CONGRATULATIONS RIJ newsletter celebrates it’s 10th anniversary
RiJ reports on the biggest news of the week with Teikyo beating Tsukuba 39-22 to become the first university to win four National University Championship titles in a row. The Top Challenge Series continues with Coca-Cola and Kubota chalking up wins, but all will be resolved with the third and final round to be played next weekend.
Enjoy the read.
Ian McDonnell lives and works in Japan. He can be contacted at ianmcdo@apost.plala.or.jp
CONTENTS
- Japan Rugby Top League: Semi-finals and finals fixtures
- Top League Wildcard Tournament
- Top League Promotion and Relegation: Top Challenge Series 2012-13
- 49th University Championship 2012-2013 Final
- Club Rugby
- Final Top League Promotion-Relegation Playoffs
Japan Rugby Top League 2012-13
Previous Top League Champions
2011-12: Suntory Sungoliath
2010-11: Sanyo Wild Knights
2009-10: Toshiba Brave Lupus
2008-9: Toshiba Brave Lupus
2007-8: Suntory Sungoliath
2006-7: Toshiba Brave Lupus
2005-6: Toshiba Brave Lupus
2004-5: Toshiba Brave Lupus
2003-4: Kobe Steelers
Semi-final One
Suntory Sungoliath (Top League 1) v Kobe Kobelco Steelers (Top League 4)
Date: Saturday, 19 January 2013
Venue: Prince Chichibu Memorial Rugby Ground, Tokyo
Kick-off: 14:00
Semi-final Two
Toshiba Brave Lupus (Top League 2)v Panasonic Wild Knights (Top League 3)
Date: Sunday, 20 January 2013
Venue: Prince Chichibu Memorial Rugby Ground, Tokyo
Kick-off: 14:00
Wildcard Tournament 2013
The Wildcard Tournament is in its fourth year in 2013 and it is designed to be a means of entry to the National Championship for sides that finish outside the top four on the final table in Japan Rugby Top League.
Over the first two years, the six Top League sides that finished fifth to tenth on the final league table after all thirteen rounds were completed played off over two weekends to determine the final two Top League participants in the National Championship after the top four Top League finishers gained automatic qualification. The teams that finished fifth and sixth had the advantage of waiting out the first weekend to play the winners of the teams that finished seventh to tenth.
However, in 2012 the Wildcard Tournament was abbreviated to the four teams that finished fifth to eighth.
For 2013, the Wildcard Tournament again features the six teams, that is, the six teams that finished fifth to tenth on the final Top League table for the 2012-13 season. In the first round, eighth plays ninth with the winner playing fifth the following week in round two while seventh plays tenth with the winner playing sixth. The two winners from the second round will qualify for the National Championship as Wildcard Qualifiers. Toyota Verblitz finished in fifth place, Yamaha Jubilo sixth, Kintetsu Liners seventh, NEC Green Rockets eighth, NTT Communications Shining Arcs ninth and Ricoh Black Rams tenth.
Round One
NEC Green Rockets (Top League 8) v NTT Communications Shining Arcs (Top League 9)
Date: Sunday, 20 January 2013
Venue: Kintetsu Hanazono Rugby Ground, Osaka
Kick-off: 12:00
Kintetsu Liners (Top League 7) v Ricoh Black Rams (Top League 10)
Date: Sunday, 20 January 2013
Venue: Kintetsu Hanazono Rugby Ground, Osaka
Kick-off: 14:00
Round Two
Yamaha Jubilo (Top League 6) v winner Kintetsu v Ricoh
Date: Saturday, 26 January 2013
Venue: Kintetsu Hanazono Rugby Ground, Osaka
Kick-off: 12:00
Toyota Verblitz (Top League 5) v winner NEC v NTT Comm.
Date: Saturday, 26 January 2013
Venue: Kintetsu Hanazono Rugby Ground, Osaka
Kick-off: 14:00
Top Challenge One 2012-13
The sides to contest Top Challenge One 2012-13 are: Kubota Spears (Top East), Toyota Industries Shuttles (Top West), Coca-Cola West Red Sparks (Top Kyushu) together with Mitsubishi Dynaboars as the winner of Top Challenge Two. In a round robin tournament over three rounds the top two placed sides will gain automatic promotion to Top League for the 2013-14 season.
| Pos. | Team | P | W | L | F | A | +/- | BP1 | BP2 | Pts |
|
| Coca-Cola | 2 | 2 | 0 | 63 | 53 | 10 | 2 | 0 | 10 |
|
| Kubota | 2 | 1 | 1 | 63 | 67 | -4 | 1 | 1 | 6 |
|
| Toyota Ind. | 2 | 1 | 1 | 56 | 48 | 8 | 0 | 1 | 5 |
|
| Mitsubishi | 2 | 0 | 2 | 38 | 52 | -14 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
Round 2
Coca-Cola West Red Sparks (Top Kyushu 1) 26 (4Ts) d Mitsubishi Dynaboars (Winner TC2) 22 (3Ts)
Date: Saturday, 12 January 2013
Venue: Kintetsu Hanazono Rugby Ground, Osaka
Kick-off: 12:00
Coca-Cola five-eighth Tetsuya Fukuda and lock Yusaku Kuwazuru scored first half tries to help the Red Sparks to a 14-8 lead over Mitsubishi Dynaboars by halftime in their second round clash in the Top Challenge One Series. The lead was then extended to 26-8 midway through the latter half after additional tries to prop Hirotaka Hirabara and wing Masahiro Tsuiki before the Dynaboars staged a late fight back with two converted tries getting them to 26-22 inside the final ten minutes of play but time ran out and Coca-Cola held on for their second straight win in the series. Coca-Cola are now in the box seat for a return to Top League after playing this past season in the Kyushu league.
Kubota Spears (Top East 1) 32 (4Ts) d Toyota industries Shuttles (Top West 1) 30 (3Ts)
Date: Saturday, 12 January 2013
Venue: Kintetsu Hanazono Rugby Ground, Osaka
Kick-off: 12:00
In a tight first half between Toyota Industries and Kubota, it was the respective five-eighths that had most influence on the scoreboard with former Wallabies Mark Gerrard booting a conversion and two penalties for the Shuttles while young Japan representative Harumichi Tatekawa kicked a conversion and a penalty to help Kubota to a slender 15-13 lead by the break. Tatekawa led the way in the second half with an early try and two conversions to push out the score to 29-13 before the Shuttles found another gear with South African Ryan Kankowski touching down while Gerrard added two conversions and a penalty to grab the lead 30-29. Late in the piece, Tatekawa slotted his second penalty of the afternoon for Kubota to retake the lead and hold on long enough to take the game 32-30.
Round 3
Sunday, 20 January 2013
Kubota Spears (Top East 1) v Mitsubishi Dynaboars (Winner TC2), TBC, 12:00.
Coca-Cola West Red Sparks (Top Kyushu 1) v Toyota industries Shuttles (Top West 1), TBC, 14:00.
49th National University Championship 2012-13
Final
Sunday 13 January 2013
National Stadium, Tokyo
Teikyo University (1st in Pool D) 39 d Tsukuba University (1st in Pool A) 22
Teikyo became the first university to win four National University titles in a row when they defeated Tsukuba 39-22 in front of 20,050 fans in the final of the 49th National University Championship at the National Stadium in Tokyo in bright sunny conditions on Sunday 13 January 2013.
Teikyo got their university title defence off on the right foot with tries to left wing Yasunari Isoda and five-eighth Ryoto Nakamura helping to create an early 15-3 lead over title hopefuls Tsukuba. Then, in the 32nd minute, right wing Hirotomo Ono got the perfect bounce from a chip kick to touch down and stretch the lead to 22-3 before Tsukuba struck back in the shadows of halftime with left wing Kenki Fukuoka doing it all himself with a kick and chase down the left flank for the opening try to the challengers to narrow the difference to 22-10, the eventual halftime score.
As the second half progressed, the experience of playing in their fifth final in a row came to the fore with Teikyo edging ahead with tries to flanker Kohei Matsunaga in the tenth minute and prop Yukio Morikawa in the sixteenth minute blowing out the score to 34-10. Fullback Yoshizumi Takeda confirmed the win with the sixth Teikyo try in the thirtieth minute to make it 39-10 and although Tsukuba rallied over the final ten minutes with tries to right wing Masakatsu Hikosaka and halfback Keisuke Uchida narrowing the difference to 39-22, Teikyo had the runs on the board as they made history with four titles in a row.
Club Rugby
The semi-finals of the 20th Club Rugby Championship will he played at Kumagaya in Saitama on Sunday 13 January 2013 with Gifu Seiryu Ruggers (Kansai 2) playing Hokkaido Barbarians (Kanto 1) at 12:00 and Rokko Fighting Bull (Kansai 1) playing Kanagawa Tamariba Club (Kanto 2) at 14:00. The final will be played at Chichibu in Tokyo on Sunday 20 January 2013 at 12:00 before the Top League semi-final between Toshiba and Panasonic.
Final Top League Promotion and Relegation Play-offs
At the completion of all thirteen rounds of the Japan Rugby Top League 2012-13 season, NTT Docomo Red Hurricanes finished thirteenth and Fukuoka Sanix Blues finished in fourteenth and last place on the table. To retain their places in the expanded sixteen-team Top League competition for the 2013-14 season NTT Docomo and Sanix will have to play a one-off promotion and relegation play-off against the teams that finish fourth and third respectively in the Top Challenge One Series.
Fukuoka Sanix Blues (Top League 14) v the team that finishes third in Top Challenge One
Date: Sunday, 03 February 2013
Venue: Level Five Stadium, Fukuoka
Kick-off: 13:00
NTT Docomo Red Hurricanes (Top League 13) v the team that finishes fourth in Top Challenge One
Date: Saturday, 09 February 2013
Venue: Kintetsu Hanazono Rugby Ground, Osaka
Kick-off: 13:00
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