted on the subject from someone in the U.K. - but that's forgetting one important fact.

     

Rugby is not a major sport in Japan. Player numbers are declining, as are crowds at Top League and university games. With Rugby World Cup 2019 just five years away the union should be doing all it can to encourage rugby players and fans and those new to the sport to attend big matches, especially those involving the national team.

     

“It's pretty disappointing but there is nothing we can do about it. It's out of our hands,” was Japan coach Eddie Jones' take on the issue.

     

It's not the first time Jones has spoken out on the issue as there have been a number of occasions in the past when sides (Top League, university and schoolboy) were prevented from watching the Brave Blossoms because of preseason games or training sessions.

     

Back in 2009 a number of players contacted me when they realized they were being forced to play in a club competition on the day Tokyo hosted the final of the IRB Junior World Championship.

     

When asked why the clash of schedules, the JRFU said it was out of their hands and was the responsibility of the East Japan Rugby Football Union, who in turn said it was nothing to do with them, it was, they said, the Kanagawa union that had decided the dates of the club games.

     

The same set of excuses have also been used over the past few years for high school tournaments being scheduled at the time as the Tokyo Sevens, which is set to be cut from 2016 following some less than spectacular attendances. 

     

Over the years players have been prevented from playing for the national team because the dates of the tests clash with “the more important” university games, with the most recent example coming in 2013 when Kenki Fukuoka and Yoshikazu Fujita were both forced home early from the Brave Blossoms' tour of Europe.

     

What makes the situation all the more frustrating is that there have been examples of that “All for one, one for all” spirit, and they have shown just what can be if things are done properly and with the interests of the game at heart.

     

In 2013, legendary former Japan wing Demi Sakata managed to persuade the schools and clubs near Hanazono Stadium to cancel all games and training sessions on the day Japan played Wales. The result, a sold-out stadium, the first in Osaka for many a year.

     

But with committees more often than not over-ruling enlightened souls Sakata's actions remain an exception not the norm.

     

With so many committees and bodies putting their own interests ahead of the game and the national team, it's no wonder little has really changed in the way rugby is mis-run in Japan.

     

So much for the concept of wa.