Tag - top-league

 
 

TOP LEAGUE

Japan Times
Rugby
Jan 6, 2022
Japan's new rugby league kicks off with lofty ambitions
The newly minted Japan Rugby League One aims to recruit the world's top players and build upon the enthusiasm generated by Japan's successful hosting of the 2019 World Cup.
Japan Times
Rugby
May 25, 2021
Retiring Kenki Fukuoka given MVP sendoff at Top League awards
The former Brave Blossoms star, whose Wild Knights won the league's last championship final over Sungoliath, received one last honor at Monday's event after bringing his five-year career to a close.
Japan Times
Rugby
May 23, 2021
Kenki Fukuoka retires a champion as Panasonic wins last Top League
Sunday's victory over Sungoliath marked the finale of the former Brave Blossom's playing career as well as the end of All Blacks star Beau Barrett's time in Japan.
Japan Times
Rugby
May 16, 2021
Beau Barrett leads Suntory into Top League final
The All Blacks star kicked 21 points as the Sungoliath set up a championship showdown with Panasonic.
Japan Times
Rugby
May 16, 2021
Panasonic heads to final after clinical win over Toyota
The Wild Knights are looking for their fifth Top League championship after Kenki Fukuoka delivered three tries against Verblitz behind closed doors at Hanazono.
Japan Times
Rugby
Apr 25, 2021
World Cup icon Ayumu Goromaru ends rugby career after playoff loss
Ayumu Goromaru, whose 2015 Rugby World Cup performance made him a household name in Japan, marked his final match on Saturday, when his club Yamaha Jubilo lost 46-12 in the second round of the Top League playoffs to Kubota Spears.
Japan Times
Rugby
Mar 29, 2021
Medical school-bound Kenki Fukuoka to play rest of Top League season
Rugby World Cup star Kenki Fukuoka will play the rest of the Top League season with the Panasonic Wild Knights while balancing his studies at medical school from April, the team said Monday.
Japan Times
Rugby
Mar 7, 2021
Ayumu Goromaru scores 15 in return; Suntory remains on top of league
New Zealand playmaker Beauden Barrett scored a try and banged over 10 conversions in the Japan Rugby Top League on Saturday, helping lift Suntory Sungoliath to a 75-10 win over Munakata Sanix Blues.
Japan Times
Rugby
Feb 20, 2021
NTT victory helps put Top League's international flavor on display
Players from five different nations scored for NTT Communications on Saturday as the Shining Arcs opened the final Japan Rugby Top League season with a 41-13 win over Honda Heat.
Japan Times
Rugby
Jan 23, 2021
Top League revises format, schedule for 2021 campaign
The start of the campaign is now set for Feb. 20 and will run until April 11.
Japan Times
Rugby
Jan 22, 2021
Top League cancels opening four rounds through Feb. 7
The first four rounds of the new Top League season have been canceled and tickets will be refunded, the Japan Rugby Football Union announced Thursday.
Japan Times
Rugby
Jan 15, 2021
New rugby league to feature two-conference top flight with 12 teams
The Japan Rugby Football Union hopes a larger first division will result in higher-quality matches when the new league kicks off in January 2022.
Japan Times
Rugby
Jan 14, 2021
Top League delays start of season due to COVID-19 outbreak
On Tuesday, the JFRU said 24 players and staff at Canon Eagles, 13 from Toyota Verblitz, and seven from Suntory Sungoliath tested positive in preseason screening.
Japan Times
Rugby
Jan 12, 2021
Top League cancels two games due to COVID-19 cases among three teams
The JRFU said a total of 44 players and staff tested positive for the virus, including 24 from Canon Eagles, 13 from Toyota Verblitz, and seven from Suntory Sungoliath.
Japan Times
SPORTS
Jan 8, 2021
Japanese sports brace for impact of new state of emergency
Upcoming sumo and rugby events will allow spectators, while pro basketball's B. League has raised concerns over restrictions covering the sale of food and drinks.
Japan Times
Rugby
Jan 6, 2021
Beauden Barrett looking forward to Sungoliath challenge
The All Blacks star drew unprecedented media attention to his Wednesday unveiling ahead of the 2021 Top League season's Jan. 16 kickoff.
Japan Times
Rugby
Dec 16, 2020
Ayumu Goromaru says upcoming retirement part of plan that began after college
The former Japan national team star fullback said he always planned to retire the year he turned 35.
Japan Times
Rugby
Nov 9, 2020
Top League moves big-name season opener to National Stadium
The Japan Rugby Top League announced Monday it will go back to the future by moving its Jan. 16 season opener to the National Stadium, the centerpiece of the postponed Tokyo Olympics.
Japan Times
Rugby
Sep 29, 2020
Top League reveals 2021 format in final season before pro league
The Japan Rugby Top League announced Monday the format for its 2021 season, the last planned before the launch of a new professional competition the following year.
Japan Times
Rugby
Sep 25, 2020
JRFU rules certain Japan passport holders can't be treated as locals
The decision came after three foreign-born Top League players called for the rule to be overturned.

Longform

A statue of "Dragon Ball" character Goku stands outside the offices of Bandai Namco in Tokyo. The figure is now as recognizable as such characters as Mickey Mouse and Spider-Man.
Akira Toriyama's gift to the world