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Report: Japanese executive pushing for Top League inclusion in new Southern Hemisphere competition

(Photo by Koki Nagahama/Getty Images)

As the trans-Tasman war of words rages on between New Zealand and Australia over the future of a revamped Super Rugby competition, a Japanese executive has expressed his eagerness for Japan to stay involved in the Southern Hemisphere club game.

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The expulsion of the Sunwolves from Super Rugby beyond this year was expected to eradicate Japan from the SANZAAR competition, as the league prepared to revert to a 14-team, round-robin format in 2021.

The COVID-19 outbreak has forced a re-think about how Super Rugby’s future, however, with New Zealand and Australia set to join forces to form a new tournament.

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Both countries have created makeshift domestic competitions featuring their respective franchises – and, in Australia’s case, the Western Force – but plans for a cross-border league between the two nations has sparked debate and controversy.

That’s New Zealand Rugby last week revealed plans for an eight-to-10 team competition to take place next year that would comprise of all five Kiwi franchises, a Pasifika team and between two-to-four Australian sides.

NZR said that the Australian teams would be invited to join the league, but a decision on how many sides from Australia would take part would be at the discretion of the Kiwi organisation based on factors including player numbers and welfare and financial strength.

Executives and pundits on the other side of the Tasman Sea, however, have been critical about the fact that there could be as few as two Australian teams in the proposed competition.

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Rugby Australia chairman Hamish McLennan has gone on to describe his organisation’s relationship with their Kiwi counterparts as that of a “master-servant” dynamic, while ex-RA boss John O’Neill has hit back at former All Blacks coach Steve Hansen’s claim that NZR doesn’t owe Australia anything.

Current All Blacks boss Ian Foster has also weighed into the debate, as have scribes from New Zealand, Australia and England, but the potential inclusion of Japanese teams is an aspect of the conversation that has seemingly flown under the radar.

However, Japan Rugby Football Union director Yuichiro Fujii is looking capitalise on the re-structure of Super Rugby as part of his task of strengthening the Brave Blossoms ahead of their 2023 World Cup campaign.

Fujii believes that Japan’s top clubs must compete against the best teams in the Southern Hemisphere if the national side is to enjoy the kind of success they found at last year’s World Cup, where they finished as quarter-finalists for the first time ever.

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“It will improve the level and value of the domestic league and gain us international experience,” Fujii said, according to Kyodo News.

Despite their on-field struggles against teams from New Zealand, Australia, South Africa and Argentina, the addition of the Sunwolves into Super Rugby in 2016 was credited as part of the reason behind Japan’s success at the 2019 World Cup.

Although the Tokyo-based franchise have since dissipated, Fujii is hopeful of exposing the best teams from Japan’s star-studded Top League to the best from New Zealand, Australia and the Pacific.

Backed by national coach Jamie Joseph, Fujii will present his plans for Japanese involvement with teams from the Southern Hemisphere to the JRFU.

Kyodo News said a potential format could see the Top League champions and another squad made up of players from around the league – similar to that of the Sunwolves – take part in a new competition.

Fujii said the July international window would need to be moved to autumn – potentially in place of the Rugby Championship, which has been the subject of being re-scheduled to March and April – to free up room on the calendar for such a league.

“If it’s held in June and July, it wouldn’t overlap with either the Top League or national team activities,” he said.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CCJHB_hgvr3/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link

The Top League has proven to be a popular destination for players from New Zealand, Australia and South Africa looking to ply their trade abroad.

The COVID-19 pandemic forced the cancellation of the 2020 season, but new signings for that campaign included Sam Whitelock, Brodie Retallick, Malcolm Marx, Samu Kerevi, Damien de Allende, Bernard Foley, Christian Lealiifano, Duane Vermeulen, Matt Todd, David Pocock, Liam Squire, Kwagga Smith and Ryan Crotty, to name a few.

Other foreign stars, such as Dan Carter and Matt Giteau, were already playing in Japan’s premier club competition, while members of the successful Japanese World Cup squad feature prominently throughout the league.

All Blacks playmaker and two-time World Rugby Player of the Year Beauden Barrett is the latest overseas star to join the Top League ranks, as he will link up with Suntory Sungoliath next year on a six-month sabbatical deal reportedly worth NZ$1.5m.

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Eliza Galloway 1 hour ago
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JW 1 hour ago
James O'Connor, the Lions and the great club v country conundrum

Lol you need to shoot your editor for that headline, even I near skipped the article.


France simply need to go to a league format for the Brennus, that will shave two weekends of pointless knockout rugby from their season and raise the competitions standards and mystique no end.


The under age loophole is also a easy door to shut, just remove the lower age limit. WR simply never envisioned a day were teams would target people under the age of 17 or whatever it is now, but much like with Rassie and his use of subs bench, that day was obviously always going to come. I can’t remember how football does it, I think it’s the other way around with them, you can’t sign anyone younger than that but unions can’t stop 17 or 18 yo’s from leaving for a pro club if they want to. There is a transaction that takes place of a few hundred thousand for a normal average player. I’d prefer rugby to be stricter and just keep the union bodies signoff being required.


What really was their problem with Kite and co leaving though? Do we really need a game dominated by Internationals? I even think WR’s proposed calendar might be a bit too much, with at minimum 12 top tier games being played in the World Championship. I think 10 to 12, maybe any one player playing 10 of those 12 is the best way to think of it, for every international team is max, so that they can allow their domestic comps to shine if they want, and other nations like Japan and Fiji can, even some of the home nations maybe, and fill out their calendar with extra tours if they like them as a way to make money. As it is RA don’t have as good a pathway system, so they could simply buy back those players if they turn good. Are they worried they’ll be less likely to? We wait for baited breath for the new season to be laid out in front of us by WR.

It could impose sanctions on the Fédération Française de Rugby, but the body which runs the Top 14 and the ProD2, the Ligue Nationale de Rugby, is entirely independent.

It’s not independent at all. The LNR is a body under, and commissioned by, the FFR (and Government control) to mediate the clubs. FFR can simply install a new club competition if they don’t listen, then you’d see whether the players want to stay at any club who doesn’t tow the line and move to the new competition, as they obviously wouldn’t fall under the auspice of world rugby. They would be rebels, which is fine in and upon itself, but they would isolate themselves from the rest of the game and would need to be OK with that. I have no doubt whatsoever that clubs would have to and want to fall in line to remain part of the EPCR and French rugby. Probably even the last thing they would want is to compete with another French domestic competition that has all the advantages they don’t.


All those players would do good for a few seasons in France, especially the fringe ones, with thankfully zero risk of them being poached if they turn good. New Zealand had a turn at keeping all of it’s talent, and while it upticked the competitiveness of the Super Rugby teams into a total dominance of Australian and South African counterparts (who were suffering more heavily than most the other way at that stage), it didn’t have as positive an effect on the next step up as ensuring young talents development is not hindered does. Essentially NZR flooded the locate market with players but inevitably it didn’t think the local economy could sustain any more pro teams itself, so now we are seeing a normal amount of exodus for the availability of places again. Are Australia in exactly the same footing? I think so, finances where dicey for a while perhaps but I doubt they are putting money constraints on their contracting now. It’s purely about who leaves to open up opportunity.

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